The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1910-08-04


country says Joseph Thompson
Hare. in his confession. written in
1918. short time before he was hang
ed.
This was no idle boast on his part,
for in the seven years of his active
career his takings amounted to more
than $120,0O0-a vast sum in those
early days OF the nineteenth century,
and one which, considering the great
er purchasing power of money at that
time. would be equal 20 q cool half
million
Compared to Hare, his eighteenth
century predecessors, the Deans and
James Fitzpatrick, become mere pet
ty thieves and fade away into insig-
nifcance. At later date operations
on SO large a scale were impossible.
because money was not carried in
such large sums along the roads. at
least of the Eastern United States.
His was the golden age, and the
pickings were correspondingly rich.
In his first three months on the road
Hare and his two companions obtain
ed $4,000, and in another two
months, after that, they got together
some $4,000.
Hare, single handed, robbed trav-
Ter near Princeton, N. j., of 100000,
and in Canada, with the assistance
Of one other man, he held up a gig to
the tune Of $14,700; and In his final
robbery, the looting of the North
Carolina mail near Havre de Grace,
the sum of $4,000 was shared among
Hare and his companions.
Hare's confession, which has re-
Gently been raked up out of the
archives Of historical society, Is as
much human document as the more
famous, though not more naive diaries
OF Samuel Pepys. His was a simple,
child-like, open, frank, and, one
almost says, honest.
He takes pardonable pride in his
exploits, goes prattling along about
them as innocently as a child, and
suddenly. time after time, he fetches
up with a bump. He remembers the
gallows that awaits him and the part
he has undertaken to play-that OF
a repentant and pardoned sinner.
Then, in delicious unconscious humor,
he breaks out into the most conven-
tional expressions of cant.
Let no person." he says, "be in
duced to turn highwayman by reading
this book and seeing the great sums
of money which l have robbed, for it
is desperate life, full of danger, and
sooner or later ends on the gallows."
After, telling of his marriage to a
young and innocent girl of II: Il
wish" he adds, this book to serve
as a caution to the young girls who
read it, to be particular how they
choose husband, and pray that some
good angel will tell them what road
their husband will be likely to travel"
His descriptions of the white horse
which he declares once appeared to
him while he was being pursued after
a robbery, and the vision which visit
ed him in prison, strike the most scep-
| tical reader as mere flights of fancy,
possibly "reminiscences of early read
ings in Pilgrims Progress" But
bits Of description, that of the robbery
| In the canebrake on cloudy day, and
| that of the cave on the right after
robbery, ring Enthusiastically true.
Here, at least, he shows genuine feel
ing and some little power.
Joseph Thompson Hare was born
| In Chester county, Pa. When he was
| 81 years old he sailed for New Or.
leans, and started in life by knocking
down and robbing people on the
streets of that city. But such very
! retail business was not for him, and
! with two friends he decided to go out
on the road They bought three
frst-rate horses that were swift and
genteel" and started for Nashville.
Outside of Nashville they came on
four travellers in the midst of a great
canebreak, so thick that one could
not see ten feet from the road. ct
was cloudy day and everything
looked very black and gloomy, and
the sound of the cane, though 1t did
not frighten me, made me feel very
strange and out Of the way"
because they udu ACSACSSCu "
paint their faces, Hare's companions
we're in favor of killing all four of
the travellers, but Hare finally per-
suaded them not to do SO. One OF
! his men rified the pockets and saddle
bags of these unfortunates while the
others kept them covered. Then they
were allowed to depart.
Hare and his men established them
selves in a cave near the Chickasaw
| Bluffs, and having provided themsel-
YES with a featherbed and cooking
utensils they managed to be very COM
Portable indeed. OF the night after
| this robbery Hare says:
AS for me, could not sleep, but
lay looking sometimes in the fire we
had kindled, sometimes at the stars,
and listening to the wind in among
| the canebrake, which made such
wonderful rustling noise that | often
nhr Va sxxo q