I read somewhere that the early Celts held Truth above all things. Once again a story from Ireland and one from Appalachia. Both related to me by honest people.
A railway once built a spur line in the Central part of Ireland. Intended for the carrying of passengers and goods it was complete with a station and some good lanterns as well as the track. But it was never used. The Railway company that built it had financial problems and eventually went out of business and for years the railway sat silent and unused.
And then one day a local fellow helped himself to one of the fine lanterns, thinking that if they were just sitting there then he would put one of them to use. Unfortunately he was apprehended in this `theft' and taken before the magistrate. His solicitor in this matter contacted several people and informed the judge that it appeared that no one now owned the railway line. And so the judge ruled it to be not a theft but simply a salvage.
The next morning every trace of the railway was gone. Lanterns, rails, ties, bolts... All had disappeared in the night and were now a part of many rural constructions.
John is a potter from England. His life adventures led him to America and he lived his life pursuing his art, first in Connecticut and then in NYC. In his middle age he bought a farm in Appalachia. In a very rural area, his log house is nestled among the hills and provides him with fine white clay. Now married to a local woman he is sinking deep roots into his farm.
One of John's pastimes is the making of wine and believe me his persimmon wine is a really wonderful adventure in flavors. Well, he had not been too long in his new abode but long enough to meet his neighbors when word got out that he made his own liquor.
John kept his wine stored under one of his outbuildings and one day he went out to check on it and Lo, almost half of it was missing. Someone had come with a long hooked pole and neatly extracted about 7 jugs of wine, taking it out through a hole in the foundation wall. He plugged up the hole and and hoped that was the end of thieving. About 3 weeks later he had occasion to look into the wine storage area and there to his surprise were all the bottles that had been taken. They were emptied of their contents and the bottles were washed and corked. It seems the perpetrators simply wanted to taste his efforts and he has no doubt that probably every local person got a sample.
He laughs in the telling of it. He delights that they brought his jugs back. It never happened again. They just wanted to know what he was abrewin'.