The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1935-02-15

| just hit the high spots. First, Mich
olas Brandon and Denny McManus
came into this country when they
weren't much more than boys. They
were the first hardwood operators in
this country. The pine had been
skinned out, but not many hardwood
camps had at that time gotten this far
from the centers of things. They'd
had some experience and little money
up a raft of timber for song and
started turning 1t into fortune.
"McManus was married and had the
daughter, Dawn. Brandon never mar
ried. Just when they were swinging
nicely, everything running smooth as
butter, McManus' wife died. He was
as deeply In love as any man I've ever
seen and 1t sent him completely to pot
He took to heavy drinking and got
himself In a bad way.
"Of the two, Denny was the more
popular. He was friendly, charitable,
had a heart as big as camp stove
and as soft as sponge. lie d go the
route for anybody. Why-probably
you've never even heard this-when
old Don Stuart trimmed the company it
was McNIanus who stood In the way of
prosecution. Don had cruised and
bought lot of stuff for them. He al
ways had been a drinker himself and
on one spree got into some sort of
mess and crooked the company out of
three or four hundred dollars. Enough.
anyhow, to let himself in for a long
term In the penitentiary If they'd
pushed it. Brandon wanted to prose-
cute, all right, but McManus stood up
for Don. That was typical Of the man:
friendly, forgiving, a real human be-
ing, if you understand.
"But Mac went to pieces himself. He
would be off on bender for weeks at a
time and scarcely get over the shakes
before he'd start on another. Finally
he got so bad that Brandon sent him
out to hunting camp on the river
with fine old trapper named Sam
Faxson. Great old character, Sam.
Brandon figured-and it seemed reason
Sam Spulo hCCP HloN away
from booze, you see He was there a
week or so, tapering off gradually, see
ing nobody but Sam. Brandon was
working away like mailer, buying up
lot of stuff for himself, probably
figuring that If McManus didn't
straighten up he'd operate on his own
hook. McManus had this Hoot Owl
stuff cinched in his own maine before
he went bad.
"Well, one night we were in the
middle of a three-day blizzard and
Sam Faxson stumbled into Don Stuart's
shanty on the edge of town, shot
through the arm and frozen so badly
that he died the next afternoon. Dons
story"-voice slowing and finger rails
ing for emphasis was that Faxson
told him McManus had gotten out of
booze and turned ugly and that when
he-Sam-tried to prevent him from
starting for town after more whisky
he went wild at Sam and shot him. He
was hit in the arm, had to have help
and in trying to get it suffered more
exposure than any man could stand.
"Well, that caused a great stir A
party hit straight out for the camp
and couldn't find hide nor hair nor
sign of Mac. couple of old trailers
agreed thar somebody had gone down
to the river below the camp the night
that Faxson was shot. The Mad Wom-
an is swift at that bend and never
freezes. The trail seemed to go right
to the edge of the stream and the &C.
copied theory was that McManus. real
izing what he'd done. had drowned
himself. The fact that nothing has
ever been seen or heard Of him since
lends strength to that supposition.
TO BE CONTINUED.