The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1894-07-26
IN THE KENTUCKY MOUNTAINS.
\ Native Who Was Passing Rich with a
Fortune of Twenty-Seven Dollars.

Il had glimpse of life in The Ken
lucky mountains the other day that
Will not soon forget. said a capitalist to
Louisville COricr-Jo4rHai reporter.
Il made a trip into that section as the
repre- sentative of a syndicate To look at
some coal lands. | went rs far as |
could by rail, and then took horse and
rode into the wilderness Toward
night i brought up at little cabin, of
which | had been previously informed,
and made arrangements to spend the
night there. This cabin was about
twenty feet long by about twelve feet
wide On the ground floor it was all
one room. Above was Il loft. to which
access was gained by means of lad
der and 4 hole in the floor There was
little corn growing around the place
and there were two hogs. In the real
OF the. cabin was Il low shed. open ut
one esd and with Il slanting roof. 1t
was just bio enough to hold COW 1T
night. The COW, which was lean.
woe-begone animal the two hogs. and
the cQn constituted apparently the en-
tire assets of the place.
In this establishment were living
man and his wife and eight children.
the Oldest being II years They lived
on ca:.t meal and milk, with OCCASION
ally s:mc pork. Both the man and the
woman were barefOoted. The elder
children had clothes enough to cover
their AakedneSs. but the Younger were
not Sc fortunate. The man seemed to
be a slow, dull sort of fellow, who had
lived in restitution 50 long that he had
become used to it. The woman was
different Her face wore an expression
of affect despair. If painter had
wanted a model for a picture entitled
.Hopclessncss, he need have gone no
further. After supper the man went
out To feed the hogs and the COW, and
do other chores
Il talked to the woman for about an
hour, and succeeded with great diff
Guilty in getting her story. Her pride
stood:i in the way of her telling me any
thing for Il long time. During all the
time in which she talked the expression
of dull listlessness. to which her face
had become habituated never left it but
once. Then look of something like
happiness came over her features This
was when she said that they had not al
ways been poor. We weren't ALWAYS
this way, she said. We were we'll off
once. We saved enough. him and me.
so that we were rich. We had So laid
away once That was her idea of
wealth. Twenty-seyen dollars, She
went on to say that the children had
come fast; that a COW had to be bought.
and that she cost SIS The children
had fallen sick, and a doctor had to be
brought in from civilization. and he cost
s., and SO it went till their fortune had
gone and they had nothing left of that
magnificent S27
The next morning | paid them my
lodging. | had slept in the loft and
the family had slept in the room below
None of them took off their clothes |
had Brought with me huge lot of roast
beef sandwiches, and ate three for my
supper and breakfast, for | had been
warmed that | probably could not get
anything to eat there. Before leaving
| took S27, and, wrapping it up in a
newspaper, left it on the table in the
middle of room. Then | rode away,
feeling vastly pleased with myself and
knowing that there was one mountain
GERS family in Kentucky that had re-
covered its lost fortune"