Life and bloody career of the executed criminal, James Copeland, the great Southern land piratePitts, J. R. S. (James Robert Soda)
History
Life and bloody career of the executed criminal, James Copeland, the great Southern land pirate
Pitts, J. R. S. (James Robert Soda)
Copeland, James, 1823-1857; Criminals -- Gulf States -- Biography
where he procured green corn to feed him, about five miles from the
camp ground. Next day there was found a piece of broken rope to the
tree, and the preacher’s horse was gone. There was a great noise about
it. McGrath told the brethren he thought he knew the place the horse
would go to, and that he could obtain him if he had another horse. They
furnished him with one, which he was to return if he obtained his own.
The one furnished was a splendid young horse. Wages, about an hour
before sunset, would stroll off and go to where the horse was, and
water and feed him about dark, and back to supper and then to prayer.
The meeting lasted four days. The night before the meeting broke up,
there was another preacher’s horse that went the same way. He was a
remarkable fine horse, and belonged to an old preacher who lived about
seventy miles from the camp ground. We now had ourselves again on
horseback. It was then understood between Wages, McGrath and myself
that it would not be safe for us to go to San Antonio, and that we
had better leave Texas as soon as possible. We arranged with McGrath
to meet us at Scott’s in three days. Wages and I called on some of
the preachers to pray for us, announcing to them our departure on our
exploring expedition on foot. Many of the brothers and sisters joined
in this prayer. After receiving the benedictions of the elders of the
church, Wages and I left about three o’clock. We had left our guns at
a house about two miles distant from the camp ground. We took them,
procured some bread and meat, and a bottle to carry some water, and
then went to the place where Wages had concealed the horses, found
them safe, and more green corn around them than they could have eaten
in two days. We then took out our bridles from our bundles and fitted
them on. Wages had stolen blankets with the horses, and two bed quilts.
We arranged these to ride on, and with our ropes or lassoes, we made
substitutes for stirrups. By this time it was sundown. We took our guns
and looked around to see if there were any spies out. We saw no one
except the people on the farm, driving in their stock. We returned to
the horses, and about dark set out. Wages took the lead on McGrath’s
horse, a fine traveler, and I, on the other, just walked right up to
him. We traveled about six miles an hour and did not push. Before day
sometime, we had traveled some forty-five miles to a creek, and knew we
were within twenty or twenty-five miles of Scott’s. We laid by all next
day. About sundown, we again started, and reached Scott’s before that
night.
Long before daylight next morning, our horses were sent off to the
mountains with the others. The next day up rolled the Rev. Mr. McGrath.
We introduced him as the Rev. Mr. McGrath, whom we had seen in South
Carolina. Mr. Scott and family invited him to spend two or three days,
during which time Wages, McGrath and I had a full consultation.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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