The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1869-08-05

false.
"Never, stranger" he replied emphati-
cally. "Yu can't 'spect prophecy to go
wrong, and that air weepun's prophet,
lest much as Dan'l or 'Zek'l l won't say
that wouldn't hev been glad, one time,
to catch him slippin'-and reezun good
tew; but yu mout as well 'spect Gln,rai
Grant to be 'fraid, as this weepun to tell
le."
"And that one time-what was it."
asked I.
oval, seein' it's yu, stranger, I don't
mind tellin', though L ain so precious
spry at talkin' on that air subject, swar.
It's q good few years now sim happened
on feller who hailed from village on
the Mississippi, called Burnt Clearin','
'cause of a big fire they'd he'd thar once
on time; and we froze together power
ful, and war jest like brothers all to once
Wharever one went, t'other went; what
ever one did, t'otber did; and if this un
he'd dollar, that un war good fur fifty
cents ont, least thing. We went down the
river to Moo Orleens, and up to Philadel-
ply by the cars, and east'ard to Charles
ton on a tradin' spec; and l. tell ye, we
fotched up the dollars right smart. L
saved him from bein' chawed up by a
bar that looked plaguy angshus to make
his closer 'quaintance and he saved me
from bein' drowned in food-time, when
my canoe got turned over agin snag /;
and altogether, stranger, yu mout hev
TUX us fur David and Jonathan cum alive
agin. But all the while thar war one
thot hangin' in my mind like risin' cloud
in summer, that spiles the look O the hull
sly-and that war the recollection that
my weepun, fust time he ever seen this
fcilor, he'd gin n click"
The cold clear tone of his voice at these
last words, slightly tinged with sorrow,
was such as u compassionate judge might
use in pronouncing sentence of death !;
and to me guessing what was to Gomez
it had sound indescribably dreary and
ominous: ~ used to try and laugh myself
out % that air fancy by sayin': "What-
ever's possible, that amt Why, to think
O. fehtin' our quarrelin' nd be like a
man cuttin' hisself in half, and fghtin'
right agin LETT But let me talk as |
liked, the thot stuck In my head like a
nail in new log, and wouldn't 90 away.
And at last, stranger, the time cum when
it war more'n thot. Ono year, early in
the fall, we were down in Kansas, tradin
about in spots, and maxim q pretty toP-
able haul till one day we greed to tote
up the profits, and mako fair division,
cause next mornin' he war startin' off to
Burnt Clearin' to sec his folks, and l war
bound to make tracks for Boston on some
business of my own. Wal, evenin' cum,
and alter lickerin' spell, 10 lie our brains
fur tho ciphcrn', We began totln' up. But
somehow or another, VIC couldn't come TO
4 right settlement o our two shares, no.
how we could fix it; and what with the
the ticker wec he'd, and the worry O. ci-
phcrin', we both commenced to git ray
thcr savagcrous. At last, up he jumps,
and hollers out: 'I'd not hev bin so thun-
derin' keen upon this hyur trade if I'd
known that my pardner war nuthin' but
darned mean flint-shavin' thief o. a
Yankeep At them words n shiver run
all through me, like them 'lectric fiXcns
that book.larned folks tell on, and my
right hand flew out as if somebody moved
it, and fotchod him lick tween the eyes
that brou't him down like o pine in a
clearin'. (Hc war fine feEler, bigger'n
me in some way, and all the way out as
hard; and, by lingo! 'twar reg'lar
pleasure knockin' him DOWN. Up he got,
Iookin' mighty wrathy; and says he: 1T
iii take a leetle burnt powder to put away
the smell O. that air blow-cum out into
tho forest The sun war settin', and ev-
ery thin war dead still, as if waitin' to
sec what we'd do. l folercd him out
readily 'nuff, for war cool as an icicle,
now L know'd the job he'd got to cum
through; bu. when [ seen the dyin' light
streamin' down the shadowy arches of
the forest, and the everlastin' trees STAN
nin' up tall and grand, and whisperin'
with all their leaves, as if God war speak.
in through them in His own Temple OF
Maturity Hevin', stranger. l cum very
nigh feolin' as if war p'raps doin' wrong
avail, that feelin' didn't last long, l
reckon. The tust click O. them locks
(we'd 'greed to load only three barrels
each, to save time )-the fust click O them
locks war like tho smell O. roast meat to
a starvin' man and when toed my mark
at fifteen PAGES, felt as comfortable as if
I'd bin sttin' fore big fire with a glass
O. whisky in my hand. We both cracked
off to once: l got scratch on the left
side, and bit O. his slcove won't flynn jest
below the shoulder. Better luck next
time p says l; and the second load went
off. He'd aimed higher this time, and the
pill skiffed my hair, and knocked off my
hat; but jest in this same moment seen
him turn half round, and 80 kerchunk
right on his face. l run in upon him, like
q fool, forgettin' that he'd got one shot
left; and he hosted hisself on his elby,
and Jest let slap, jest tetchin' my thigh as
cum on (his hand war shalxy, yu know,
or he'd not hev made sich u bad shot,