Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1857-07-06
JERRE COOPER,skING.BIRD.

JERRE COOPER'S kING-BIRD.
am going to tell you how Sam Brown bal
anced his books with Jerre Cooper when he
had got slightly into Jerre'5 debt. This is how
il was.
Jerre and Sam were two great cronies who
had been to distr:c. school together PLAYED
quareled, fished drank, hunted. smoked, farmed
grown up together, and married sisters
They lived III a rocky, mountainous town
ship in New Hampshire, were they had to get
up early in the morning in order to do daV's
work before the sun went down behind old
Croydon, which 1T did on an average about 4 D.
III. They were profcients in the art of practi
cal jokes, as indeed were all their neighbors
and eternally coming it over each other and
rice rersa. They owned adjoining farms, and
sam meadow was so situated that almost every
morning, for weeks, he would 90 by Jerre's
house, where, of course, he had to stop, chat
and perchance take drink
So one morning, Sam was on his way to the
meadow, and passing Jerre's house, he leaned
against the fence and began to talk about the
crops, and g that 'tarnal throw of pickerel son
keZiah caught out to Rider Pond - when his
attention was arrested by prompt little king
bird. sitting, on fence, busily hammering a
hard shell beetle against post. to crack him so
rs to get at the luxurious inside
Now, L say, says Sam, - why in tarnation.
Jerre, don't you kill that ere kingbird he'll
eat every cussed bee you've got, Just like he's
eatin' that ere beetle thereln
Oh, pshaw," says Jerre, - that 'ud be der
ned mean; the little feller's got a nest cen a
most in the wood pile, and sides that he kills
site of bugs round the hOusenn
Now, do, Jerre, just get your gun and let
me shoot him; L hate to see him scootine round
here, eatin' all your bees, and you takin his
part so.''
You shan't dew it, Sam, so Just shet your
jaw; 1t 3 no use talkin;' and Sam thereupon
shouldered his fork, and trudged of down to
the meadow.
This conversation, slightly varied, occurred
several mornings. Sam becoming each day moro
pressing In his opportunities to shoot the bird
until one day he got urgent that Jerre be-
came somewhat wrathy; when Sam went
down the road over the bill Jerre leaned on his
fail and solilOquized follows:
Now, if that ere BOBBY of a Sam Brown
wants to shoot that king bird dang my buttons
ef he don't have a derned good chance to-mor-
rer. There III be no peace atween him and I
tlll he gets the etarnil subject out on his mini
20 kinder guess he may shoot some to NOR
rer mOrnin."
Having thus expressed himself Jerre leaned
his fail up against the barn door, and deliber-
ately strobe towards the house, whistling with
emphasis . The Road to Boston, On arriy-
ing at the kitchen, he took down the old
Queens aTn," that he done good service in
the French war, besides having taken an active
part under Stark, in the battle of Bennington.
from the hooks over the broad and snaciOus
fire place, where it had hung undisturbed ever
since Jerre shot the hen-hawk that was after his
chickens; and having blown through it with
gust Ike nOrther, 10 see If it was clear IAN
unnecessary operation, by the way, for the
uch-hole was nearly as large as the muzzleA
proceeded to fill ii about half full Of equal pro.
portions of blasting powder and BIB shot
Then having rammed down the charge ener-
geteaIiy for about ten minutes, he picked the
tInt, filled the pan, placed il behind the door
In the entry, retreated to the barn. and swung
his fail determinedly for the space of half an
hour, with grave sort Of a grin on his visage
the grain hopping up at every whack of the
sWlngle and the straw and dust bounding and
floating IN the air. when, raising his head and
looking down the road, he was nightly tickled
TO see Sam coming back again as if he had for
gotten something. and was going home after it,
Up ne came to the fence, and his first saluta-
ton was:
There's that etarnal king-bir again, /
swOw,''
''Gor-ram it, sung out Jerre. Il won't
STAN it any longer; efyou gust shute that ere
king bird, do il and be darned to YER"
." Whar your gun them"
.. It's in behind the front door, all loaded,
and hope you'll be satisfied
sam made for the house, got the gun, went
out behind the barn, and found the bird on the
limb of an old apple tree, Jerre, meanwhile,
peeped through a crack in the barn.
sam brought the old Queen arm up to his
shoulder, took a long, deliberate, and careful
aim. at distance of about two rods and blazed
away. The report was tremendous Sans hat
went about ten feet Oae way, the gun dew out
OF his hands and went twice rs far another,
while Sam staggered back rod or So and sat
down ker- -;hug, on the ground, where he re-
manned silent and immovable, to the great ex-
ultatiOR Of the peepiug Jerre, for the space of
three minutes, when he picked up, first himself,
then his hat, then his gun, then the mutiIated
remains of the bird; looked round to see if Jerre
was looking, carefully brushed the dirt from
his cloths, and came around TO the front of the
barn, where he found Jerre with n sober face,
swinging his fail like good one He stopped
d moment to ask Sam
- Did you kill the king bird,"
= There the feller,' said sam, as he threw
him down, and the two cronies parted without
alOtler word
Some weeks passed on, and the matter was
not alluded to by either party. Sam recognized
fully the Ter tqltonis, and treasured up in his
mind that "Jerre never loaded that ere gun
chuck full OF powder for his own shootn," and
Jerre kept his eyes open for the expected
sockdoager" from Sam Bat after while,
his watchfulness in great measure relaxed,
and he rather come to the conclusion that Sam
had forgotten it.
Well Jerrc's birthday came along and so he
a Id sam concluded twas best to celebrate a
little, and the old mare was harnessed into
the rickety Concord wagon, the black Jug tuck
Ell away into the straw In the bottom, and oil
tao two cronies put for the " Four Corners"
distant perhaps four miles. There they stayed
all day, smoked their pipes, drank their flip
with the poker accompaniment, played draug hts
and told stories with their cronies Of that ilk,
sitting
" "Rousing al the nappy,
getting fou and uncO happy"
TIL the wee sma' hours ayOnt the twal,"
when the jug was replenished, the mare was
harnessed in, and they made towards home,
more than " leetle sprung" For some dis
tance they went safely and harmoniously, till
they came to a fork in the road, when Sam said
home was one way, and Jerre said home was the
other way. Both had been over the road a
great many times, but both were decidedly sal
ubrious, and the dispute waxed hotter and
hotter. While they were debating this
Piin',' y they had good deal settled the other