The Web : $b The Authorized History of the American Protective LeagueHough, Emerson
History
The Web : $b The Authorized History of the American Protective League
Hough, Emerson
American Protective League; Propaganda, German; World War, 1914-1918 -- Secret service -- United States
Mr. W——, a Deputy Sheriff of Tuscaloosa County, had been trying to
locate Dan for ten months, and had watched continuously as much as
ten days at one time, both house and barn. A number of searches prior
to the arrival of the A. P. L. squad, made in and around the mines of
the different operating companies, had given no clue. One thing was
certain, however: nearly everybody in the district was related to him,
due to the intermarriage during several generations of the people, and,
as usual, there were some of his own kin-folks who would “shore like to
see him pulled.”
At last, the patience of the party being exhausted, and feeling
sure that Dan was somewhere, either about the house or barn, the
father, William D——, and the mother, and a sister, who had denied any
relationship to Dan, were told positively either to surrender him or go
to jail. They asked for time, and it was refused. They pleaded for the
officers to come again to-morrow. This also was refused. After pleading
again to give them till afternoon, they finally asked one of the League
operators to a conference behind the house with the mother and father.
They then renewed their pleadings for time, but finally agreed to show
the hiding place of their son and deliver him to the party, as they now
realized that the “U. S. was a blame sight stronger than kin-folks who
were liable to split on you at any minute.”
The father was then accompanied to the barn. He knocked on the wall of
the barn and said, “Come down, son!” Almost immediately a wide plank
in the floor of the barn loft, almost over the heads of the astonished
men, mysteriously arose from its resting place, revealing the most
unique and simple hiding place imaginable. It was nothing more or less
than a box, about as large as a good sized coffin, in which there were
bed clothes, food and water. The box was cut to fit the joists, hiding
all joints, and being apparent from below as a part of the loft floor.
It was covered with fodder and hay above, the occupant using one loose
plank of the box as his trap door. When occupied, it would naturally
be as tight as any other part of the floor. Later, the party saw a
hole dug out under the cow stall which he had occupied until his more
palatial quarters in the coffin box had been provided.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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