8 Chapter 6 The Legend Blossoms

Chapter 6 The Legend Blossoms The first newspaper in the Northwest Territory was published in 1793 in Cincinnati, Ohio. But frontier settlers rarely got a chance to see a newspaper or any book besides the Bible. Most cabins were built far apart, and settlers didn't get many visitors. So they were glad to see Johnny when he came to their cabins to advertise

his apple business and sell apple seedlings. Besides, he didn't just bring seedlings. He brought news and stories. Johnny was a good storyteller and liked to entertain settlers with his wilderness adventures. He told of a life full of exciting escapes from bears, wolves, and other wild animals. He told of tending his own wounds with a piece of blazinghot iron. And he told of the time he set his canoe on a large piece of ice floating down a creek. The ice carried him along faster than he could have paddled. Unfortunately, he fell asleep and wound up passing the place he'd meant to land.

When Johnny told stories, his gray eyes sparkled. He knew how to use his voice to build a story to a thrilling climax or to make people laugh. One thing that surprised people about Johnny was that he was always barefoot. He walked hundreds of miles in his apple business. His feet must have hurt at first. But the bottoms of them got tough after a while. Stepping on rocks and twigs became less painful. He occasionally stuck pins through the tough skin of his feet to impress people. Some people wondered if his feet were magic. Rumors got started. It was said he could leap across rivers or melt ice with his bare feet. The soles of his feet were said to be so tough that a snake's fangs couldn't pierce them.

People talked about his clothes, too. Some said he wore an upside-down cooking pot on his head! He made a brim for the edge of it to shield his eyes from the sun. He may have done that a few times. It would have been a good way to carry his cooking pot and to shade his face from the sun. But most of the time, he probably carried his pot in a backpack. Johnny made his shirts out of empty coffee sacks with holes cut for his head and arms. Although he took baths, he didn't really care how he looked. He wore whatever he could find. Once,

he found an old boot and a moccasin, so he put one on each foot.

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