The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-01-06
THE MAN WITH THE HOG.


 A few days ago was guiding a party of Kansas City hunters after wild turkey. As we stepped across Lafferty Creek we stepped on, dead man-ugh hog lay by his side, as dead as the man. By the razor back lay an un- loaded gun. On the mans coat was pinned piece of paper, and on it written these strange words, the mysterious problem:
 q killed the hog and the hog killed me"
 We all read it over and over; we looked at each other; we looked around; we looked up and we looked silly. There was no solution.
 It was nothing to joke about, stand ing there on the bank of the White River in the thin high weeds and the low thick fog, over a murder The silence was oppressive. A sheriff's posse to arrest us for murder would have been some relief.
 As the mist passed away about a dozen faded-looking men came into view; like a photograph developing a negative, from nothing outlines, forms and faces appeared. These people, with clothes the shade of old lumber, long hair and boards, closed in around us from all directions out of the tall grass, Not word was said./ They didn't appear to notice us; we stood aside while they closed in around the dead man and the dead hog. eIau,J1r eaapa1 thrOiIph 0IlT heads that this was a coroner's jury That two or three minutes was to us like two or three hours that kind of silence would try the nerve of the braVest man on earth; what must 1t have been to us city fellows?
 The coroner, just out of the field, covered with seed cotton said: Now. men, you see watts afore you, and you know the law gainst totin' weepins an you know your duty
 Just then every one of them ran his hands down into his pocket and pulled out a knife. Then all squatted down on the ground and, sitting on their heels, picked up little sticks and whittled while the coroner read the law in the case.
 Whenever you begin to talk to one of these people, any time, anywhere, on any subject. he invariably pulls out his knife, squats down, picks up any little stick no larger than cigarette, and begins to whittle before he answers word. I asked one. What kind of weather do you have down here in the fall?" He looked up at the sky ana north and soutb then slowly stopped down, picked up a straw and broke it up with his thumbs and forefingers ana drawled out: We'll, we don't hev much ov anything down here, seems like"
 I asked another, Do you think it will rain?" He surveyed the heavens carefully, took out his knife, slowly stopped down, picked up twig about as big as a lead pencil raised himself, looked around. and, in about the time 1t would take to walk from the Star office to Convention Hall, he drawled out: "WeIl. hit don't look much like rain. but I reckon it will They hurried the man and hog side by side and rammed the ramrod and gun barrel down at his head and made a head board of the gull-stock.
 Their official duty having been per- formed they silently stole away, and left us alone with the dead, Curtis asked the old farmer that came up just then for an explanation
 Well I tell yer wot hit is, mister said he after gettin out his knife, hits this 'er way. You see, thar's some orn'ry cusses roun' here watts got no hogs nor nuthin' else. Wen they get out'n meat they goes out inter the woods an kill the fust hog they come to; hits a pen'tentiary ack to do hit, but yer can't catch him at hit. So wen you do, just shoot i'm an nobody won't make no fuss about hit. So that's the way somebody done this fel- Ter an writ that on the paper to make it pear like he killed hisself an the coroner he took hit fur evidence, an that's the way ov hit
 Taylor got down on his hands and knees to see what was scratched on the gun-stock with knife, and read this epitaph: "I killed the hog and the hog ly;,Io5 mo ,,-Kaneas City Star.