The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-10-16
KENTUCKY's BLIND HUNTER.
Wonderful Fents of "a Man Who Has
Been Sighuess Twenty Years.

been Stghtless Twenty Years.
From the Chicago Times Herald.
A dispatch from NicholasviIe, KY, con-
tains the following remarkable story:
Tom johnson, who has been 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 a pack
of hounds. Mag, one of his favorite dogs.
went mad. Johnson's wife and children
and neighbor, 10 Harvey Brumfeld.
We're out in the yard when Mag came run
ming 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 and told
Johnson of the condition of his favorite
dog. In the meantime Mag had dashed by
the house and started off in the direction
of a neighboris. When Johnson was told
of the dogs hydrophobia he arose, and de-
spite the efforts of his family and Mr..
Brumtield, walked into the yard. Directly
Mag came back and seemd to be in a
more violent state of madness than before
Those in the house called to johnson that
the dog was coming and piteously begged
him to return. The old blind man needed
not the appeals of his family, but stood
like a statue listening to the snarline of
to him.
There she comes" yelled Brumfeld.
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 which seemed
superhuman, grasped her about the neck
in a vise-like grip.
The dog struggled in vain to free herself,
but Mr.. Johnson started toward the wood
She'd dragging her Brumfield came and
opened the door of the shed, and Johnson
approached and hurled tho dog inside.
Brumfield quickly closed the door, and
Mag was left to her rawlings till shotgun
was procured and she was killed.
This feat of Mr.. Johnson's is only one of
many in his remarkable career He is 50
years old, and the story of his deeds
sounds more like fiction than fact Twenty
years ago he was a man of affiuence but
he lost his eyesight, and, having a large
family, his fortune dwindled until to-day
he has only a house and a few acres of
land. All his life he has been passionately
fond of fox hunting, and has always kept
fine pack of dogs. When he went blind
it was thought his hunting days were over,
but such was not the case. He became
but such was not the case.
He became even more de.
voted to the sport. Strange as 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 rid
ing along dark and narrow path of a
rugged cliff, while his dogs are searching
for the trail of 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 dog. Did a
stranger meet him on a 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 1t is remembered that this scope
extends for many miles along the rugged
cliffs of the Kentucky river, and that no
rides a mule as blind as himself, it can
be considered no less remarkable.