Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1870-10-07


the gals, Tom he cut Ike out, and
got Miry all to himself, and twas a
pretty long piece of walk from
Mis- Cap'n Broad's up past the
swamp and the stone pastur' clear
up to Black Horse Johns.
wal, Tom he was in high feather
cause Miry took him, SO that he
didn't reelly know how to behave;
and SO as they were walkin' along
past Parson Lathrop's apple or
chard, Tom thought he'd try bein'
familiar, and he undertook to put
his arm around Miry. Well, if she
didn't Just take that little fellow by
his shoulders and whirl him over
the fence into the orchard quicker'n
no time. why, says Tom, the
first knew l was lynn on my back
under the apple trees, lookin' up at
the stars Miry, she just walked
off home and said nothin' to nobody,
it want her way to talk much
about things if it hadn't ben
for Tom Beacon himself nobody
need "a known nothin' about it,
Tom was a little fellow, you see,
and 'mazin' good-natured, and one
of the sort that couldn't keep moth
in to himself, and so he let the cat
out of the bag himself. Wal, there
didn't nobody think the worse o
Miry. When fellars find gal won't
take saace from no man they kind O.
respect her, and then fellars alters
think cf it had ben them, now,
things ID "a been different. That's
jest what Jim Moss and Ike Bacon
said; they said, why Tom Beacon
was fool not to know better how
to get along with Miry,-they never
had no trouble. The fun of it was
that Tom Beacon himself was more
crazy after her than he was afore,
and they say he made Miry a right
up-and-down, offer, and Miry, she
Jest wouldn't have him.
wal, you see that went agin' old
Black Horse Johns idcas,-old
Black Hoss was about as close as 4
nut and as contrary as Il pipperage
tree. You ought to "a seen him.
Why his face was all a perfect cris-
cross o wrinkles. There want a
spot where you could put Il pin down
that there want wrinkle, and
they used to say that he held on to
every cent that went through his
fingers till he'd pinched it into
two. You couldn't say that his god
was his belly, for he hadn't none,
no more than an old file; folks said
that he'd starved himself till the
moon'd shine through him.
'Old Black IIoss was awfully
grouty about Miry's retusin' Tom
Beacon, cause there was his houses
and lots % land in Boston. \
dreti'ul worldly old crittur Black
Hoss John was; he was; he was
like the rich fool III the Gospel
Wal, he's dead and gone now, poor
crlttur, and waat good has it all
done him. It's as the Scriptur'
says, He heapcth up riches, and
knoweth not who shall gather them
'Miry had pretty hard row to
hoe with old Black lIoss John. She
was up early and down late, and
KEEP everything goin.' She made
the cheese AND made the butter, and
between spells she braided herself
handsome straw hats and fixed up
her clothes; and somehow she work
ed it so when she sold her butter
and cheese that there was somcthin'
for ribbons and flowers; you know
the Scriptur says Can maid for
get her ornaments? Wal, Miry
didn't. | member ! used to lead
the singin' in them days, and AIiry
she used to sing counter, 50 we sot
putty near together in the singers
seats; and used to think Sunday
mornin's when she came to mectin'
in her white dress and her red
cheeks and her bonnet all tipped off
with laylock, that twas for all the
world Jest like June sunrise to
have her come into the singers
seats. Them was the days that !
didn't improve my privileges, boys
said Sam, signing deeply. There
was times that eff I'd a spoke, there's
no knowin' what mightn't "a hap
pencd, cause you see, boys, | was
better lookin' in them days than l
be now. Now you mind, boys, when
you grow up, eff YOU get to waitin'
on a nice gal, and you're most 4
mind to speak up to her, don't you
go and put it off, cause eff you do,
you may live to repent it.
Wal, you see from the time that
Bill Elderkin come and took the
academy, could see plain enough
that it was time for me to hang up
my fiddle. Bill he used to set in the
singers seats, too, and he would
have it that he sung tenor. He no
more sung tenor than skunk black
bird, but he made b'licve he did,
Jest to git next to Miry in the sing
ers' seats, and then they used to be
writin' backward and forward to
each other till they tore out all the
leaves of the hymn-books, and the
singin' books beside. Wal, | never
thought the house o the Lord was
Jest the place to be courtin' in, and
| used to get consid'able shocked
ut the way things went on atween
'em. Why, they'd be Il writin' all
sermon-timc; and I've seen him Il
lookin' at her all through the long
prayer in a way that Want right,
considerin' they was both professors
of religion. But then the fact was,
old Black Hoss John was to blame
for it, 'cause he never let 'em have
no chance to home. Ye see old
Black Hoss he was sot ag'in Elder
kin cause he was poor. You see
his mother, the old Widdah Elder
kin, she was jest about the poorest,
peakcdest body over to Sherburne,
and went out to days works, and
Bill Elderkin he was all for books
and larnin', and old Black Ioss
John he thought it was just shift
lessness; but Miry she thought he
was a genius, and she got it sot in
her mind that he was goin' to be
president o. the United States, or
some sich.