The Republican. [volume] (Maryville, Tenn.) 187?-187?, 1874-08-01


and then sal
"Well, / wouldn't take a cent less
than seventy-fve dollars, If were you,
not cent"
Seventy-five dollars Isn't that a
good deal, Mr. Babcock? You know ]
don't wish to be hard on the poor man
all want is a fair compensation for the
mischief done"
"Seventy-five dollsibss iair, na'am,
in fact, may say it's low I wouldn't
have herd of cattle and sheep tramp
ing through mypremises in that way for
a hundred"
There's one thing forgot to state,
the orchard gate was open or they
conldn't have got in that may make a
difference"
"Not a bit,-not q bit. You'd a
right to have your gate open, but
Small's COWS had no right to run loose.
| hope Isaac drove 'em all to the pound,
didn'G hep"
81 heard him say he'd shut 'em up
somewhere, and didn't mean TO let 'em
out till the owner calls for 'em. But,
Mr.. Babcock, what if he should refuse
to pay the damages2 1 should hate to
go to law about it.
"He won't refuse il he does, keep
the critters till he WiU pay. AS to law,
j guess he's had about enough of that. !"
"Tm sure thank you for your ad-
vice." said Miss Letitia, "and mean
to act upon it to the very letter"
And Mr. Babcock took his leave with
a very happy expression of countenancs.
Scarcely was he out of sight when
Miss Letitia sent summons for Mr..
Small, which he obeyed as promptly as
his neighbor had done.
She made to him precisely the same
statement she had made to Mr.. Bah
cock, showed him the injured property,
and asked him to fix damages.
IL was remarkable that before he did
this, he should ask the same question
Mr.. Babcock had asked, namely,
whether she had any suspicion to whom
the animals belonged.
"Well, one of them I observed had
terribly crooked horn"
"Precisely-it's B ibcock's heifer. /
should know her among a Thousand.
She was black and white, wasn't she?"
"Well, now 1 think of it, she was;
one seldom sees so clear black and
white on cow"
"To be sure, they're Babcock's ami.
mails fast enough. Well, let me Sec
what you want is Just about fair esti-
mate. suppose?'
Certainly
Well, should say ninety dollars
was as low as he ought to be allowed to
get off with"
go, but fear that will seem as if l
meant to take advantage. Suppose we
call it-say seventy five?"
"Just as you please, of course but
hanged if I'd let him off for less than
hundred, il twas my case"
Aud if he refuses to pay?"
"Why, keep his animals till he comes
round, that's ALL"
"But there's one thing neglected to
mention: our gate was standing open
that may alter the case"
"Not at ll,-there's no law against
your keeping your gate open; there is
against stray animals"
Every well,-thank you for your ad-
vice." said Miss Letitia; and Mr.. Small
departed with as smiling countenance
as Mr.. Babcock had worn.
BIT at milking time that night he
made strange discovery-old Brindle
was missingl
At about the same hour Mr.. Babcock |
made similar discovery-the black
and white heifer was nowhere to be |
found
A horrible suspicion seized them
both,-a suspicion which they would |
not have made know to each other for
the world.
They waited till it was dark, and then
Mr.. Babcock stole round to Miss |
Letitia's, and meekly asked leave to
look at the animals which had commit
ted the trespass. He would have done
it without asking leave, only that
thrifty Miss Letitia always locked her
barn doors at night.
While he stood looking over into the |
pen where the co vs. were confined, and |
trying to negotiate with Miss Letitia
for, the release of the heifer, along
came Mr.. Small, in quest of Brindle. |
The two men stared at each other for an
Instant in blank 6ismay, and then hung
their heads in confusion.
It was useless to assert that the dam
ages were too high, for had theynot fixed
them themselve'p It wss useless to
plead that Miss Letitia was in manner
responsible for what had happened, on
account of the open gate, for had they
not assured her that CIRCUMSTANCE did |
not affect the case 1t wAs useless to
say that she had no right to keep the |
COWS in custody, for had they not coun-
seled her to do so? AS to going to law
about it, would they not thus become
the sport of the whole town?
He that diggeth pit, he himself
shall fall into it," said Miss Letitia,
who read what was passing in their
minds as we'll as il they had spoken,
or the light of Isaacs lantern fell full
on their faces. However, don't wish |
to be hard upon you, and on one condi-
tion will free the COWS and forgive
you the debt"
"What is that p Both looked the
question, but did not ask it.
1.-The condition is that you promise
to put good new fence in place of the
old one that separates your estates, di-
viding the costs between You, and that
henceforth you will live peaceably to.
gether as far as in You lies. Do you
promise ?"
eyes," muttered both, in a voice
scarcely audible.
"Shake hands upon it, then," said
Miss Letitis.
They did So
"N6w BT ehe cows out, Isaac it's
time they wer@nilked, sSesArsbS And
the two men went away driving their
animals before them, with shamejaced