Carolina watchman. [volume] (Salisbury, N.C.) 1871-1937, 1915-06-16
A Flood and a. Skunk
The Big Coharie 10 Sampson County Gets
on a Tare,

| y" SOuspSVu VV0UtI OVt8
ena Tlfe.
Mr.. Editor:
While I am housed in on
account of high water I will give
you few dots from this part of
the state.
Last Thnrsday evening, June
5rd, parties came driving up and
said they had orders from up the
river to come here and secure the
bridge which is across Big Coharie
River at this place against the
nood tFat was coming down at
rapid rate. So they tied it fast to
trees aud weighted 1t down secure
". 1t seemed strange indeed to
me to be preparing for food he.
fore 1T was in sight. But l had
some faith in what they said and
went about getting ready for it.
| got my boat in readiness and
tied it in a convenient place. Wife
got basy catching chickens and
turkeys and moving setting hens.
After doing what We thought was
necessary and with clear consci-
ence of duty done. I lay down
about 10 O'Clock to rest. About
II O'Clock wife came to my bed.
side and said the water had R4s
INTO the hog pen. So ! ,hastened
to the rescue Of my hogs. I found
them swim ming and almost OK.
hausted. So with my axe I wad.
cd in and made an opening for
them to swim out. From the hog
pen we waded around saving more
chickens. turkeys. etc. We found
one turkey hen floating with the
sggs all around her. We took her
with the eggs and put them in =
b < and strange to say she hatoh-
every egg. Then l went to see
after the horses and found them
knee deep in water. After get.
ting them on a high knoll out of
water, / waded back to the house
and spent the rest of the night
watching. Friday morning the
water was about two feet deep in
our yard and still rising. and con.
tinued to rise till about 10 O'Clock
that day. 80 waded out and got
my boat and put it into service
The girls sook charge of the
boat and used it for pleasure, row.
ing around in the yard. They
did not venture out of the yard,
however, because the current down
the public road was 80 swift. But
.wheD the water commenced to
fall it wens off at a rapid rate, and
by Saturday We oonld see some
land again. The cause of this
food was a cloud burst and the
breaking cf two or three mill
dams about thirty miles up the
river. The over. fl ow was average
ed at about a mile or mile and q
half wide. The water destroyed a
great deal of property, bridges,
fences aud crops. 1t reminded one
of what had been read about the
Galveston, Texas. food.
am still having luck fishing.
1 caught fine Jack sometime ago
that weighed five pounds. A few
days after that I caughs some-
thing that l was acutalIy afraid
of. I had never sesn anything
like it before. 1t had bill like
a bird, about six inches long,
with very sharp teeth. It was
nearly three feet long. I was puz.
z'ed to know what to name it, but
pretty soon q neigbor came to
my rescue and called it q gar.
am very much afraid the food
has destroyed many of the wild
turkeys and birds that nest on the
groul d.
Had some fun with skunk
sometime ago that got amongst
our chickens one night while g
friend and his family were visit
ing us. They had never seen q
skunk aud did not know how od-
orous their odar was. I heard Q
commotion out in the poultry
yard abt ut dark. I got my gun
and called my faithful dog.
About shat time the cdor of the
skunk, which 10 unlike all other
odors, commenced filling the yard
and house, aud the death shos did
noe stay the odor We had to
burn rags aud use other dislnfect.
inn n, q hoda haEaaa ma aa.ll