, 1922-02-16
TIMBER CUTTERS ON
MEDICINE BOW FOREST
SUFFER FRIGHT

From a recent report OF permit
tees who are given free use of tim
Der for ranch purposes on the Med
icine Bow National Forest. the woods
are becoming infested with ghosts
and are not of the variety which
originate in a moonshine still.
Two ranchers In the Elk Mountain
valley were issued free use permits
for poles and fencing material and
contracted the cutting Of the material
to three husky young men of Elk
Mountain. Jay Johnson, Bill Carr
and Jim Reedy. These men took
their teams, camp equipment and
supplies to an old cabin in the Turpin
Creek locality, preparing to stay a
week in order to cut and pile the
poles. to be hauled down later.
They arrived at the camp d little
after noon and spent the afternoon
and evening cleaning and repairing
the cabin and did not get to bed until
a late hour. They had just gotten in
bed with the lights out when they
heard a loud bump on the side of
the cabin and while discussing what
might have caused the noise, they
distinctly heard something walking
around the cabin in the snow. They
then decided that the visitor must be
a bear and Jim Reedy took his rifle
ane cautiously opened the door to in
vestigate. At one look. his teeth
chattcring and knees knocking. he
decided that he had heard no bear,
and that it was too cold to shoot
anyhow, but it is believed that the
chat:ering was not all due to the
cold.
Things quieted down again and oil
went to bed again. but somehow
sleep would not come again and while
lying there talking the matter over.
they noticed a Pickering light on the
ceiling. and upon investigating they
found n of the stove lids turning
slowly up on edge, and while watch
ing it, 1t slowly returned to it's proper
place. Jay Johnson decided it would
be more comfortable to have a light,
so he got up and lighted a candle,
which he stuck in the neck of a beer
bottle. and again crawled into the
blankets. For some reason he wal
s~hivering and c%hattering, but blamed
it to the cold.
Thcp as they all were talking in
subdued tones, trying to explain the
creepy feeling they all felt, they all
distinctly saw the tea kettle, which
was about half full Of water. rise
slowly from the stove and float slow
ly out into the middle OF the floor
n settle quietly to the floor. BY
this time no n had nerve enough
to get up and investigate further, SO
they sat and laid in their hunks and
waited form morning. During the re-
ma:nder Of the night they say they
heard strange noises and saw strange
thir gs. the pans and utensils on the
walls and table rafting at inter-
walls.
AS soon as it was light enough to
see the men decided that as they
were not very hungry they would go
down to the Quealy ranch for break
fast which they, did. and after telling
Of their experiences and being laugh
ed at by the ranch hands and accused
OF having too much moonshine, they
invited as many as cared to go, to
stay with them the following night,
that is Jay and Jim did, but Bill Carr
said he wouldn't go back to that
cabin for a million dollars.
That evening Jay and Jim took Mr..
and Mrs. Thos. Quealy and Harry
Jones back with them as their guests.
The rest Of the men at the ranch did
not seem to care to go, despite their
IuLh. AHGy dIIlfcu a. Tue
cabin and while Jay was starting a
fire. Jim went out and cut a big arm
load Of wood. Jay was working
around the stove and said the fry
pan flew off the wall and struck him
on the leg while he was six feet away.
This scared him so badly he started
u the door IN high and ran plump
into Jim with his load Of wood and
there was a general pile up. Despite
the fact hat they were scared