The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1902-12-18
THE CONFESSION
OF
DAVID LEWIS
THE NOTED
HIGHWAYMAN And COUNTERFEITER
Continued from first pagel

by young MIN VINO Jnlnh was
called Hendricks, very unlike
another of the deputies, who as
sisted in bringing me from Me-
chanicsburg to, Carlisle, his name
l cannot remember, though l
shall not forget him if l was to
live thousand years, as | was
very forcibly struck with the con-
trast of character between the
two men, for while the former
was modest and reserved and
never plagued me with imperti-
nent questions, the other was
continually teasing me with va
rious enquiries, which did not be-
come him to use to "a person in
my situation. 1 soon discovered
that his silly conduct proceeded
from vanity, and that he had a
great desire to make display OF
his learning to me, for he was
constantly pulling out Of his
pocket little book, which | took
for a pocket Dictionary, to find
out the meaning of the high flow
ing words he made use of. Dur.
ing our travel l informed the
Sheriff that | had met him before
at MillerstOwn on the Juniata,
when Connolly proposed our rob-
bing him, but as I knew he made
no profitable sales abroad, nor re-
ceived any collection, | concluded
he could have little or no money
about him. The fact is, nothing
would have pleased me better at
the time than to have robbed Rit-
ner, as l had long heard that the
office holders of Carlisle, repres-
enCed to be hungry, avaricious
setof extortioners, whom no sense
of Justice, or feeling of humanity
could restrain from grinding the
poor
If there was any class or de-
scription of people in society
whom | would sooner have rob
bed than any other, it was those
who held public Offices, and un-
der color of law had been guilty
of extortion who had plundered
the poor, and cheated the widow
and the orphan. Against such
workers of iniquity my mind had
taken a set, and | was determin-
ed never TO spare them on any oc-
casion that offered. The groans
of the distressed, the cries of the
widow and the complaints of the
oppressed rang in my ears, and
called aloud for vengeance.
There was perhaps no place in
the State in which l heard more
complaints Of this sort than in
the county of Cumberland, and
as Carlisle was my native place,
for which ! felt a strange attach
ment, instead of committing a
wrong, | conceived that | would
render . service by Furnishing
those official marauders who in
Tested the town, in visiting upon
them the same degree of severity
which they had visited upon 9th
ers, and thus make the cruel feel
the pain they gave. With this
view | at one time proposed to
my companions that we should
abandon the highways, make our
peace with offended justice, sat
isfy the penalties OF the law, re
dmburse those whom we had rob
bed wronged, move into town
and adopt the most effectua
mode of bringing extortioners
bauk swindlers and public de
faulters to justice, and make as
much money out of them as wt
could Having heard great com
plants in every place of certain
act of Assembly, called the "fe'
bill,' which had passed in The
session of 1813-14 through the
influence Of Governor Findley
aud his friend, / procured copy
Of the law and found that it con
tanned provision that If any Off
Ger should take greater or other