Raftsman's journal. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1854-1948, 1856-04-02
MAJOR JONES.

PIsEvIILE, May 2Sth, 1912.
To Mr. TnoNPsos Dear Sir-Ever sense
you was down to Pineville, it's been on my
mind to write you letter, but the boys low
ed ia better not, cause you mought take me
off bout my spellin' and dictionary. But
something happened to me t'other night, SO
monstrous provokin', that l can't help tellin'
you about it, so you can put other young chaps
oH ther gard It all cum of chowin' SO much
tobacker, and l reckon I've wished there was
no sich plsgy stuff, more'n five hundred times
sense it happened.
You know the Stallinses lives on the planta-
ton in the summer and goes to town in the
winter. Well, Miss Mary Stallins, who you
know is the darlnest gal in the county, cum
homo t'other day to see her folks. You know
she's been to the Female College, down to Ma
con, for most year now. Before she went,
she used to go fshin' and huckleberryin' with
as, with nothiu' but calico sun-bonnet on,
and was the widest thing you ever saw. Well,
1 always used to have sort of sneakin' no.
ton of Mary Stallins, and when she cum,
I brushed up, and was 'termined to have a
rite serious talk with her bout old matters ;
~
some Of them Macon fellers.
So, sure enough, off started, unbeknowin'
to anybody, and rode rite over to the planta-
tlon-(you know ours is rite jinin the widder
Stallins.) Well, when got thar, felt little
sort o. sheepish but soon got over that,
when Miss Carline said, (but she didn't mean
ms te hear her,) ssThero Pinney, CHATS Miss
Mary's nickname, you know,) there's your DO
some.'
Miss Mary looked mighty sort O. redsh when
! shuck her hand and told her howdy; and shs
made sort of stoop over and dodge back,
like the little gals does to the school-marm,
and said ssGood evenin', Mr.. JONES'" (sho
used to always call me jest Joe.)
stTake a chair, Joseph" said Miss Carline /;
and we set down in the parlor, and begun to
talk TO Miss Mary bout Macon, and the long
ride she had, and the bad roads, and the mon
strous hot weather, and the like.
She didn't say much, but was in a mighty
good humor and laughed heap. I told her
never seen sich change in anybody. Nor
never did. Why, she didn't look like the
same gal-good gracious! she looked SO nice
and trim-jest like some Of them pictures in
Mr.. Graham's Magazine with her hair all kom-
ed down longside her face, slick and shiney
as mahogany burow. When She laughed
she didn't open her mouth like she used to
and set up straight and still in her chair, and
looked so different, but so monstrous pretty
ax'd her a heap of questions, bout how she
liked Macon, and the Female College, and so
forth and she told me heap bout 'em. But
old Miss StaIlIns and Miss Carline and Miss
Kesiah, and all of 'em, KEEP all the time inter
tuptin' US, akin bout nother-if she was well,
snd II she was gwine to the Spring Church next
Sunday, and what luck she had with her soap,
snd ell sich stufr-and l do believe told the
old wonan's old turky hen was settin on four
teen eggs.
We'll, I vasn't to bo backed out in that-a-
5yay-so KEEP I goin' the best I could, 'til
Y1nebr old Miss Stailins let her knlttin' fall
three or four times, and then begun to nod and
snap back like fshin-pole that was all the
time gitin bites. 1 seed the gals lookin' at
one another and pinchin one anotler's elbows,
ard Miss Mary said she wondered what time
1t was, and said the College disciplines, or
somethin' like that, didn't low late hours. /
seed how the game was gwine-but howsum-
ever, KEEP talkin' to her like cotton gin in
packin' time, as could clip it, It'll bimeby
the old lady went to bed, and arter bit the
gals all cleared, and left Miss Mary to herself.
That was jest the thing wanted.
Well, she sot on one side of the fireplace
and l sot on t'other, so I could spit on the
har.h, war ther was nothin' but q lightered
chunk burnin' to give light. Well, we talked
and talked. and know you would like to hear
all We talked about, but that would be too
long. When I'm very interested in any thing.
or git bother'd about anything, can't help
chawin heap of tobacker, and then spits
uncomfortable, specially if I'm talkin. Well,
we so. thar and talked, and the way spit, was
iarmen to the crickets! axed her if she had
any boes down to Macon. Fa8
"Oh, yes" she said, and then she went on
and named over Matthew Natix, Nat. Filoso-
~, Al. Geber, Retire Stronomy. and whole
heap Of fellars, that she'd been keepin' cem-
rany with most all her time.