Year: 1874

Q


| As I came down stairs tLe other morn
ing 1 saw Capt. Frank Sans, ssnoted
hunter, seated on the edge of the stoop,
swinging his feet into a rosebush.
''LOok here" said he, ''you think you
know something about Florida murders
The Lang and COchrane stories amt a
patch to the beauties of the Suwanee
country. Out there they make n whole
sale business o. it. Some time aco two
men named Locklier and Mundy lived
near the mouth of the Suwanee river.
They raised cattle for a living. Lock
lier had an average looking woman for n
wife, while Muhdy was a widower with
a mighty fine daughter. The two men
got quite thick, and used to COW drive
together and eat in each others houses.
After Il time Mundy took a fancy to
Locklier's wife, and LOcklier took
fancy to Mundy's daughter. So they
struck up a trade. After palavering
aroUknd, Mundy offered to give his
daughter for Locklier's wife and twenty
head of cattle. Locklier took him up
straight, and the bargain was made"


l asked the captain what kind of girl
the daughter was.


Well, " he replied, "Tve heard she
was plump little FLY, about eighteen
years old. Locklier's wife was little
skinny, but she was n good driver and
worked well in harness with her hus-
band. The daughter never made any
objection to the bargain, and the wife,
like most of the women, was glad of
on tie fftt twenty sSF lead of cattle and the
old woman, and Locklier shook himself
down in the cabin with the daughter.
Things were all snug. Well, in about
two weeks Locklier's wife got sick OF 1t.
She declared that her husband was bad
enough, but he was an angel alongside
of NIundy. She went back home, and
swore that she wouldn't live with Nun
dy any longer under any circumstances.
Then Mundy came up to Lockller's
house and wanted his daughter back.
The daughter by this time had fallen IN
love with I.ocklier, and you couldn't
have driven her out of his cabin with a
pack of dogs. Iocklier said she shouldn't
unless the old man drove back the twen-
ty head of cattle. Mundy said he'd see
I,ocklier in HI before he brought back
the cattle, and threatened to shoot him
if he didn't turn over his daughter.
Locklier told him to shoot and be dod-
drotted. So they parted bad friends. >"


I interrupted the captain by asking
what the neighbors thought of such pro-
ceedings.


g Well" lie replied, they didn't
have many neighbors. What they did
have were like themselves. They
locked upon the whole thing as bona
fide bargain, and if one or the other
got cheated it was no outsiders bust
ness. As was saying, Mundy declared
war. He threw up sort of parallel
around Locklier's house, and bon-
barded it with double barreled shot
gun. All day long he laid around the
house, waiting for a shot. LoclSlier
was afraid to go out or even show his
face at the window. For hours he would
sit on a chair with his old rife across
his knees AMI watch the door. Whenever
the latch moved he would blaze away
without waiting to find ont who was
coming in. Two or three times he
came near shooting his wife when she
was out after pail of water. You see
he knew Mupdy meant business, and he
wasn't going to let him get twist on
him. Mundy skirmished around the
house until dark. Then he travelled
home and got good nights sleep; but
by daylight Locklier again found him
intrenched outside the door.


"This arrangement lasted several





his Imprisonment. One night he took
a couple of stout cart wheels standing
near his cabin, boarded them on three
sides with two-inch plank, and when
Mundy put in an appearance the next
morning confronted him with his move
able battery. The old man had to fall
back. Locklier followed him mp the
road with his battery, shelling him at
every Jump. Mundy was driven into
his headquarters, and his antagonist
took the part of besieger. A dozen
shots were exchanged before sundowp,
and at dark Locklier drew back to his
house under cover of the battery. Be
fore the roosters stopped growing he
was again moving up the road toward
Mundy's house, shelling his way every
few rods, and driving the old man and
his shotgun to cover.


swell, the war was kept up in this
way about week, but at last it had to
come to an end. One bright moonlight
night Locklier thought he would oui.
| city wheel his battery up the road and
see if he couldn't catch Mundy outside
of his Notifications. So he laid his ri
| fe before him and set the wheels ago
| ing. He had showed them about quar-
ter of a mile, and was Just turning {
curve in the road when he heard {
scraping noise on his left. Mundy hac
fanked him. By the light of the moor
he could see the old man on his knees
behind a fence, showing the barrels o
his shotgun between the rails and get
1 ting his head down to take aim. Lock
lier had no time to lose He snatche(
his rifle and sighted it. They fred to
gether. Mundy fell dead with rife
bullet in his head, and Locklier tum
bled into his battery with eleven buck
shot in his breast. He lived about fou
hours, and declared if he hadn't beer
listening to the crickets he would hav
seen Mundy before the battery passed
him. The wife and daughter buried th
two men, divided the twenty head o
cattle and got all the property"


THOMAS HOOP died composing
that, too, humorous poem. He j
said to have remarked that he was dy
ing ont of charity to the undertaken