The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-08-07
BELOW NIAGARA FALLS IN maid OF The MIST"
money for it, but if you will do as ]

i
tell you I will give it to you. 1t is a
fine bow, and 1t is almost Finished
II agreed with him that it was a
magnificent bow and again asked him
what L must do to earn it. He kept
steadily cutting away at it putting on
the finishing touches. At one time
there had been a fence around the
Crawford place, but it had gone to ruio
and all that was left of it was the two
tall old gate posts that stood directly
in front of the house and, perhaps,
be perfectly sound but had been hon
ey-combed at the base from the long
years in the soil. Finally he said:
Well, it's done, and there amt a
finer bow in East Tennessee. That's
cedar wood and the very best thing in
the world to make a bow out Of and
he placed one end on the ground and
sprung it with his knee. He praised
the bow at great length and it seems
to me now that he was merely working
upon my feelings to be sure of the
success of his plot. Now, George he
said at last, you see that tallest post
out there 1 said I did and was ali
eagerness to know what the post had
to do with my getting the bow. We'll,
If you'll do just as l say and climb to
the. top of that post and set straddle
of it till / can run around the house
I'll give you the bow
SET LOOSE A SWARM OF WASPS.
81 was all eagerness to do as he
said, and started for the post. Wait,
you must take off your hat and roll up
your pants as high as you can. You
can climb better if you do, and if you
want this bow you must do as 1 sayp
[ rolled up my pants and took off my
hat and was soon on top of the post,
perhaps, twelve feet from the ground.
Just as I bot we'll seated, straddle the
top. Bob struck the old post blow
with big stick that shook it from
top to bottom, and then stuck the stick
in large hole near the base.
He had no sooner done so than be
started and ran off a short distance,
then turned and watched me. 1 Won
dered for second why he had stopped
instead of going on around the house
as he said, and then 1 found out Vel
low jackets had made the old post
their home and 1 was in the midst Of
swarm of these most vicious and
vindictive insects. 1 had been ex-
tremely eager to get to the top of that
post, but eagerness doesn't express the
way 1 wanted to get down. I just
let loose and dropped. Meanwhile Bob
was laughing Historically at the plight
l was in. Did I get the bow? Why,
of course not. But I'll say now that
1 never felt half as near deaths door
when Federal bullets were whistling
about me as I did in that nest of yell
low Jackets"
With such a spirit it needs no as
trologer to foretell that Bob would get
in many serious scrapes as he grew
older. AT one time he was appointed
cadet at West Point and was adj
mitted to that institution. His stay
there was brief, for he soon managed
to get himself into so many scrapes,
that he was dishonorably dismissed
and returned to his old home. The
records of the West Point academy
will give anyone who cares to investi-
gate the matter the full particulars.
A TYPICAL BORDER RUFFIAN.
Shortly after he left home he was
berry, tried, convicted and sentenced
which he served. After he was released
scrapes of a similar nature and had
two or three desperate shooting and
cutting affairs charged up to him, but
managed to get out of them some way
For several years he was lost sight of,
but at the outbreak of the late war he
would get number of negroes to en-
list, run them North and then furnish
substitutes to those who could afford
to pay for them. 1t was reported that
he received as high as $4,000 apiece
for them, but not a dollar of this mon
ey did the negroes ever get. He raised
a company of artillery a little later on
and enlisted them in the regular army