The Saint Paul globe., 1897-09-20
BLIND MANS FEAT.
Though Sightless He Captures a Mad
Dog.

NICHOLASVILLE, KY, Sept 19.-
A remarkable feat accomplished a few
days ago by Tom Johnson, who has
be ID blind in both eyes for twenty
years, has been the talk of the county
for the past ten days. Johnson is a
fox hunter. He keeps pack of the
finest hounds in the county. Mag, one
of his favorite dogs, went mad. john
sons wife and children and neighbor,
10 Harvey Brumfield, were out in the
yard when Mag. came running through
the orchard foaming at the mouth
and swapping right and left 1t was
a genuine case of hydrophobia.
The people in the yard frantically
rushed into the house, locked the doors,
bis favorite dog. In the meantime
Mag had dashed by the house and
started off in the direction of a neigh
boris. When Johnson was told Of the
dogs hydrophobia he arose, and, de-
spite the efforts of his family and Mr..
Brumfield, walked into the yard. Di-
rectly Mag came back and seemed to
be in a more violent state of madness
than before. These in the house called
to Johnson that the dog was coming
and piteously begged him to return.
The old blind man needed not sthe ar
peals of his family, but stood like
statue listening to the snarling of the
dog. Mag spied him and came straight
to him.
"There she comes" yelled Brumfield,
from inside of the house. Still the old
man stood his ground. Within ten
feet of him Mag stopped, then slowly
approached him, still swapping and
snarling. Right to the blind mans
feet came the dog, and as she was
about to seize his leg he reached down
and, with an instinct seemingly super
human, grasped her about the neck
in vise-like grip.
The dog struggled in vain to free
herself, but Mr.. Johnson started to-
ward the woodshed, dragging her.
Brumffeld quickly closed the door, ard
Mag was left to her rawlings till a shot
gun was procured and she was killed
This feat of Mr.. Johnson's is only
one of many in his remarkable career.
He is fifty years cid and the story of
his deeds sounds more like fiction than
fact. Twenty years ago he was man
of aff1uence, but he lost his eyesight,
and, having a large family, his for
tune dwindled away until today he has
only a house and few acres of lard.
All his life he has been passionately
fond of fox hunting and has always
kept a fine pack of dogs. When he
went blind it was thought his hunting
days were over, but such was not the
case. He became even more ueVOtSu
to the sport. Strange as it may seem,
he has never required a guide to aid
him in riding over the cliffs of the
Kentucky river in his chase. Mounted
on his old blind mule, this blind man
may be seen one or two nights every
week riding along dark and narrow
path of rugged cliff, while his dogs
are searching for the trail of a fox
After the trail is found he stops, and
all night long listens to the baying
of the dogs as they follow the trail
moving only when Reynard leads the
dogs to more distant parts.
Typical fox hunter that he is, he
knows the mouth" of his every dos.
Did a stranger meet him on dark
night, he would never know the man
was blind. Many are the tenderfeet
he has led on these night hunts. His
ability to find his way on these chases
is accounted for by him in that he is
perfectly familiar with the scope Of
country over which he hunts, but when
it is remembered that this scope e1z-
tends for many miles along the rugged
cliffs of the Kentucky river and that
he rides a mule as blind as himself
it can be considered no less remarka-
bile