M'arthur Democrat. (McArthur, Vinton County, Ohio) 1853-1865, 1857-07-02

p'rarry trapping prarry hens and the
like, to get him a nights lodging, or
a pair Of shoes. to keep the massasau-
gers from biting my toes I've hung
myselfup more nor one night in the
timber, to keep out Of the way OF the
yarmints best sleeping in the world,
in the crotch of tree-top! Now, l
reckon You wouldn't bolieve it, but
rye gone all winter without shoe to
my foot; and lived on wild game,
when | could ketch it. That's sol
sDid'ntstunt your growth said q
voice near.
mot bit Of it. It brought me up
right. These prarries arc wonderful
roomy. / thought one spell would
let myself out entirely, but me and
mother held a corcus, and decided
that as she was getting old, and blind
| like, it tux too much to sew up the
legs of my trowsers, and so put a
stop to it, and concluded that six foot
five would do for feller that couldn't
afford the expensive luxury Of a wife
to make his breeches. 1t was only
my love for my mother that stopped
my growth. IfTd had an idea ola
sewing machine, there's no telling
what I might a done"
"You have so many gold pieces in
your pocket, you can afford to get
your trousers made now. Why don't
you and your mother hold another
caucus, and see what you can do' If
she would let you expand yourself,
you might sell out to Bamum, and
make fortune travelling with Tom
Thumb, and take the old woman a.
long"
"Stranger," said the rough, great
man and his whole face loomed up
with a mingled pride. stranger, l
spoke a word here | didn't mean to; a
slightly word like, about my mother
| would give all the gold in my pock-
ct to bring her back for one hour, to
look upon this country as it is now
She had her cabin here when Chica-
ger was nowhere; here she raised hel
boys-8he couldn't give them a larnin''
but she taught us better things than
books can give, to be honest and use
ful, and industrious. She taught III
to be faithful and true; to stand by
friend, and be generous to an enemy
, It's thirty years stranger, since w
dug her grave by the lake side here
with our own hands; and with man!
a tear and sob, turned ourselves ava!
, from the cabin where we'd been ralse(
the Indians had killed Our tathe
long before, and we'd nothing to keel
| us--and, 50 we went to seek our tor
. tunes MY brother, he took down tt
St. kaVA and gotmarried down thGr
b saH Us and | just went where th'
! wind blowed, and when I'd scrapeI
r money enough together, | cum bacl
and bought a few acres of land aroun'
my mothers old cabin, for the plac
where I'd lain her bones was sacred
like. Well, in the course Of time, !
:, turned up right in the middle OF OH
;. eager. / conld'ntstand that love
8 my old mother too well to let omnl
buses rattle over her grave, so cur
e back about fifteen years ago, an
r quietly moved her away to the buryl
e ground, and then I went back to Ie1
/. as, and wrote to an agent arterwar
d to sell my land. What cost fe'
n hundred to begin on, l sold for ovt
/. forty thousand-if I'd kept it ii
e now, 'twould have been worth te
d times that; that's so, but lgot enous
W fort. | soon turned that forty tho'
N sand into eighty thousand, and tn
ct into twice as much and so on, till
,e don't know nor don't care what T.
~ worth that's so. l work hard, am Il
a same rough customer, remember eWV W
Y, ry day of my life what my moth
b, taught me; never drink, nor tigi
#, wish didn't swear and chaw; b
G. them's got to be kind second nat!
70 like, and the only thing that troubl
n, me is my money-havn't got no VI
,r, nor children, and Pm going to hu
"a. up my brother and his folks. Ii
n bows is clever and Industrious, al
ashamed of my big boots and {
- fashioned ways, and his gals is you
if women and not ladies; if they hi
III, their mother, and don't put on NOR
rot two frocks a day I'll make 'em ri
It's every one on 'em.
"Now, gentlemen, faint often
ess led to tell on myself after this fashl
wn But these old places, where | trapl
ad- when | was a boy, made me feel ]
o't a child agin-and | just felt like t
aid ing these youngsters here about
old changes and chances a feller n
meet in life, if he only tries to M
ese the most of himself"
81" "But, boys" said he, turning
'ur, party of young men, "there's Sol
est, thing better than money. Get edu
ma, ton. Why boys, if l had as M
larnin' as money | could be Presid