The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1866-03-22
Sut Lovegood's Shirt.



been siclS-whipped i'm y free fight, or was
just outgrowing one of his big drunks.-
But upon this point was soon enlighten.
ed.
why, Sut, what's wrong nows'
Heaps wrong: durn me skin If / aint
most ded. Lite off OF that hoss, George
AN take horn, while L take two {shakiny
! that everlasting flask oi his at me) an
Iplant ycrself on that ar log an I'll tell ye
ef Ken, hut its inaSt beyond tellin'.
recken I'm the darndest fool out en Utaw
lscept my dad, for he acted h,ss,x an
haint dun that yet--ailers in some trap
that cudent kech a sheep. I'll drown my.
self sum day. soc if Aft, just to stop 9
family disposition to make fools Of our,
solves
How is it. Sut: have you been beat play
ing cards. or drinking, which is it?''
Nary one that can't be did i'm these
parts but seein' its you, George, I'll tel
you; but swar I'm 'shamed-sick-sorry
iand--and-mad, lam.
'Ye know boards with Bill Carr. ut his
!cahn on the mountain, and pays for sicI
as gifts when hev money. an when
hevent any, why he takes One-third outen
me i'm cussin. and she, that's his wife, Bets
takes out tother two-thirCls with the bat
Tin stick. and the intrust with her tongue
and the intrusts more'n the princip'l
ISlfe = the c,iSScdes oman | ever seed eny
how for jaw hreedin ana pride. She can
scold a blister onto a buiI's face rite OF the
curl in two minits. She Outbreeds ev'rv-
lthing on ihe river--;ln patterns arter ev' 'ry
fashion she hears tell on, from bliSselS Ia
/ britches. Oh! she's one on 'en, and
sometimes she two or three. We'll, yt
see, got some huminade cotton, and
Goa xed Bets 10 make it up, and about the
itimeait wcr dun here comes lawyer John
son along and axcd for breakfuS--I wish
il had pizened him, dsirn his hide, and
wonder il din Tor she cooks awful mix
lingS when she tries-Im pizen proof my
self, Oholding up his flask and peepng
lthrongh it, or I'd been dead long ago.
Well, while he wcrc . cain she spiel
ont that his shirt WAS stiff an nluv dick
on him that II prep ration OF -four did it
and she got lew particulars abont the
proceedings outen him by 'onan's urts-I
don't know how she did 1t, perhaps he
does. .Arter he left shc set in an bied Il
big pot OF paste--iligh onto a peek of il an
lsoused in my shirt an lei il soak awhile
then she tuck it an ironed it tout tlnt and
dry and sot it upon itS edge agiii the cabin
i'm the'sun. Thar il stood rs dry a. a dry
hoss hide, an il ratiled like shcet OF iron
il did. 1t were pasted together ali over
hen | cum to Iii lner nothin' wud tio hui
] must put il on. Well, Bets an me got
the thing open after some hard work, SHE
pulling at one Of the tu..S and me ut ihs
t0lhcr, an got into il. DUTn tie ever
lasting new tangled shirt, | ssrv. ] felt
like / had crawlcd into An ola bee gun
an hit ftill oi pisants; but it wer like law,
yer Johnsons and stud it Ikea man
and went 10 Work oiuilh Bets /, ash hop
per. ! worked powerful hard and swe
like n hoss, and when the shirt got il
quit its hurti x.
'Arter got dun tool; about four tlng-
er- OF retihead. ANT crawird up into til,
cabtr loit ta take a snu:c. ,
i We'll. when waked mp tliousht wal
dei. or had the choIerv, ior all the .jints
could move wer my ankles, wrists, knees
,--couldn't even move my head and skase-
" wink my eyCS--the Gus. ei shirt was
pasted fast onto me aiLover, from the PIN
of the tails tothc pint of tie brnaiuX col
lar over my years. II sot TO HE As II pool
COW duz to her hide in March. | squirm
ed and strained tin sorter got il broke 4.
the shoulders iiIid cil,ows and then i ,ion,
4 TIA" Gurnicst foolish thing ever did in thest
mountains. | shuiiiod niy iritcheS of
and tore loose from my hide about two in
ches otthe tail all around i'm much pair
and tribulation.. Oh biIt il did hurt
y Then ftook up plank outen the lofttaat
hung my legs down through The hole and
nailed the aidge of the front OF the front
tail to the floor before me and the hind tai
nailed to the plank wilot sot ON. / un
buttoned the collier and @.rishsnds. r,siseG
i, my hands away above my head, shut III
my eyes, said grace and jumped througi
), the ground floor. 6as.ffz FzRga,- trsEafEe1s
/ Here Sui remarked sadly:
George, lin darude; fool than ever
dad WAS, hoss, hornets, and all. II
drown myself sum of these days. see eff
DON'T r..eu III
Well, go on, .sut ibid the shirt come
ioff?' -. - ~ -@Esa.E ..5., \.
'I-t-h-i-n-k--i-t .-ra
henrn a noisv snrter like taring a shin2l,
roof ov Il house all at onst, and felt like
my bones we,e all that reached the floor
! staggered to my feet and tookAa look I'd
my shirt. The nails had all hift their u II
and thar it were hanging arms down. in
iside out, and as stiff as ever II looked
like the map of Mexico iist arier oneso
1.-THE first battles-a patch of my skin about
the size of dollar and half bill here; \
bunch of my har about the size Of n birds
lsome paste; then a little more har; then Il
.hca? OF skin; then more har; then skin,
and so on all over that new fanglei, ever
lasting, internal cuss of II shirt. 1t was .,
picture to look at--an so was /. The hide,
har and paste were about ekally Adevtied
atween me and hit. Wonder what Bets,
durn her, thort when she come home and
found me missing. Speet she thinks I
crawled into thicket and died of niy
wounds. IL must have SIX ared der, good,
! for tell YOU ii looked like the skin ov
sum wild beast torn off alive. or a bag
what had kerried a load OF fresh beef from
Il shooting match.
| Now, George. il ever / ketch thatiawyer
/ JohnsonOut tn shoot him, and If ever AN
oman talks about fiat'ninh shirt for ma
again, durn my everlasting piclur eff |
| don't 1iatten her. It's rit-ribution sartin
he biggest kind ol preachers regular
ritribution. iDoyou remember my draw
ting Of dad thro' that hornets nest, and
then racing of him inter the kreek? s-t. n
YES E7s4