Morgan County Democrat. (McConnelsville, Ohio) 1886-1943, 1937-02-18

and voice specialists that makes the
rest of us move about uneasily and
say that under any classification, he
is none the less an undesirable cit
izen-that his nightly concerts do
not fit naturally into the placidity of
our country life-that he is out OF
touch with the things Of our age.
and personally, if our own pedalistic
equipment faileth us not in the
emergency, he will be kept out Of
touch. And furthermore, this
"whoopee" that he is making back
there in the hills, is bringing dis
credit upon the vocalistic powers OF
our own local brand of hootch and
affecting the industry. This product
of the bobcat or under what other
wild animal name he is putting 1t
out, upon careful analysis shows
an upward range of several octaves
higher than that with which we are
familiar from the throat of one of
our own mankind upon occasions. 1t
| is this presence of Sir Bobcat that is
giving rise to the most amazing
stories. Here is one as told to the
reporter by backwoods youth:
dad dug a new we'll last summer
and he dug it deep. He struck a
limestone ledge and he kept digging
with gunpowder and drills until the
neighbors told dad he'd strike a
Chinaman in the queue. Dads an
swer was that he wanted well with
water in it. But as soon as dad
struck water and stoned up the we'll
he knew he had made mistake.
Nom really noticed it first when she
tried to do the weekly washing with
it. Instead of the soap taking hold
of the dirt it made the water froth
and bubble like Dad might nave
tapped an old time soda fountain
instead of a respectable well. Dad
said Nom one day, splitting great
flakes of plaster out Of her mouth
that new water is as hard as flint
Well. after we had all taken down
with palpitation and short breath,
the Doc was called in, felt pulses
and said: What in the name OF the
Stone Age are you folks trying to Go
make stone quarries out OF your
selves?' Then he gave us vinegar
to drink and fed us on wood sorrel
until the acids eat hole big enough
to let in just scarcely enough breath
to live on, just like other relief rem
edies work out in many cases. Al
ter that he had the county heaitf
officer make Dad plug the hole
where the water poured in from the
ledge and put us all on plain water
Dad seemed to be getting along pref
ty we'll on plain water until about q
month ago. 1t SO happened that
Dad bet and won a gallon of whls-
ky on the election last fall, as to
who'd be coroner He was always a
strong Prohibitionist but he said it
would be like flying in the face OF
Madam Fortune to let that rum stay
in the Jug this winter and never be
allowed to run out and brighten
things up a little when life seemed
dull. 1T is against my conscience
he said, to waste that rum and
when I'm beset by two evils,
choose the least Saying which he
put the jug to his mouth and swal-
lowed as much as pint and ther
went down the hill and up the creek
to ask some of his neighbors to as
sist him in worthy cause. NOW
we have good neighbors but in TINS
particular instance they did not help
DAD as muCn as Lnoy SHoulu, Aoi
when he started home he was not as
strong on his feet as man his years
ought to have been and making ap-
plication to the jug for help again,
he lost all power to walk. Well,
Dad don't remember the exact hour
he woke up, but he remembers the
cause of his waking very plainly. II
was on four legs, dirty gray hair all
over it's body, and had voice loud
er than a locomotive whistle, but
was toned more like that fire siren
over at the county seat. Dad said ?
miracle took place in him right
there, for as soon as he heard it yell,
he knew it was bobcat and he pre-
pared to die without benefit Of any
body present but the bobcat. Then
while waiting to be scratched to
basting threads, his strength sud
denly came back in his legs and Dad
ran faster than he ever did in his
boyhood. He was going every bit as
fast as a trottin' horse and was get
srI Cnannd when