The Turnbo Manuscripts
by Silas Claiborne Turnbo
1844-1925
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HE WENT TO SLEEP AND FELL OFF OF HIS HORSE
By S. C. Turnbo
The following account was told me by Mr. John C. Carter a former resident of Barry County Mo. but now of Red Bird Indian Territory.
"We lived 20 miles from Cassville the county seat of Barry County.
When I was a young man I loved my associates like other young fellows love
their friends now and we often whiled away time together in a jolly manner.
On one occasion we all got too jolly and we were all up two nights in succession
and the majority of us never closed our eyes for sleep. On the morning following
the second night of our wakefulness my father told me to ride to Cassville
and buy a bushel of salt and bring it home. This was in the pioneer days
when most of people bought their salt in little "dribs". When
my father said "John you go to Cassville today and buy a bushel of
salt I did not say, "Pap I’m too sleepy to go now. You wait till
tomorrow and I’ll go." I knew better than to say that, but went
and caught a horse we called "Ball" and putting the saddle on
him I started. It was late in the evening when I reached town and started
back toward home with the salt and it was some time after nightfall when
I reached the head of Rock Creek 8 miles from Cassville. By the time I had
rode to the breaks of this creek I was desperately sleepy and when I had
went a little further I lost all conscience of myself and everything else
and knew nothing more until I was startled by the howling of wolves all
around me. I had went to sleep while riding along and fell off of the horse
without knowing it. The noise and approach of the impudent animals had aroused
me from my deep slumbers and as I woke up I heard chickens crowing as well
as the howl of the wolves. I knew by hearing the chickens crow that I was
not far from a house. I did not take time to rub my eyes before I got up,
but I rubbed them on the run and it was not a slow run either for I got
away from there on quick time and the noise of the wolves sounded fearful
to my ears while I was getting away. I did not experience the least trouble
in keeping my eyes open while fleeing along the road. Though the night was
dark yet I could find the way very easily all I had to do was to follow
the road and if I stumbled and fell it did not delay me but a moment in
getting up and starting on again in a wild rush in the dark. I fully believed
that the wolves would catch me and rend me into small bits and by this you
may understand that my race that night was not a happy one but good luck
to my flesh and bones the wolves did not pursue me. Daybreak was showing
in the east when I reached Isaiah Brocks down on Rock Creek where in my
almost exhausted condition in running so fast I roused up the family and
told Mr. Brock of my adventures with the wolves and how it happened. He
listened attentively to my tale and told me to wait till after breakfast
and after we had partaken of the morning meal he loaned me a horse and I
went back to the place of my nights experience and found that the wolves
had retired and so had my horse. I got on his trail though and followed
it to Mrs. Mary Coxes a widow lady who lived in the barrens. She said that
the horse come to the yard gate early in the morning with the saddle on
and the sack of salt was lying across the saddle. Mrs. Cox said she took
the salt and saddle off the horse and put the horse in the lot to await
the coming of the owner or his friends. She told me that when she saw the
horse with bridle and saddle on and a sack with something in it she feared
that the rider was killed and when I went to her house inquiring for the
horse she looked at me as though she knew I had been drunk. And I felt ashamed
to tell the kind hearted woman how it happened that the horse got away from
me for it looked more like I had got away from the horse. I returned the
borrowed horse to Mr. Brock add rode on home and on my arrival there I had
to explain to my father the "reason you did not get back last night".
He said he thought my wolf story was a fancy of the brain or imagination
rather, but I told him that it was true, but I forgot to tell him that my
horse got away and that I borrowed a horse to hunt him up on."
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