The Alleghanian. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1859-1865, 1863-08-13

tnaG sucn was their known mlldneSS OF
disposition, that every possible excuse con-
sistent with truth would be made for not
receiving him.
The rest of the story must be told in
Steve's own words:
"When old Deacon Peabody came along
sot in the back door within hoe han
die, and | hope to suffer if wasn't mad
enough to rare right up. A cousin of my
wife's, whose sister was member, had
come over airly, and told us all about it
"'Good mornin, Mr.. Stevens says the
old hypocrite, with face as long as yard
Of pump water.
81 said nothin', but kept on within.
Il came down to see you this morn
ing" says he.
"Well," says 7, show do you like my
looks?"
"'Oh,' says he, what mean is, that l
came down to labor with you
"Work away, then, why don't you?' was
all he got out of me.
"But, Mr. Stevens" said he very SOL
cmnly, "the church sent me down here
to talk with you minute"
"Well, you've been talkin' for more'n
FIVE minutes, Deacon Peabody" said I,
"aud you've said nothing yet now, when
are you goin' to begin 2"
The old Israelite looked almost mad
enough to bite my head off at snap but
he tho't it best to keep cool, SO he drew a
long breath and went on:
"Nobody wants to hurt your feelings or
make any trouble, Mr.. Stevens but the
church have come to the conclusion that
IL, l. ~
stancA and in view of everything, it
might possibly be best all around, and
taking all things into consideration, for
you not to be hasty in applyin' jist at
present They think on mature reflection
that it might be as well if you'd conclude
to postpone it a little while, say year or
eighteen months
"They dew? Wall, now, Deacon, wha,
max es 'em think SO ? The church amt
full, is it,"
"This was hard question. The old
sarpint knew very well that it wouldn't
answer to say he didn't know, for he knew
fast enough-and knew that l knew be
did So says he
"Mr. Stevens, I'm sorry you're so riled
about it-you've no occasion-I didn't
come to offend you, but you know as well
as 1 do, why the church won't accept
you
"If l knew I wouldn't ask you to tell
me, Deacon Peabody"
"Wal," says he, "don't you know what
large stories you're in the habit of tel
ling 7"
"Who says tell large stories ?" says I !;
sit amt the truth, and you cant prove it
amt. Now amt it shame, Deacon, for
a man like you to 20 round scandalizin' a
neighbor tfat way? What story did you
ever hear of mine that wasn't true? Come,
lay your finger on tie first story, and
won't say another word"
"Why, there's SO many on 'em," an
swered the deacon, ''that it's Almost i'm
possible to specify any one in particular.
But now think on it !; don't you remem-
ber that story you told about your fathers
bein' killed by bear 2"
"My fathers bein' killed by bear 2"
says l !; ''there it is now That is jist the
| way It's an untruth like the rest
| on 'em, and you ought tde be ashamed,
Deacon Peabody, to be runnin' round town,
tellin' things that amt SO p
"Nell," said he pretty short, "you've
maze tQem ere ODSeTFdtlONS dDOuG Oltcu
enough; if you didn't say your father
was killed by bear, what was it you did
say %
'"I'll tell you. 1 said that father was
one of the first men to bring sheep into
this ere town, and that is no story,
is it."
"No," said he, ssit amt"
Sand one day / said that he lost one
of them ere sheep in the woods; and that
is likely, if it amt truc-and when he
was lookin' for it, said he came across
bear. The bear growled at dad, and dad
hollered at the bear, and finally the beast
came at him, and tore all his insides out,
and then your father, Deacon Peabody,
who was a respectable man, sir, and never
would 'agone about town scandalizin' his
neig ighbors-your father heard my father
holler, and came up, and seein' how mat
ters stood, ran for the doctor"
"When the doctor came, the fust thing
that he done was to catch sheep and cut
it's insides out, and put them in the place
of dads, and l never said dad was killed
by bear! No, sir! l told the naked
TRUTH said he grew as well as ever he
was, except that he hankered after hay all
winter aud had wool enough grown
to make him an overcoat IN the spfing.-