Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1905-11-02
Some Tall Stories.

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some of their experiences was so ter
rible that we consider they ought tc
90 down in history, which is why We
publish few of the best ones here
with. Cush Sawyer was the feller
that started it. Cush has did consid-
cradle carpenter work in his time, al
though he amt no reglar carpenter
Cush is is "saw and hatchet" man.
About Is years ago" says Cush,
81 was shinglin a barn for old Brad
Tucker, who is dead and gone 10 these
many years. Well, l started to shin
gle o8en a stagin' and hadn't no more
than started till it broke down under
me and l felt myself starten' to tall
70 feet to the ground, SO jest grab
bed holt of the caves with my teeth
and hung there until Brad built up
new stagin under me.
"Why didn't you hold on by your
hands instid of your teeth ?" says Pete
Hillyer.
Because" says Cush, 81 had a
hammer in one hand and a nail in the
tother and l didn't want to drop EN-. "
THAT amt nothin'," says Hank
Dewberry, "once l was out huntin
and treed coon in old holler tree
which stood up 85 feet from the ground
and l laid down my gun and elm up
the tree to the top, and jest as got
almost to the coon the tree, which was
rotten at the root, broke off and begin
to fall with me on the top of it. I'd
haft to do something quick, so |
jumped for the top of tall hemlock
away down below me and lit right in
the top branches and never hurt my
self a mite.
What became of the coon ?" says
Ranse Smiley.
"Oh," says Hank, II forgot about
the coon. When was flying through
the air l passed the coon, which had
jumped first, and choked it to death
before l struck the hemlock. 1t
weighed 35 pounds, too"
"You tell one, Clem," says Hen
Hotsox to Glenn Tarbell, who had
been listening.
"Oh, amt much of hand at tell
in stories" says Glenn. There amt
never been nothin' happened to me
that was remarkable. One time l had
little experients while ishin' over
to Gootchic pond, but it amt hardly
worth speakin' Of
"Go ahead and tell it anyhow, says
them present.
"Well," says Clem, 81 was fshin'
for pickerel in Nose Topham's old
fat -bottomed boat and they was bitin
terrible slow and tied the hand line
round my wrist and went to sleep,
thinkin' if I'd get bite 1 would wake
up. l hadn't been asleep more than
Is minutes till l was jerked outen the
boat and drswed right down under
water. l opened my eyes and you
can believe it or not, but there was
big bull pickerel on tother end Of that
line town me along the lake bottom
Eastern a horse can run. Fore l
could think what to do that pickerel
dove under an old sunken tree and
when he pulled me up to the hole
where he dove l stuck fast, and there
was in forty feet of water with that
pickerel haulin away on tother end
of the line. l could Of cIt the line,
but didn't want to lose the fish, 30 |
pulled and hauled until l got that
pickerel up closet enough 80 as l could
bleed him with my penkDlfe; then l
cut the line and still keepin' holt Of
the pickerel swum TO the surface and
burned if my boat wasn't half mile
away, and had to swim to it and
carry that pickerel with me which
weighed SO pounds and 4 ounces. 1t
was a little mite the biggest pickerel
l ever caught in Gootchic."
"How long was you under water ?"
asked Hank Dewbeiry.
"Oh, bout a hall q hour, calKl-
late" says Clem.
After Clem went home some Of them
as was present said they had their
doubts about Glen story being true.
They said they didn't see how per-
son could hold their breath that long
at time. We don't either, and yet
we'd hate to think that Glen would
lie about little thing like that.
al s'pose." prowled the old farmer,