The record-union., 1893-12-28
FOUND AN EAR ON HIS DOORSTEP
The Result of Trying to Break Into the
House of Crippled Veteran.

House of a Crippled Veteran.
Lewis David, crippled veteran of the
late war, lives six miles back in the
mountains from Moosic, Pa, in rude
house which he himself built without any
aid from logs he cut in the woods sur
rounding his habitation, says the New
York Sun. He lives alone. For years
he has tramped TO Moosic every three
months to draw his pension. He returns
Immediately to his lone cabin in the
mountains. He never leaves his home
except ou these occasions. 1t is sup
posed that he has money secreted IN his
cabin, as he has never been known TO use
more than q dollar or two In buying sup
plies on his quarterly visits TO Mooslc
| The other day TWO hunters were passing
the old Veterans cabin. He sat at his
door smoking. He called to the hunters
and they stopped.
Look what l found on my doorstep
last night" he said, and held up man S
ear.
Before the hunters could recover from
their surprise sufficiently to say anything
the veteran said:
Jpn tell how 1 think it must have come
to be on my doorstep. Some time during
last night L kind O. woke up, and heard
noises that sounded like some one talk
ing in smothered sort o. way. l listened
| from that clump o. bushes yonder. /
knew there couldn't be voices unless
there was somebody with them, and l
watched out of the upstairs window
The moon was shining bright and L
! hadn't watched long before | saw two
men crawl out of the bushes and sneak
toward the door. When they got TO the
door they began TO force it open. Then l
made up my mind that they wanted to
rot in NIT clyi, n a.
the ladder TO the lower room and threw
my body against the door.
"'Open that door, one of the men hol-
| lered,' or We'll blow your head off,
'''ve got sword that l brought home
with me when L left the army, and that's
all the weapon I've got. l reached for
that. The men pushed and showed until
they forced the door open OH crack, and
one of them got his head through. L
head as hard as l could. The man
dropped as if he'd been shot and laid
grOaning on the sill. T'other man
dragged him out just in time 10 save his
friend from getting another lab with the
sword, and l shut the door and put a
table and a grindstone and a barrel
against it, while the one man was look
ing to see what had happened to the other.
1t wasn't long, though, before / heard a
lOuQ AGpOIbs anu Dull0O Cdll0 CACctA
through the door, which amt very thick,
and whizzed by my ear. Then there
came crash against the door, and it was
forced partially open. 1 saw part of the
body of a man and made jab at it with
the sword. The man grabbed the blade,
but after a struggle l yanked it away and
gave another jab, and hard one. l heard
yell and someone hollered.
"'My God Pm stabbed p
81 pushed the door shut and barricaded
it. There were groans and means a-plenty
outside. went up the ladder again by
and by and looked out of the window.
And what do you think l saw? One of
the chap smaking for the woods with the
other one on his back. l knew they
wouldn't return, and 1 went 10 bed.
When l got up this morning L found this
ear on the doorstep. And you can see for
yourself that track of blood leading into
the woods"
There was no mistaking that fact The
hunters followed the trail until it entered
the thick brush and went off toward the
head of Panther Greek.
That's the way L think this ear must
have come to be on the doorstep" said
the veteran, when the hunters came back.
''If you find anyone who has lost an ear,
tell him to come up here and maybe he
can find it."