The Savannah morning news., 1900-07-25

reckoning when ran across a bride path
that took me TO lumber camp. 1t was
the Fourth of July and nobody was work
ing, but I could see the minute l got there
that something was wrong and everybody
was worried. The superintendent of the
camp told me l was very welcome if
wanted to stay. but that there was likely
TO be trouble before the day was over, De-
cause the camp store had been broken in
to the night before and the supply of Gin
namon extract had ben stolen. Nothing
else had been taken so they knew that
some of the boys were out for cinnamon
drunk Two of the biggest and best lum-
bermen in camp were missing and when
they came back it would be a case of look
out.
I can't get in into my head what they
do il for said the superin endent. We've
had dozen cases in this region in
couple of years, and the men know its
sure death. but every now and then some
Of EN- break lose. Jed and Horace are sure
to be back by evening and I'd advise you
to go down to the river and fish till then.
There's mighty good bass fishing there
and if you stay here you're liable to see
things thatll make you sorry you came
I'D heard about the cinnamon drunk
before, and I made up my mind that as
long as there was one on I'd see II. Be
sides from having to be so much in the
wilds I'd learned little about medical
practice, and I thought 1 might be OF
some use About o'clock in the afternoon,
when the thermometer might have been
somewhere about 100 there was roaring
from back of the camp and everybody
said Here they come A couple of min
utes later two of the most terrific crea-
lures l ever laid eyes on burst out of the
underbrush. Both were big men, over six
feet tall, and both were stark naked and
bleeding from hundreds of scratches
where they had plunged through
wild blackberry patches. One of them
bradished an ak and the other
had a small log which he handled
as if it were a feather. AS they
came into the clearing they let out anoth-
er roar, and give you my word there was
nothing human I'm 1t. Those lumbermen are
pretty tough specimens, and it isn't easy
to scare them. hut the whole crowd broke
and ran for the thickest of the cover
when those madmen hove into view, ex
cept the superintendent and myself. sup
pose the reason I stood my ground was
that l was too amazed and paralyzed to
start. The superintendent felt that as cap
tain of the outfit he had to stay; so he
just drew his revolver and waited. The
man with the axe made straight for me-
I thought it was murder. sure and
jumped for a tree to dodge around 1t, but
the man never changed his course and
then I saw that his eyes were set and he
probably didn't notice me or anything
else. Have any of you ever seen a bid
dog run? Well, this man ran just like a
rabid dog. He wasn't after anything In
particular, but If anything got in his way
it was all day with it. Three times he
rushed around that clearing believing
and then went down in a heap.
Meantime the other man was pursuing
an entirely different course. With his club
held up he went sneaking along by the
big shack where the men slept, as if he
were looking for something. All of a sud
den he swung the great piece of wood
back rushed toward the front wall and
let the thing go like battering ram. 1t
went clear through the wall. as If the
house were built of paper. Then the Gin
namon drunk turned and rushed back
across the clearing with the speed of an
express train. Both the superintendent and
l yelled at him, for we saw what was GO
ing to happen, but you might as well have
called to a mad bull. He went headfore-
most into big oak tree and fell dead. I
suppose his neck was broken. I went over
to attend to the first man, who was lying
face downward and breathing heavily. His
face was streaked and botched with pur-
pie and red, and you could hardly see his
eyes. l started in to do what / could,
while the superintendent blew the horn TO
let the other men know il was all over.
"'There's no use you're trying to help
him. said he. He'll be dead in an hour
And he was. He died with his eyes
open, rigid. like a man IN convulsions.
There we're other details just before the
end that I have since been industriously
trying to forget--they were such that some
of the men lay down and cried. and others
begged the superintendent to- shoot the
sufferer and put him out of his agony.
When got back TO the nearest city some
forty miles away, | saw a paragraph in
the local paper headed Two More Dead
Of Cinnamon If any skeptic." he conclu-
ded, looking at the doctor. doubts the
facts I have got the clipping with some
other clippings on the same subject at
home"
ut is up to me-" admitted the doctor.
| Gentlemen. in ordering kindly confiue
yourselves 10 the beverages of civilize-
| ton"