Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1902-02-14

PASSES DOWN JACKSONS liver
Three or four miles out of Mont
Grey stopped at an ample sized
house oh the right (west) side of
the road and asked if could get
dinner there. a fine, motherly
middled aged woman, when satisfied
was not a peddler said. Eyes, in
deed;" if would wait. waited.
IN few minutes square shoulder
ed, blue eyed, golden mustached
man came in. He was a son of the
lady. Charles K. Gibson. by name.
THAT'S quite "a trick" he said of
the pack and its outft-an express
sion | soon became familiar with
down Jacksons River, which now
was following. His eyes had the
direct gaze} which is not a stare,
with which one becomes more fa-
miliar the further south he goes.
Gibson likes to hunt. His dog
is bird and rabbit one, but is best
for driving stock. His gun is a
Spencer repeater. One day this
fall ha got into flock of
i, wild turkeys back Oh the noun
tain" File shot four of the birds
as quickly as one could have count
ed them. Less than a week prey
ious to my coming he had killed
one of the bronze fellows and sew
en- pheasants in days hunt.
"They're pretty thick" he said of
the birds.
Dinner was Of the sort one finds
in the prosperous grazing country
beef with the blue grass and
mountain range flavor, cooked in
the pct and Drowned in the pan
nough said. It's hours to dinner
to-day and my appetite needs no
whetting or memories.
Down the road a couple Of miles
| sat in clump of woods to grease
my shoes with castor oil. They had
begun to turn tawny then where the
frozen ground were them. While
| was at this a sulky drove up. The
woman dryer gave one look at me
and then wiped the horse along the
back bone with a long water beech
CAD.
1t was quite q cold day-ten de-
grees below freezing at noon, |
Judge. But the people | met all
agreed that it was mighty fresh"
Many wore earfaps, and with hook
ed fingers lowered oyer the fire
from these indications. and though
it did not seem so bad to ne, |
could tell that it was unusually
cold weather, and not the kind to
which the inhabitants were used.
The valley was narrow, the bot
toms fertile. but it is liz the miner
ais that the region will find its
wealth. Irons abounds everywhere.
came to an old grist mill. 1T
was kept by an old man who said
/ | would be welcome at his house,
three miles below. Round the foot
of wooded ridge sides, past large
rocks, with glimpses of log cabins
far up runs, or cornfelds on side
hills. | travelled on down. | regret
ted the approach of night. 1t was
picturesque little valley, where
one rounded a turn every step or
two. After a while the road ran
| level along the ridge, while the
stream fell over its rockey bed, till
suddenly the path ran down to the
creek again. a srlitrail fence corn
er showed ahead, and then log
house on the far side of the stream.
1t was E. A. McLaughlin's. He
was splitting wood with six pound
axe. His head was covered by a
red Tam'o Shanter hat. | crossed
the single stick bridge, gripping
the pole handling tight. | was
told to set my pack inside and
come up to the fire and warm. The
invitation with which one is well
coined all down the mountain
range during cold weather.
Here the old story of decreasing
game is heard. Markets haye done
the work. In one fall thirty.two
deer were killed at the stand just
below the mill. Bears still are seen
occasionally. Mclaughlin told of
a big one over On the Alleghanies
in the Greenbrier country, which
"rolled out from under a log" on
the APPROACH of party of hunters
in which he was. The bear reared
up Oh his hind legs and trotted off
like a fat man. Bullets and buck ,
shot br, ught the beast down. Then
it was found that both it's forelegs
had been cut off by traps -one at
the wrist and the other at the ell
bow.
McLaughlin's brother, Letcher
was made blind fifty years ago at
the age Of three years by percns-
sion cap exploding. He walked
freely about the house; but it was
pathetic to see him go over rife
novel to him. The sight, the
breech, the barrel and all were ex-
anined carefully. He laughed like
IA delighted child when the take
down anparatllS WIS eyplained. In |