One of the most common and annoying crimes committed by these desperadoes was shooting an emigrant’s swine.  These animals, regarded as so invaluable in a new country, each had its owner’s mark, and ranged the woods, fattening upon acorns and other nuts.  Nothing was easier than for a lazy man to wander into the woods, shoot one of these animals, take it to his cabin, devour it there, and obliterate all possible traces of the deed.  Thus a large and valuable herd would gradually disappear.  This crime was consequently deemed to merit the most severe punishment.  It was regarded as so disgraceful that no respectable man was liable to suspicion.

The punishment for the crime was very severe, and very summary.  If one of these swine-thieves was brought before Justice Crockett, and in his judgment the charge was proved against him, the sentence was—­

“Take the thief, strip off his shirt, tie him to a tree, and give him a severe flogging.  Then burn down his cabin, and drive him out of the country.”

There was no appeal from this verdict, and no evading its execution.  Such was the justice which prevailed, in this remote region, until the Legislature of Alabama annexed the territory to Giles County, and brought the region under the dominion of organized law.  Crockett, who had performed his functions to the entire satisfaction of the community, then was legally appointed a justice of peace, and became fully entitled to the appellation of esquire.  He certainly could not then pretend to any profound legal erudition, for at this time he could neither read nor write.

Esquire Crockett, commenting upon this transaction, says, “I was made a Squire, according to law; though now the honor rested more heavily upon me than before.  For, at first, whenever I told my constable, says I, ‘Catch that fellow, and bring him up for trial,’ away he went, and the fellow must come, dead or alive.  For we considered this a good warrant, though it was only in verbal writing.

“But after I was appointed by the Assembly, they told me that my warrants must be in real writing and signed; and that I must keep a book and write my proceedings in it.  This was a hard business on me, for I could just barely write my own name.  But to do this, and write the warrants too, was at least a huckleberry over my persimmon.  I had a pretty well informed constable, however, and he aided me very much in this business.  Indeed, I told him, when he should happen to be out anywhere, and see that a warrant was necessary, and would have a good effect, he needn’t take the trouble to come all the way to me to get one, but he could just fill out one; and then, on the trial, I could correct the whole business if he had committed any error.

“In this way I got on pretty well, till, by care and attention, I improved my handwriting in such a manner as to be able to prepare my warrants and keep my record-books without much difficulty.  My judgments were never appealed from; and if they had been, they would have stuck like wax, as I gave my decisions on the principles of common justice and honesty between man and man, and relied on natural-born sense, and not on law-learning, to guide me; for I had never read a page in a law-book in all my life.”