Evening star., 1898-12-02
Experiences of the Trim.


Il had many amusing and sometimes
thrllIing experiences. The statement that
was ready to pay whatever was necessary
for my accommodation gave me an onan
door everywhere. After ] passed Memphis.
Tenn, people generally refused any pay for
accommodating US. and in many instances
no persuasion would induce them to take
money A my first stopping place nv host
saw lhe razor with which / shaved and he
was 50 anxious to have it that | exchanged
IL lor my accommodation in his house. At
i1dureIVille, Pa, L stopped to- have nv
morse Shod- the animal was covered with
Hiud ana dldnt appear to advantage The
biackSnlth was veteran horse racer and
| hhaliy agreed to back my horse against a
racer ne had, and the result was ! won $40
which was enough TO pay all the expeusos
OF the journey up to that time.
FROM Wheeling, w. Va, to Columbus
Inc roads were magnificent and the scenery
was peautlfuL 1t was Sunday morning
wren we got into Kentucky and we were
tod that no tolls Were charged on that day
throughout the state. L thought that was
good opportunity 10 get ahead of the toll
oHllee tors and We iode forty miles before
niClutGH
My first unpleasant experience was at
Louisville, Ky. / stopped while there at
the office Of Col. Speeds then president of
the Louisville Traction Company 7 called
on him 20 present a letter of Introduction I
carriei My wife was In the dayton. and
as she held the reins a big and powerful
black man drove up in a heavy wagon He
had evidently been drinking and he hacked
up against our light wagon and replied in
an impddent manner when my wife called
to him TO be careful. 1 saw there was dan
ger that he would destroy our light wagon
and ] lost no time in jumping up behind
MN. reaching TO my hip pocket and placing
a piece OF shining steel against his neck
he became very humble then and drove off
without making further trouble A crowd
Ia lee nro h.
returned 70 my dayton they appeared TO
regard me as a desperate character l then
showed them the weapon with which | had
brought the negro to his senses
1t was merely a monkey wrench | al
ways carried in my nip pocket There was
a general laugh and every one there wanted
ne 10 have drink with him. However
az Louisville ] bought a breech-loader, and
before the day was over | made good use
OF II IN holding up lot of negro teamsters
VINO thrci tened to smash nv light wagon
as they dashed along the road in a reckless
styie. Ihey turned into another road as
ordered and danger was avoided Whom ]
returned to the dayton my wife was laugh.
ing She called my attention to the fact
that the rifle was not loaded. One thing |
learned On this trip-the negroes care LITTLE
or nothing for a pistol but they are thor
cu%hly 1iraid of a double-harreled shotgun.
Gimpscs of Life.
The crude manner of life of some of the
people W. met will hardly be credited in the
east. At Lonely, Tern. l saw a man and
wife and nine children living in a single
room. They lived. ate and slept in that one
room l was directed to this mans house
by a woman who told me he was very
rich and that he would undoubtedly accom-
modate me His wife was a half-breed In
dian and he was giant in size.
There was nothing TO do but for us to
sleep there, which We did We lay on the
floor i'm front of big open CRATE fire
Their bread was made without salt and
We had this bread and bacon Drowned to a
crisp and sweet potatoes for supper Amid
all their poverty and dirt they were ex-
tremely hospitab.e. In the morning the
man told me If we would remain there for
week he would kill his only hog and we
would have feast. He declined to take
anything for his accommodation. | insist
ed that he accept a silver dollar, which he
looked at as If 1t were fortune, and with
yell ran TO show ii TO his wife [ had a
quantity of provisions with me and
dumped them all out for him. Four-cent
cotton kept this man in poverty, yet a TT
tie further on l met another farmer wf.o
had been about poor as he was and
who had taken 10 raising hogs instead Of
cotton, and he was rolling In prosperj,v
He had on his place 600 hogs worth d.
cents a pound.
Through the Wilderness
when We crossed the Mississinpi river
l was obliged TO pitch the tent as there
were only negroes living about there. We
had provisions We went for thirty-five
or forty miles without seeing a house. This