The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1896-04-03


antecedents, told me the story of the
murder of his uncle during the war. A
crowd of 'outliers" had surprised him
in the night and dragged him from his
bed. After rif1ing the house and burning
the books, they riddled their victim
with balls and finished by crushing his
skull with the butts of their rifles. l
mentioned this to Mr.. Hooper, who said
it was true and that he deserved it. His
(the uncle's) party had captured a
Union man shortly before, and after
shooting him and believing him dead
Abe's uncle had gone back and snapped
a rusty old pistol again and again at his
head. The Union man, having recovered,
organized counter attack and did up
Abe's uncle in mountain fashion for
swapping his old rusty pistol so freely.
On the second day, with "Colum"
Long for guide, made an expedition on
foot, seven miles up the Yellow noun
tain in search of my old guide, Man
Heady. Long carried rifle and a
camera as we worked up the same trail
my party had gone over in 1864. We
IOuuu Iloducu CdDlu iOChCu, DuO Ill lC-
ply to my "Hello!' came voice from
the hillside above the corntield.
care you Headen?" l cried.
Eyes"
"Well, come down here; you've got
just Is minutes to live.
Those were the words Major Parker
had addressed to him one morning after
our capture at his house and just before
stringing him up three times in the Or
chard. Soon we saw his long figure COM
ing down through the stalks. Going out
at the back of the house to meet him,
"Well, Headen," said, edo you know
me?''
"Well, can't tell you right till 1
get little nearer Before quite reach
ing me he added, "Well, 1 reckon hits
Henry Shelton
eyes" l said, "old man, you are
quite right, and 1 am delighted to see
you.
81 hearn tell you was comm, said
Headen, "but 1 allowed you wouldn' t
git here. What has become of Sill and
where is LamsOn?"
wouldn't go into his house until
had posed him Oh the steps, planted my
camera on bee gum and taken advan-
tage of the sun which was shining clear
ly through a break in the clouds.
Headen had been separated from his
wife for 16 years, and here he was, liv
ing alone, making his own butter and
keeping his own house on one end of his
domain. Several years before, learned,
he had taken up with a morganatlc
wife. but the court at Webster interfered
and after trial sentenced him to term
Of Imprisonment. A man i'll Georgia. b1d
off the convict and poor Headen worked
out his sentence.
He went up the hill to the old place,
with us, to see the old woman and Julia
Ann, who lived together on the scene of
our capture, in house which he had
been building in 1864, and which was
now, in turn, old and weather stained.
The door was open on the porch and
entering 1 stood in the presence Of the
woman who, % years ago, wanted to
"stomp the men through the turnpike"
and who turned out of bed at all hours
of the night to spin. She was totally
blind, sitting at the corner of the empty
fireplace chewing tobacco and splitting
in the ashes. Her yellow face, notified
with white spots, was shaded by paste
board sunbonnet standing erect on her
head, and her thin fingers were pulling
the strings off bean pods, several bushels
of which were spread on the floor. After
the greeting, in which she said my voice
didn't sound mat raj, " she wanted to
know if I was married.
mo" / said, Mrs. Headen, am a
miserable old bachelor.
"Ah," said she, with a sigh, "that S
what all of um says when they come
down here from Turin parts.
We persuaded her to be led out into
the sunlight by the gateposts, the same
cedar sticks we'll remembered with the
slender bar mortised in the top, and
there l photographed the family group.
Then Headen conducted us q mile
around the side of Yellow mountain to
see the crock house." where we had
been directed to stay the night of the
capture, and which we recklessly left
because the WlDu Dl6W bHo sluuh6 VI tuo
fire into our eyes.
Returning down the hill toward Head
en- cabin, we stopped to shake hands
and say "howdy" to a son, whose wife
and children filled the cabin door. This
son in the old days was No. in the
family bed when we three ieutenants
slept on the floor before the fire.
On the rafters of Headen's cabin were
great punches of pennyroyal and sum
mer savory, which he said was fright
good for table tea" High up in the
corner the clean churn dasher was thrust
through the siding. After lunching on
cold corn pone and sweet milk we sat
on the beanbags and heard the story of
his escape, fording the icy Tuckasegee
and reaching home half starved in the
deep snow, and of his subsequent trip to
Tennessee with Knapp and old Tom
Hancock. had brought the old man
wonderful jackknife with endless tools
and blades unfolding from the handle,
which pleased him greatly.
1t was a constant disappointment TO
find so few of the houses remaining
where we had been voluntary and in
voluntary guests. Old Roderick Nor