The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1872-09-07
How Jim DUdly Held the
Creased Pig.
BY SU DONIlT.

tOOs HO" bClI yOu' DOAIl
Thunderation reckon you'd thought
so if you'd heaM 'em hollerin'. A doc
tor was never 70 down on an old mid
wife as they were on me arter that race
especially Parson COOlrige, he was one
of the principal sufferers, yOu see. 1t
was May Day amongst 'em and the
whole village seem to be out thar enjoy
in themselves.
They had sack races and wheelbar-
row races. That was the day blindfold
Sam Moody ran the WheelbarrOw
through Dutt's show window, and thar
was creased pole standing thar
| with ten dollar greenback tackled on
top of it. The hungry cusses were
standin' round thar lookin up at. the
| tlutterin bill like dog sat u coon in Il
they brought out the creased pig a
burned great slabsided black hog, just
in good running order, got sOrtOf in
terested in the performance. The pigs
| tail was mOre'n Il foot long and it was
sOaped and creased until it would slip
| through Il fellows fingers like newly
acquired fortune.
Several of the fellers started after
him but they'd just make one catch and
| before they were certain whether they
had n hold of it they would go one way
and the hog would go another, and then
the crowd would hOller. was standin
thar leanin over the fence Watchin of
| 'em for some time, and noticed the pig
was in the habit of formin a sort Of
ring with his tail, leastWise he'd kind of
lap it overlike so that it eenmOst formed
a knOt-all it lacked was the end draw
in through. callated that a feller
with pOOty nimble fingers could make
Il knot on the critters tail by just slip
ing his fingers through the ring and by
| gettin hold on the end of the tail and
| pullin it through he'd have q plaguy
good knot that would prevent his hand
from slippin off. Arter thinkin over it
for some time I concluded it | could git
up bet that would pay for the hard
ships that feller would be likely to
experience | would try him II catch
anyhow. -..s
So | says to Jake Swansey, that stood
along side me Jake I believe that
can hold that burned pig by the tail un
til he gins out"
Hold9" he ses, surprised like and
raisin his eyebrows just that way,
"what's the matter of ye? Ye mout
as well try to hold the devil by the tail
as that deuced great clover roOter.'
/ "Wal" ses I, hold on till tell you
somethin," sol went on and told what /
callated to do, and arter u while he ses,
wall, go ahead Jim I'll back ye. |
reckon we can git any amount of odds
SO long as we keep the knot part of it
to ourselves"
So pulled off my coat and gin it to
/ hollered, "I'll bet ten to twenty that |
kin hold on to the pigs tail till he gins
out - .-.- .-s.
Gosh all fshhooks! you ought to have
scene signalin and holdin up tharhands
, and hollerin, I'll take that bet, I'll
take that bet Dudly. got rid of what
money had about me pooty soon and
: Jake was just a spreadin out his green
backs like a paymaster, and arter he
exhausted his treasures he started after
his sister to git what money she had.
: | hollered to him to come back, was
, afraid he'd tell her about the knot busi-
ness, but he wasn't no fool and knew
) too web what gals are at blabbin, to
1 trust her with any paying secret.
: OldJudge Perkin was thar as jolly as a
n school boy on the last day of school, he
r was hOldin of the stakes and his pockets
| were crammed full of greenbacks. He
2 was a po0ty good friend of mine, and he
r couldn't conceive what In the thunder
was u bettin on. = - e
S Dudly,n ses he kind of low that way
D and eOnfdentially like, ga creased pig.
tail is poOty slippery thing to hold
Y hopes on.0 ~ -.
5 Never mind Judge,' ses I, fswithou
!. the tail pulls out, the hogand are gWint
n to split the same current Of air for the
b next half hour recon-" and with that
3 moved over to where the pig was stand
6 in istenin to all that was gwine on.
h fooled around him little until go
h IA 4Fna
he Topped his tail over as [ was telling
+ ye made one desperate lunge, and III
L swan made go of it the fust time
: / just hauld the end through while III
1 was tllrnin round, and grabbing holi
t above my hand rolled it down into tht
|, tightest knot you ever sOt eyes on. TIL,
e knot was about two inches from the ent
o of the tail and he moved around 81
s derned lively, that no person could SCI
e it. The crowd allowed | was hangin
! on the straight tail and they didn'
:, know what to make of it anyhow.
Y !" guess I've got ye now for sartain
Y ] ses to myself, It's only a question
S Of endurance as the gal said when shD
g had the flea under the hot flat-irOn
IS The gate Wasopenand thepig pointed fo
g it, and away no went pig fust and I ar
o ter. He ran between the legs of moth
n er Shehon the fruit woman Just as sh
}, was comm through the gateway with
e basket of apples ON her arm. didn'
like hoistin the old woman but | lal
d no choice but to foller where he led
e The money was up you see and | wa
d bound to stay by the hog anyhow till h
s gin out. As the gal ses I'm the scripture
& "Where thou gOest, / co. / mutteFed
], and duckin my head followed him
n She hollored and the crowd ho0ted, an
the youngsters went for the scattere
1t apples like pigeons for peas but the pi
IS and kept right on. Now and agi
II he'd double back towards the crow
a and they'd commence scatteFin ever
d which way, trampin On each other
n feet-Silas Grope the old man-of-waps
e man stepped ON Pat CrOne's bunioT
e and he struck him q welt aer0ss the JAY
p and they went to tighten right thar; tn
IS body of the crowd though-about thre
IS hundred-kept right arter ] and th
pig.
'e Jake managed to git up pooty nigh Il
y once and hollered, How are you maxi
II it, Jinl.p
Ii !" Fust rate,"I answered +" cal9ate /
} stick to the derned swine through bus
Il and bramble like u tag-lock to an oil
10 wetller.p
1T That's the feelin' n he shouted an
r with that we left him behind. The oil
e Judge was a putin and n BLOWN strivi
his best to keep mp, and for some tim
Ut he actually led the crowd, but he wa
!. one of these pussy felleFs that had sol
S; OF all run to innaTtls, somethin like an
couldn't hold out.
They thought to head us OFF by take
II a marrow lane and it was while the