Jeffersonian Republican. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1840-1853, 1841-07-14
JACK DOWNING'S COUSIN.
Blackberry pulling, or Sally ANN and
the feller with the long hair, em-
bracing an illustration of the diff
ference between love and hornets.
To the Editor of the Lafayette Gazette:

| ference between love and hornets.
To the Editor of the Lafayette Gazette:
| Mister Editur: Did you ever in the hull course
O your natural life go blackberryin'! If you
haint, golly grashus, why you don't know nothin'
no more about real labor-sawn', high presshur,
galvanc1 1ectifyin' sport than the butt eend O.
noihin' arter it's been whitfield. Lor' ha' massy
upon ofliss-holders! why nolhn' in all creation
can come up TO blackberryin', but gntin' dump
ed ou:'n slay into snow bank, and even
that amt as good when il aint moonshny night.
Menny and menny is the time when lot o.
the Jordan Spankers-that's what our village
boys was nicknamed-woud raise party O.
gals after the grain harvestin' was over, and
afore the corn and taters was ripe, and start off
early in the mornin for Hop Toad Hill, where
the blackberries was eenamost as plentiful as
muskeeturs in these diggings, and sich ALFRED
prime times as we'd have was caution TO for
riners.
Fus, off, when all hands got collected, and
lot @ su!thin' 10 eat, pork an beans, new ci-
der, gooseberry pies, green corn, 'lasses ginger
bread an smart sprinklin' of other good things
were pervided, we'd lokermote; the gals all
walkin' by their selves; the gals with their
tongues runnin' about scandle, new rbbins,
kaliko gowns an sich consarns, jest as fast as
saw mill in freshe,; and the fellows gab-
bin about horses, cattle, gineral musters, an
corn shukins-a tellin' how twas all Ike Shaw's
kerelessness that made his grain mouldy-that
Jim Bingy was the orfulest liar that ever was,
and that Hen Sprague told uncle Seth that
Zebe Armstrong; wife had heerd how that
Harrison Stebbns hadn't the funs to go on with
his new frame house, and that comm so strait
from one who'd orter know all about it. all
hands sot it rite down for ia ct an said tha, it
sarved him jest rite; and then to think of his
havin' the sass TO build house, without tellin'
the hull village how menny rooms there was TO
be on the fust floor, an he a member O. the
church tu-"it sarved him Jest rite, by crackey!"
So we'd keep torkin' till we cum to the hill;
then all hands div rite iniu the bushes and bram-
bles, and sich a scramblin' and scratchn' for
blackberries as there was, wasn't 10 be sneezed
at.
1t happened that on one O these blackberry
in frolics that sarting long haired feller with
leetle bunch rite over his mou,h--lookin' at
distance just as though he'd been among the
pots an kettles, and got a great COB of crock
on his upper lip-was a visitin' down our way,
an appeared to have taken an amazin fancy to
Sally Ann, the Sally Ann that I'd been payin'
'tentions tu; KEEP chaltin to her the hull live
long time, and snum if could scarcely b'leve
my own natteral senses, when he begun to pick
berries an put them intu her busket, an she not
sayin' word agin it. Wal guess as how l
was leetle riled to see myself cut drift in
that fashion, an had great mind to 60 off
and shine around some other gal, jest for spite,
but somehow or mother l wanted to keep an
eye on that dandy. So Sally says |, "Ther's
a smart sprinkln oy berries over here-I guess
leetle more than grow around your way"
"Oh, they're thick as puddin' here" say, she
81 calculate that you are pooty consumedly
thick" says |.
"You-aw remarks are demd supawfuous, )"
says the long haired creetur.
Suz alive! but want my dander up to hear N.Y.
self calld ''demd supor1us" s"--down | slat the
basket and upset all the berries--marches right
up to him jest as brassy as hull militia train
In, an says |, "ony you call me porpus or a
superfus again, an see how I'll 90 to work an
splle your hansum countenance for ye."
With that Sally she bust out crying, an |
VOW il | could help boo hooing little myself,
| felt so cOnfusticated
"You-aw laboring under an erraw," says he,
''but awnaw demands an explawnation-awm
demd"
oval says I, "your langwidge wants ex-
plainin', that's fact"
So he turned round to set down, hauled out
his handkerchief, an as hope to be saved, went
10 dustin off the top of hornets nest, and afore
one could say "gi. out" sot down ont tu tx
plain. Gorashus didn't the hornets come at
him for squashin' their nest, an didn't he run
and holler, an scoot ihro the briar brushes, and
tear his trowserloons-an the gals snikkered
out, an the feIlers haw-hawed till they was
eenamoSt ded, to see that dandy marvel down
In the main road, without emmy hat his trow.
sers all split up, his hair fyin' in the wind
like hosses tail, and the hornets goin' it tu
Alll. Sally was shocking shamed of actin so,
'ut we soon made up, and sich prime sport as
lll hands had for the rest of the day, wasn't to
De beat. Long Locks mended up his trowser-
oons-they were the ony ones he had-and
'neaked oul'n our village that day, an haint
showed his nose there Since--the poor creetur