The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-09-09
FOLLOWED THE BEARS in.
sUCCESsPUL HUNT % MOONsHINERs
IN SOUTHERN MOUNTAINS.
The Major Tells OF q Peculiar Experience In
Hunting for Lem heiton's Illicit whisky
Outnt-Two Bears Drunk Gave the spot
Away Then LENS Capture Was Easy.

a.. NN.F.r tka ylAaat md mn4I nNuRTlgWlGNA0
.e ~ 10 ,.a sontb to haIf a dozen
o Sa,amtna sinco 81 have had many
,rbro r,nn,np down moon
~, - ra,n,oIns hut ono ~ tho odd
ta,uhahI, aVnario,cos In that
a., - ,.han I ros down I'm Mcdowell
-. - NI.l,on Everv ONO I'm the State
49, ,ha, NeI,o, yyos the boldes,. shreyd-
:, m,o,, dis,ulor 4, tho south lie avoided
-, sanahnw a, leas, af,v time. when half
a. - -, ,ho Ma rboIs onoars Of three
80, .oro e. bi,, All tho ordinary clu.a
- "a ,rons through the woods colnmns OF
.rnoLa or srocLs ~ ,raste mash along the edges
q, Ina cra.ks drunken customers or intimatas.
uora missinu I'm his case Melton newer
,ra,auad oyor ons r,,te often ononeh IN leaye
a ,ra1 and he managed somehow 10 get rid
., bs reed nm material without throwing IL
mt n oraak ,o he wasbed away How he
-. 49, s,uaLo I'm sao Laforo 7 gat
,hra'oh ond A. 60 dr,ntan non Melton nsvar
",'"e" 49, ~ - "a.
sold moonshlhe I'D the county III "h'ch MS
atlla ware
-n,, hoy Al, vo ,nanaya q, can,nre him
put Nv" u'u ~" "H"eo ~ N"P "'
AZ lastf inquired one OF the listeners.
That's the funniest part of my story. and
IN ,,ha N.I.r IA viro,,tar, iii
you "n '"c Ni'Jo' N"' "' "u '"e""""' wa
think that | am a har whether you say IL III
plain English or not, The fact IL | got on old
- ,,au ,hro,,b o,,nlo q, ,.ud hoan
I'm tu" '"'oue" -.
or course none OF YOU believe II, sald ne glanc-
ing down the table al a row OF faces III up with
a,,a..,tra III ~L,, ,u, 90, asL San
snrinvs,ons and Tom Van 8orin. both Of whom
were with me, We had searched Mcdowell
c,u,,v from and ,o erd vi,hout suco.ss until
''""'' i''" v'u W. ,"u "'",'' 80
one evening" Wheh We learned that our nun hau
gone over into Wise county, Va. Wise county
Is one Of the widest parts Of the State, and it
Is ihil OF sinners ana the sort oI peopie WHY
patroniHe them. These people we knew would
mn Nation an hs g,,ar d tho minute they sis
put Meton on nus euaru Tue minute ."'S eNs
pected us, 40 We got "a set oil surveyors listru-
ments, and passed Ourselves on as a scientific
sirvev marry leaking nm the genlogic forma-
,t.o -, ,ha oa,ntr, Sr-n,y,o, CARRIED tho
uon OF me country. Sprlhg'toh carried the
Any ve ,orkad near the county seat ~ allay
~
suspicion should any arise then we started
of into the mountains.
I'VE knew that every day for a week we
80 ,auo,.oJ o,d - ,,o,rd,r,Iv We
were followed, ana acteh aoGotaihsy si,M,e
WOULD soy eFety now 9uu t1en' tahs u siSH.,
run ont a Few chalhs tild lnaIh a Few IT, nrs
ama there' we kh0THei OH pies anI , s%GN u" wa
put lleih III our 'u.NaS sur, a,u VIZ
ItIurnti 20 our D"aIai,g pla,ffs W." 49,
" I"VhS anu :, upMn !" le, ,uns i" d a"u io "a.
cn,y T"I ,hs .s AZ Igt7 nIt'' tbeir ffrieTnTss, and II
succeeIei SO wen that aittr a W,nk or yen HHys,
GO where we ht,En,, nov We H Signos fear SlSpi'iI0 nt
seemed 20 be aroused NoDoGy care i9t
OF scientists VINO secnel 10 pay nov NE siRht-
eSt HIteh,n' on t1 "Iy unlme eNotPi on"' pu SIHST
Durihg Gn ,'s nm we nv a I, n n'rn e aHrnss TX
slightest cue lwo weeks PasS"i, ana we
hectune d,fC"uraSsd ahn Wouli br"uaGA W. wv
given up tne JOB Ih u rev ilors ua!S Wlrl plp
afternoon we wore ten miles from the HeaIrst
Town n Ihr uepths % me iloutISin1' Siilne,
stone tR had 1ett US Ta a ShoG IN u ,6s dnno 20 .Ias q
the mountain on which we were trmpofarliy
resting ne had been away ABOUT nan az
hour when he Grept almost between an ana
mNApll without nav lIE b'H'D seen OF llfdlh ] lltN
he hal MAZE a discovery was apparent by Hl1
eHciteinent cu.-t,
Never saw awning IKE u, h"iore .hl
ne IN a low tone Is u leGrIu. o, oo,lR mearh,
bears and II they amt drunk they are acting
mighty strange. ~
Just PLAYING; suppose, said ]. for lhpd
seen wiz oratS iTohcknlS "Ieh they 'hought
they were unseen
us no pay, l teI you, itlry re nauuIlh
drunk, staggering around and falling over each
other ike a pair OF drunken, Ipaiers.
Nhere 90 you suppose that a coupe OF VIVA
bears could get any whlskeyy began when
BOYS We We aoout locate ui9 iHwlss stni.l
believe th3se bearI haVe elmer louhl th.it way
into INTO ~ m w y ksy th hid CSalI ndt fn Te Gs away or 'h'y We
believe you re- rleh' MNor, eNfiHiIh"d
both ny hyS GO, Gomp1 an s, ,r dhe m an6 va niSS ,b no
bears, and thlS, we did, and when we got near
The, spot We no behind a hunoh OF laurel ana
, ,ReEs 10y ul Gf,y Yard Su 1Ss eh1 and ho mS T SS4e1 drink TETs
f'h
a. lords. They staggered around Ike OLD TO,
pers, tumbled over, got up grunted ana PLAYED
all sorts OF drunken antics. One or them "a
too full, however. to stand long, and nj last he
fell under a bush and lay there. Ills CoinpHn-
ion looked at him In drunken stupidity Tor a
minute or two then he turned and wHddled on,
Follow him quietly, said ! and We
tralled along behind as quietly. as we
could, but We soon. saw that the bear
was so drunk that he wouldn't have no
ticed us II We had passed within ten feet
Of him. For half a mile along q n'rrow ledge
nearly a hundred feet above the little creek. and
fully nifty feetbelow the crown OF the mountain,
with a perpendicular wall OF rock between, we
followed. Al last the. drunken bruin turned
toward the face OF the almost perpendicular wall
and entered a thick clump Of hazel bushes.
was not a dozen feet behind him and sam and
Tom were close In the renr. Through all almost
imperCeptible opening in the brush. we
followed on hands and knees twenty or thirty
yards-Aquare up against the rock, when, push
Ing aside a mass OF hanging vines, / saw before
me the entrance TO a cavern. 1t was about two
feet wide and -FOUR feet high, but began 20 widen
and Increase IN height as we rroCceeded, tHty
feet brought us, 10 an opening which had been
guarded by a heavy door which stood open.
100 feet In diameter, and ranging. from four or
or five feet at the. walls 10 fifty In the centre.
A complete di~stHery-the best and biggest
moonshtne disullery | ever saw, with an CUNT
OF mash tubs copper worms, bins and al, the