Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1872-11-28
How a Tennessee Girl Created a Sen.
sati0n.

/ HEARD of a Young lady the other day
up in Middle Tennessee who, as river
men say, has taken another chute. The
story told about her did my soul good,
and for the comfort of other half-starved
dyspeptics like myself, whose tardy sus.
tenation Is effected by means of fried
chicken, soggy biscuits, greasy hash and
sole-leather %fritters, I'll relate it. For
years past, as a mere matter of form
something handed down from remote
antiquity--the officers of the county fair
held in the neighborhood where this
young lady lived have been in habit Of
offering a premium to the lady (unmarried)
cooking the best dinner. II was a dead
letter. Nobody had contested for the
premium within the memory of the oldest
inhabitant. This year, however, the
young LADY, of whom | am speaking de-
termined to compete for the prize. Her
nane-I wish | could immortalize it
was Kate Janaway. The fair men set up
a stove for her, stretched a canvas to
shield her from the sun, and about eleven
o'clock OF the last day she went TO work.
The matter had been talked about by
every n in the neighborhood, and curl
osity was on tiptoe. A crowd collected
around the place where the stove was set
up early in the morning, and kept ~increas-
ing, but when Miss Kate herself, a
buxom, handsome girl of nineteen,
daughter of the ex.Mayor of the town,
appeared on the ground, and putting on a
white apron and rolling up her sleeves,
commenced operations, all other attrac-
tions were nothing. Every n was
eager to see so novel a sight. There
was q tree near by which soon became
black with spectators who had climb
ed up to get q better view. The
branches were, finally, 50 burdened that
one by one they broke, precipitating those
upon them to the ground, until only one
man WAS left in the tree. He sat in q
lofty fork, with eyes riyeted on the scene
below. No amount Of persuasion by
those beneath, envious OF his better view,
could induce him to come down-eyen a
bride Of $40 failed. He said he was bound
to see or die. Meanwhile the dinner
preparations went on apace. The savory
smell Of the cooking food seemed to in
t~o&icate the crowd, which pressed nearer
and nearer. 1t took all the police force
on the grounds to keep order. The time
arrived for the trotting match, announced
as the sport of the day, but the amphithe-
atre was empty. The judges with the
exception OF one grabbed old widower),
the timers, all were missing, and 80 moth
ing could be done. At half.past two the
dinner was announced ready, and the
judges, happy men, seated themselves at
the table-the crowd regarding them
with illdisgulsed envy, A roast Of beef,
delicately done, was put steaming hot up
on the table, then followed corn pudding,
whose delicate aroma fell upon the olfac.
tories Of the excited crowd, "like breezes
of Araby the blest;' a profusion Of vege-
etablcs, cooked to perfection, followed
next. The judges ate and ate, p|raising
the flavor of the food and the skill of the
cook at every mouthful. But when, at
last, a dessert of piping hot apple dump
lings made its appearance the forbear.
ance ofthe crowd was al an END. They
broke through the ropes into the ring with
one accord, and the dumplings disap-
pcared in a trice.
One old fellow, proprietor OF a store
and owner OF Il big saw-mill, proposed to
the young lady on the spot, but he was
quickly collared and led off the grounds
by two younger a%Spirants, who made
common cause against the aged sutton,
saw-mill and all. That young lady was
the center of attraction ia her town after
the cooking feat. She received twenty.
five offers OF marriage the first week, and
her fame spread through all the COUNTRY
round. An old bachelor fellow down ia
Grundy County, with a farm SO big that
il takes him all day to ride around it, and
cattle on a hundred hills, heard of her,
and made n pilgrimage AL the way to that
4-..- =. 49, III =