The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-06-18
TOW TO RISE IN LIFE--BY JACK
III SCREWS AND OTHERWISE.
By REV. r.. H. WHITAKER.

I the fact, that they We're moonshiners.
but, l have seen men who We're sus-
picioned of being moonshiners, in Ma
sonic funeral professions; and. have
seen them march around the open
graves and cast SprigS of evergreen
Inerein-and. as the great drops OF
sweat, which were two-thirds moon
shine whiskey. would run down their
faces, and their beSOtted countenances
is plainly told as words could have
done, that they were not only drunk
ards. but, in their own estimation, out
avs to the very principles which Ma
sonry inculcates, l have prayed TOT
jack screws to lift Masonry and all
other institutions, as we'll as the
church of God, into a higher ana
purer atmosphere / think my pray
ers have been answered. The jack
screws are set, and men or mlSnt are
giving them the turn, hence prohlbl-
lion is being established. almost every
day, where once the serpent did his
deadly work. Yes, let us put under the
lack screw of moral reform, and hit
our town, county and State into an
atmosphere of sobriety and safety
l don't know why 1 should think of
an old time coon hunt, unless it was
he speaking of moonshiners. who are
supposed to do business under cover of
darkness away off in the jungles. My
mind jumped over a space of sixty
years, and / was a school boy at d
school taught by Rev. Stinson Ivey
when, all of a sudden, l remembered
i most thrilling incident-the most
thrilling which up to that period had
ever been eXperienced-a coon hunt.
No, 1 had never been coon hunt
ing, and when Bob Williams invited
me to go home with him. from school,
70 hmm hot
aight, / felt that a hitherto unenjoyed
honor was in prospect. / had been
rabbit hunting, squirrel hunting, bird
hunting and 'possum hunting, but j
nad never before been honored with
an invitation to go coon hunting.
The mere fact of being asked to join
IN a coon hunt argued, in my mind,
that l was beginning to be considered
one of the big boys, and there's moth
ng bigger to boys mind than the in
timation that he's getting TO be one OF
The big boys. | am inclined TO the
opinion as / remember my feelings of
that occasion, that, there has been no
time of my life when | felt my i'm
1ortance more than when | was con-
Sidered TO be large enough to join
other big boys in a coon hunt
After supper that night, Handy. a
colored man belonging to Mr.. David
Williams, Bobs father, announced
| that everything was in readiness To
begin the hunt. The question then
arose which way We should go, down
| the Clabber branch or over on Swift
creek Handy reported that coons
were as thick as rabbits down the
Clabber branch, but as that was so
near home and the woods could be
soon hunted over, the decision was
1 finally made that we'd go up to Swift
creek. where we would have plenty OF
! room for a big hunt 1t was about d
| mile from Mr.. Williams's to Swift
creek bridge, and to that point we
started, and, being one of the big boys.
| | kept we'll to the front, and no one
had a suspicion that l was starting
| on my first coon hunt Handy said
| the dogs would strike a trail certain
| as soon as we had crossed the bridge;
| and so it turned out, for we had just
crossed the creek and were stopping
| for a moment to replenish our light
when "old Boston'-Handy' brag
| dog, with a voice equal 10 the below
| ing of a young bull. broke loose no.
more than a hundred yards away
| ''What'd | tell you?' said Handy. Z
| know'd Boston 'ud wake 'em up
The other dogs soon Joined III, and
we began to holler, in coon hunting
style. and at quick pace, to follow the
dogs right through the woods. For
/ awhile l kept close TO Handy, VINO car
ried the torch, but not close enough 10
| keep from running into bamboo br1ers
row and then. Up the creek we went
until we got to where Steep Hill creek
ran into Swift creek; and then on up
| Steep Hill creek Sometimes the dogs
| were i'm full cry, as if in sight of the
coon. Then they'd seem to lose the
trail, and, for awhile we'd stand and
| wait
Finally. they broke loose in full cry
| and seemed to be going up steep Hill
| toward Whitakers mill.
"Boston's got the thing all righ'
now said Handy, land it won't be
| many minutes before dat coon'll have
to go up stairs. or stand a fight; and
away we went, through briers and
bushes over fences and bitches;
| through Whitaker's loW-grounds, and
finally up to Whitaker's mill. There
the dogs came to a dead loss, but dlo
not show any signs of giving up the
chase. They were going this way and
that, and Handy said, if we'd give EN-
time thyd work it out. Oar, what
! | tell you" said Handy, as old Boston
broke loose away up about the heao
Of the mill pond.
Here we went around the pond, ano
up the creek, tearing our clothes ano
our flesh as well, with briers and of
ten getting tangled in vines.
All of sudden Handy stopped and