Whig and tribune. [volume] (Jackson, Tenn.) 1870-1877, 1872-08-03
ADAM KARR,s RIDE.
Porte crayOn in Harper's Magazine

Porte CrayOn in HarpeT's Magazine.
Crossing the river homeward, the
style and keeping of our hosts rid
ing mare attracted observation.
She had evidently better blood in
her than is common among the
mountain hacks, and the owner was
proud OF hers. The Major admired
her points, and thought she could
run.
$50 she kim" replied Adam, with
a humorous twinkle in his eye, as if
/ there was some facetious mystery
-connected with the subject.
WAS her speed ever tested?"
ayes, it was, to my sorrow," re-
piled Adam, still looking funny and
I demure.
s'Did you lose much on her?" cried
i Dick, earnestly.
81 never bet nothin'," said Karr;
And she won her race too, but ii
vas q mighty bad win for me. She
didn't run too slow; the trouble was
she run too fast" lf ...
There WAS a long, leyel stretch
Of road IN advance, and the Major,
who had an idea of purchasing, in
fimated that he would like to try q
! brush with her. Dick, also, feeling
|. is horsejOckey blood stirred, Of
cred to bet a thousand dollars he
Gould beat her for any named dis
tanee.-
"You're mighty free with your
money, young man, and Pm glad
you've got it to bet; but as was
a-saying, run no more races. 1t
was on this very ground she won
her last match, and swOre then she
should never run again as long as
she was my mare"
Perceiving that the old man rath-
er desired to be pressed on the sub
! ject, the Major solicited him TO give
us an account of the race alluded to.
ssWell," replied Adam, assuming
the air of story-teller, 'sit happen
ed jist as Pm a goin' to tell We:
About two years ago / had been
cut to salt aome cattle, and comm
home this way, when / meets Jim
Pogue ridin' of q young horse he
was mighty conceity abont; and so,
/ the first thing, he banters me for a
race, oherin' to bet me a thousand
dollars there a glance at Diek,) al
/ though don't believe he could have
raised fifty to his name without
I a-seliin' thG critter ne was a-strad-
die OF. HowsOmever, l made no ac-
count of his braggin' and bettin',
but having a mind to try the mare a
1 little stretch, took up his banter,
though had my rifle along jist as l
have now, and had the advantage OF
him of fifty pounds in weight, Che
being a slip of a fellow ike Mr..
| Isattlebrain there), which fifty
/ pounds advantage is disadvantage
in horse-racin' and not to mention
the inconvenience of the gun and
pouch. But took no account of
these things, and of we started
Now, POgue's colt, .bein' young and
brash, got about two jumps ahead
in the start, and / holdin' the mare
in to keep her level; but she was too
ambitious, and we was soon neck
and neck, and | was about passin'
him, when we struck the spring
branch where it crosses the road,
and lit right in the middle of my
wife's flock o. geese. Among us we
killed two or three of 'em, and sich
a squawkin' and fappin' thev set up
as was enough to scare a man, let
alone a horse / reckon my mare
must have jumped the length of two
fence rails; and as for Jim Pogue, l
see him travellin' by himself in the
air and over into the field, where
he lit into pile of brush. The colt
kept on follerin' my mare, and bein'
light, pushed her close, but couldn't
catch her even with that.
Not knowin' just then wher Pogue
lit, tried to hold in; but the mare's
ambition was mp, and the colt fol-
lerin', and l was Inconvenience
with the rife, and fore 1 knowed it
we turned the pint fornense the
barn, and thar the women was in
the road milkin' the cows Thro'
went the mare, upsettin' women,
cows an milk-pails, all in heap.
pulled till my shoulders ached, but
She had the bit in her teeth, and it
was no use. Then, as luck would
have it, | had Berkshire SOW
give fifty dollars for down in Moor
field the year before, and jist ahead
she was layin' in the road sueklin'
her pigs-thirteen pigs and nary q
runt among 'em. Well, the devlish
mare lit right on top of 'em with
her fore feet, and killed and Grip
| pied about half the litter.
scNOw by this time l was gittin'
pretty nigh desput, for, thinks /,
\ she's killed my wife and half the
stock on the place, and she'll keep
on over the high bank above the
house, jump into the river and
break her neck and mine both. So
laid my rifle crossways, and with
both hands pulled on her right rein,
so as to draw her head in toward
the gate, thinkin' she might stop
there as she was used TO do. But,
you see. she had sich headWsy she
couldn't stop short, but she turned,
busted clean through the gate, and
fell back on her hams. AS she did
so, l went one way and the rife an
other. The gun struck a rock a.
she fell, broke the stock short off
behind the lock, and the jar set her
off and killed my wife's big red
chicken-cock. lit head-fOremost
on the log step there by the porch,
and certainly would have mashed
my skull, but my bear-Siog. old
Howier, happened 10 be layin' there
in the sun, for one piece of good
luck, L hit him plump, and broke
three of his ribs; so he hasn't been
goodyfor nothin' since, but saved
my skull, which reckon was OF
equal value"
Old Adams story, as il proceed
ed, was accompanied with hurrahs
and hilarity which made the noun
tain echoes shout and storm with
reiterated applause. The narrator,
altho' maintaining q lugubrious
gravity throughout, was evidently
as much tickle,l as any of his hear
ers.
s'And what became of POgue?"
''Oi well, you see, while was
washin' the blood of my head, see
Pogue go by foot a limpin'.-
'Pogue,' says /, 'cOme in, rest and
refresh, and pay me that thousand
dollars But the feller walked on,
and never looked up"
"And what did the old woman
i sav?'' asked Augustus.
"Young man. said Adam, with a
queer twist of his mouth, ''git mar
ried yourself, and you'll not have
occasion TO ask so many foolish
questions"