The Sweetwater enterprise. (Sweetwater, Tenn.) 1869-187?, 1869-12-23
inqly likely . twist itself into a halter, If

hearth ruifllng up like a pugnacious ban
tam, he said, 81 have no wish to be unciyil
in my own house, gentlemen; but / won't
be insulted in it either, and so | tell you
once for all"
Palette had got out a notebook and
pencil, and was dashing off, with the facile
hand OF a master, our hosts admirably
feigned indignation, probably to be used
hereafter in one of his great pieces, Quill
ter, altogether forgetful of our proposed
tactics, and hurried away by professional
feeling, was preparing, | saw, to resume
the address from the bench where he had
left it off.
"Permit me-" | said, recollecting just in
time that our dinner was depending on
our diplomacy. "To come to the point,
Mr.. BObsby, we came to you about a tur-
key"
swell, sir" he said, expressing an a
mazement very real, or very admirably
acted, show you have found out anything
at all about the turkeys | can't for the
life of me conceive; but now you have
got at the secret, I'll do anything you
want. You shall have the turkey Pm
sure Pm always willing to be neighborly."
"~Neigbborly, sir! neighborly devolish
neighborly !-rather too n~eighborly, call
it, totake in turkeys addressed to me, and
use them precisely as if they were your
own! Read that, sir! Had you forgot
yourself when you did not tear that up
smaller? Bobsby read the same without
moving a muscle of his countenance.
swell, sir; and what of it ;" was the
sole remark be youchsafed, and with 4 GER
tain dignity.
"What of it, sir! Of all the unblushing
Why, that card sir, is addressed to Mr..
Wurzcl, of Wcstrepps, Norfolk, and was
tied to a turkey ",
"Of course it was and what then, may
I ask :"
l was fairly dumbfourdod by the mans
hardened conscience. "Why he must be
a thief by habit and repute lie must
live by plumber and nothing else ?! lex
claimed, turning to Quilter.
"Send for the policeman at once" re-
joined that gentleman. 81 can't stand
this; and devil take the dinnerm
"Stop a minute, gentlemen p said Bobs-
by, earnestly, "[t's absurd to be angry;
for there must be some extravagaut mistake
somewhere. VIII you just obligo me, be-
fore you do anything further, by telling
me in plain words what you mean and
what you want 2"
Quilter stated the case w:.h a beautiful
conciseness of precision. The little man
looked first astonished, then annoyed, then
savagely angry. Finally he burst out into
a roar of laughter.
''Now, sir, listen to me in turn. You
oblige me to let you into a secret which l
should much rather keep to myself; but
as you seem to have got hold of part of
it some-where Imnst ask you, as gentlemen,
to promise that it shall go no further"
We bowed coldly, but assentingly.
"My name is Bobsby, as every one
knows. BY trade | am a poulterer; and
that is what l believed that no one
down here knew at all. Mrs. Bobsby
accepted my hand only on condition that
| should always keep it dark. am sole
partner in the great firm in Leadenhall,
trading under the name of Ployer, Pigeon,
and Company. At this season, in the way
of business, of course | get no end of tur-
keys from Norfolk, and the best and prim-
est come from my old acquaintance, Wur-
eel, of Westrepps. 1t is always his that
We use for ourselves, and at Christmas
time, especially, we have generally a good
many going in the house. Wurzel does
not know my country address; but the
card you have picked up happened to be
tied to the leg Of a very fine bird that
came in after the great consigDment-for-
gotten, suppose, beforehand that reach
ed my shop only yesterday. He was such
a splendid one, that | thought | would
bring him down and cat him at home.
That's my story +; and, unless some Of you
in the trade too, what you know about
Westrepps and its turkeys | can't conceive.
But when you came in and talked of them,
thought you must have found me out
somehow, and come to ask me for a Christ
mas turkey and although, of course, I do
no business in the country, yet, as I said
| like to be neighborly and have it you
shall, even after all that is gone.
Only promise that you will tell no one
what | have told you, or Mrs. Bodsby will
force NE to give up this house, and move
off somewhere else, bag and baggage"
The explanation sounded honest and
plausible, and Bobsby clinched conviction
by producing a note from Old Wurzel,
which he happened to have in his pocket
book. With what grace we could we
proceeded to apologize Quilter pointing
it out, with elaborate and elegant minute
ness, how the circumstantial evidence in
the case was absolutely irresistible, and
that it was only by courtesy that a legal
mind could let it be outweighed, ever by
the positive proofs which Bobsby had ad-
vanced on the other side.
AT that instant a ring r~esounded through
the little house, and the maid brought in