Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1894-07-06
m The KENTUCKY MOUNTAINS.
Family Passing Rich with Fortune CT
TMcntY-rcNcn Dollars.

Il had aglimpgc of life in the Kentucky
mountains one day that will not soon for
get, said "a capitalist to reporter
made trip into that section as the repre-
| sentative Of syndicate Ia look 1t some
coal lands. went It's for as | could by
rail and then took horse and rode into
tho Wilderness. Toward night brought
up ~ u little cabin, of which Lad been
previously Informed, and mado arra. go-
ments To spend the nj ght there. This cabin
WAS about 90 feet long by about lo fest
wide. On the ground floor IL was all one
room. Above was loft, TO viii, II GCccas
was gained by means Of ladder and a
hole in the floor. There was littlo corn
growing around tho place ana there were
two hogs In the rear Of the cabin was
u low shed, open at one end and with
slanting roof II vas just big enough to
hold COW at night. The cow, which was
a lean, woebcgonc animal, the two hogs
and the corn constituted apparently the
entire assets Of the place.
In this establishment were living q
man and his wife and eight children, the
oldest 2 years. They lived on cornmeal
and milk, with occasionally some pork
Both tho man and the woman were bare
footed. Tie elder children had clothes
enough to cover their nakcdncss, and the
younger were not SO fortunate The man
was n slow, dull sort of fellow who had
lived in destitution so long that he had
become used to it. The woman was differ
ent. Her face wore an expression of abjcct
despair. If a painter had wanted a model
for q picture entitled 'Hopelessness, he
need have gone no further. After supper
the man went out TO feed the hogs and the
cow and do other chores
II talked TO tho woman for about an
hour, and succeeded with great difficulty
in gctting her story. Her pride stood in
the way Of her telling me anything for q
long time During all the time in which
she talked the expression of dull listless-
ness, to which her face had become habit
uated, never left &c but once. Then n look Of
something like happiness came over her
features. This was when she said that
they had not always 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 1927
laid away once. That was her idea Of
wealth. Twenty dollarsl She went
on 90 say that the children had.come fast,
that n COW had to be bought and that she
cost SIS. The children had fallen sick, and
q doctor had 20 be brought in from civili-
zation, and he cost So and SO it went till
their fortune had gone, and they had moth
ing left Of that magnificent $27.
The next morning | paid them my
lodging. had slept in the loft, and the
family had slept in the room below. Mono
Of them took off their clothes. l had
brought with me hugo lot of roast beef
sandwiches and ato these for my supper
and breakfast for | had been warned that
probably could not get anything TO eat
there Before leaving l took $27 and wrap
ping it up in newspaper left it on the la
bic in the middle OF the room. Then ] rode
away, feeling vastly pleased with myself
and knowing that there was enc noun
tainccr's family in Kentucky that had re-
covered its lost fortune. "-Louisvillo Cou-
ricrJournal.