Connecticut western news., 1912-03-14
GIANTS OF OTHER DAYS.
How Woodn Tanned One Bully and
 Mcintyre Ducked Another.


 A second "reminiscence of earlier times" written by Rev. H. s. Ball, con- corning the giants of those days" was printed in The News of March I7, 1880, thirty-two years ago. It was as follows:
 "In the brief note I sent you I find one mistake. Ithamar Woodin, and not Thomas, was the woodchopper who cut and piled six cords per day. Ith' was the familiar name by which he was known; he was a man of prodigious strength. On the noun (Mt. Riga) men tried their muscle by hopping, jump ing and the lifting of heavy weights of iron. The man who could raise at l dead-lift five hundred pounds was con- sidered a strong man. There were sev- eral who could do that, and some who could lift more. Henry Belcher could lift ten tiftysiX pound weights-ive hun dred and sixty pounds. James Harvey, Thomas Day Jr., about the same. But Ith' Woodin could lift twelve, so could 'Manley Wilbur; Ralph Greatrack was about the same measure. John Bennett had six sons, measuring thirty-six feet and weighing eleven hundred pounds They were all men of unusual strength. We once asked Uncle John how it hap Pened that he raised so many boys, all so strong, healthy and heavy
 "I give them,' said the old man, "a half portion of Johnny-cake, and let | them go barefoot in the winter Had | all of us borne more hardships in early life we might be more healthy in old age.
 "Another way of testing the strength . of the muscle was in hopping two hops and jump, or thre. jumps. Ithamar Woodin, Wm. Patterson and the writer once ran and hopped thirty-six feet in front of the old store. Philip Stewart would stand and jump twelve feet. These men would hop and jump the distance named, back and forth over the same ground.
 "On camp meeting occasion, a little east of the old Deming stand a York State bully, the worse for liquor, was de- termined to fight Woodin. Ithamar was
  hated intensely anything like quarrels or broils. On the occasion named he tried to avoid the man, and left the barroom and went to the horse barn. The bully soon followed, and commenced rougher than ever, going so far as to collar Ith. The good-natured giant took him by the coat collar, gave his antagonist a sudden jerk, lifted him from his feet, and hurl- ing him nearly over his head, he landed ten or twelve feet from the door. It was a hard fall, and it cured effectually any desire the man had to fight Woodin.
 "Coonrod Mcintyre was another man in whom was the strength of a giant. Once at Lakeville we saw an exhibition There was in earlier time a good deal of bitter feeling. between the mountain boys, or 'Mountaineers,' as the town boys called them, and themselves. On the occasion of which we are writing, one linn Chintly had drank to intoxica, ton, and some of the Furnace Village boys, as Lakeville was then called, were bent on putting Jim in the brook. 'Hen' Dutch, the writer and Coonrod Mcintyre went along, not quite willing that the , old man should be immersed. Opposite what was then Phiander Wheeler's law office, the game. began. But no sooner had one laid hand on Chintley than Coon rod, caught him by the collar and the seat inh 1 his head, flung him into the brook, call ing out so as to be heard by the crowd:
 "Come on. I will act as Baptist min ister, and immerse all that comep There were no others put into the water that u,,, 1t.
 "I look back tonight over half a cen tury. How few are now living of those men who in life's rejoicing morning put forth their physical powers for fun, feel ing as if strength would never fail Of those we have named, Woodin is per haps the only one living.-(We are in formed by MT Warren Mcintyre, nephew of the Coonrod Mcintyre alluded to above, that WQodin, the woodchopper who resided on Canaan Mountain, died there over a year ago.-Ed.) There may be others, but we know not. Many have acted well their parts, gained a C competence, and passed into the future. Others made shipwreck of themselves, drowning every noble feeling in the death-crowned bowl.
 N
 no Va, Rapoopohar Thapoo