The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1874-12-25

OF the most arttess, sOciabIe and ex-
haustless tGiker ever came across. He
did not tell me a single remarkable
thing, or one that was worth remember
ing, and yet he was himself so inter
ested in his small marvels, and they
flowed so naturally and comfortably
from his lips, that his talk got the upper
hand of my interest, too, and listened
as one who receives revelation. took
down what he had to say Just as he said
1t, without altering a word or adding
one.
had my supper in my room this
evening (as usual), and they sent up
bright, simple, guileless little darkey
boy to wait on me-ten years Old-a
FIde-eyed Observant little chap. ] said:
What is your name, my boy ?"
right names James, sab"
said, "Sit down there, Jimmy-rH
not want you Just yet.
He sat down in big armchair, hung
both legs over one of the arms, and
looked comfortable and conversational.
said
did you have pleasant Christmas,
Jimmy?' =
"No, sah-not zacklv. I was kind O.
sick den. But the res o. de people dey
had good time-mOs' all nv EN- had a
good time. Dey all got drunk. Dey
all gifts drunk heah every Christmas,
and carries on and has awful good
frfimes."
"a so you were sick, and lost It all.
But unless you we're very sick | should
think that If you had asked the doctor
he might have LET you get-get-a lit
tie dTunk-an3-"
I H. L l..
it's de white folks denis de ones [
means, Pa used TO git drunk, but dat
was befO' l was big-but he's done quit;
Le don git drunk no mo- now; iis' takes
one nip in de m8wnin' now, cuz his
stomach riles up, he sleeps so SCUM;
us one nip, over to de s'lOon, every
mawnin'. He's powerful sickly, power
ful sometimes he can't hardly Git
aroun', he can't. He goes to de doctor
every week, over to RagtOwn. An one
time he tuck some stuff, you know, an
1t mighty near fetched him. Amt it
dish-yer blue-vittles dat's poisin? Amt
dat It? Truck what you poison cats
wid ?"
Eyes, blue vittIes CvitroD is very
convincing article with a cat.
''Well, den, dat was it. De ole man.
he tuck the bottle and shuck it, and
shuck it; he seed it was blua and he
dldEIS know but what il was blue mass,
which he tuck mos always-blue mass
pills-but den he 'spected maybe dish
yer truck might be some other kim o
blue stuff, and so he sOt de bottle down,
and drat If it want blue vittles, sho'
nutf, when lie doctor come. An de doc
tor he say if he'd tuck dat blue vittles
is would highsted him sho'. People
can't be too partic'lar bout sich things.
Yes, indeedy
We amt got no cats heah, bout dis
hotel. Bill, he don't like EN- He can't
stan a cat no way. Et he was to ketch
one he'd slam it Outen de winder in a
minute. Yes he would. Bills down on
cats. So is de gals-waiter gals. When
dey ketches a cat bummin' rOun' heah,
dey ies' scoops minded dey do. Dey
snake him into de cistern-dey's been
cats drOwnded in dat water dat's in yo'
pitcher. ! seed a cat IN dere yestiddy
all swelled mp like a pudd'n. bet |
yOu dem gals done dat. Ma says IL dey
was to drOwnd a cat for her. de fust one
OF dem she ketched she'd Jam her into
de cistern long wild de cat. Ma wouldn't |
do dat, l don't reckon, but deed an |
double she said she would. I can't kill !
chicken-well, ] can ring its neck off, |
cuz dat don't make EN- no sufferiu |
scarcely; but can't take and chop dey !
heads off, IKE some people kin. 1t |
makes me feel so-sO-well, I kin see |
dat chicken nights SOS / can't sleep. |
Mr.. Dunlap, he's de richest man in dis |
town. Some people say dey's fo' thou
san people in dis tOwn-dis CITY. But |
Bill he says dey amt but bout thirty !
three hund'd. And Bill he knows, cuz |
he's lived heah ell his life, do dey do |
say he won't never set de river on fire. |
/ don't know how dey fin QUIT |
wouldn't like to count all dem people. |
Some folks say dis town would be con-
siderable bigger if it want on accounts |
of so much Ian all roun' it dat amt got |
no houses on it. This in pt rfect seri- |
ousness-dense simpIicity-no idea of a |
joke. al reckon you seed dat church |
as yOu come along up street. OATS an |
awful big church-awful high steeple. |
An it's all solid stone, except jes' de top |
part-de steeple, [ means-dat's wood. |
1t falls off when the win blows pOoty |
hard, an one time it stuck in a COWS |
back and busted de cow all to de mis- |
chief. It's gwine to kill somebody yit, |
dat steeple is. A mana big man, he |
was-5igger'n what Bill is-he tuck it |
mp dare and Fixed it again-an' he didn't |
look no bigger boy, he was so high /
up. Dat steeple's awful high. II yOu
iobh N@8 hp WAANtt you Nil see II.
looked ont, and was speechless with awe
and admiration-whichg gratifed Jimmy
beyond expression. The wonderful |
steeple WAS some sixty or seventy feet |
high, and had q clOck-pace on it. "You |
see dat arrer on top o dat steeple |
Well, sir, dat srrer Is pOOty nigh as big |
as dis do door. I seed it when dey
pulled it OutCn de COW. 1t mus be
awful TO stan in dat steeple when de /
clock is strIkIu'-iey say il is. BOOms |
and jars SOS you think the worlds a
comm to an end. / wouldn't like to be
up dare when de clocks strikin' Dat
clock amt Jest striker, like desc COM
mon clocks. It's a bell-jist a reg'lar
bell-and it's buster. You kin hear
dat bell all over dis city. YOu ought to
hear 1t boom, boom, boom, when dey's
a fire. My sakes Dey amt got no
bell like dat in Ragtown. I ben to
Ragtown, an / ben mos half way to
Dockery (thirTy miles.) De ball in Rag
towns got so ole now she don't make no
SCUM. scaselv."
Enter the laudlord-a kindly man,
verging toward fifty, My small friend,
without changing position, says:
"Bdl, didn't you say dat dey was
only thirty-three hund'd people in dis
''Yee, about thirty-three hundred is
the population now"
well, some folks says dey's fO'
thousan.''
eyes. know they do; hut it isn't
correct"
"Bll, don't think this gen'lman kin
eat a whole prairie chicken, but dey
tole me to fetch it all up"
Yes, that's all right-he ordered it."
Exit "BiI," leaving me comfort
able; for had been perishing to know
who "BilI" was
"Bill he's de oldest. Aud he's de
bes', too. Dey's fo'teen in dis family
all boys an gals. Bill he suppot ,em
elan he don never cOmplain-he's