Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1875-01-01

"Never, stranger" he replied emphat
cally. 'sYu can't 'spect prophecy to g
wrong, and that ar weepun's a prophet
jest as much as Dan'l or Zek1. [ won
say that [ wouldn't hev been gla'
one time to catch him slippin'-and reezul
good tew; but yu mout as well 'spect Gin
raj Grant to be 'fraid, as this weepun tt
tell lie.''
"And that one time-what was it?'
asked I.
'Wal, SEEM it's yu, stranger, I dom
mind tellin', though 1 amt so precious
spry at talkin' on that al subject, swar
It's good few years now since I happened
on Teller who hailed from village OIL
the Mississippi called Burnt Clearin' :,
cause of a fire they had there once on
time; and we froze together powerful, ane
war jest Nike all to one. Wharever one
went t'other did; and if this un had dol
lar, that un war good fol- fifty cents ont
least thing. We went down the river tc
Moo Orleans, and up to Philadelphy Oh
the cars, and BASTARD to Charlessen on a
tradin's spec; and 1 tell we, we fetched the
dollars right smart, [ saved him from
bein' chawed up by a BAR that looked
plagy anxious to make his closer Quaint
ance, and he saved me from bein' drown'd
in the flood-time, when my canoe got
turned over agln a snag; and altogether,
stranger, you mout hev TUX us for David
and Jonathan come alive agin. But all
the while thar war one thought hangin' in
my mind like risin' cloud in summer,
that spiles the look Of the hull sky-and
that was the recollection that my weepun,
the first time he'd ever seen this Teller,
he'd gin click"
The cold, clear tones Of his voice. at
these last words, slightly tinged with sor-
row, were just such as compassionate
Judge might use in pronouncing sentence
of death; and to me Guessing as 1 did
what was to Gomez it had a sound indies
cribably dreary and ominoug. ~ used to
try to laugh myself out of that air fancy
by saying: 'Whatever is possible, that
amt! Why to think Of our quarrelin' 'ud
be like man cuttin hisself in half land fight.
in'right hand agin left. But let me talk as
liked. the tho't stuck in nay head like a
nail in a new log, and would not go away.
And at last, stranger. the time came WheE
it was more than thought, one year, early
in the fall, we were down in Kansas, trad
ing about in spots, and making a pretty
haul; till one day we agreed to
font nm tho proftc opd ,o,aLo O faip diyi
sion, cause next morning he war startin'
off for Burnt Clearin' to see his folks, |
were bound to make tracks for Boston on
some business of my own. Wal, evening
cum and after lickering up spell to oilup
our brains for the cyphering we both be-
gan totin' up. But somehow OF other we
come to right settlement Of the
two shares, nohow we could fix it; and
what with the Ticker we'd had, and the
worry of cypherin', we both commenced
to get rather savagerous. At last up he
jumps and hollers out, 'I'd not been SO
keen ON this hyur trade if I'd
known that my pardner were nothing but
a darned mean pint Shawn thief of a Y an
keel" At them words a shiver ran all
through me, like them 'lectric fxings that
book learned folks tell on, and my right
hand flew out as if somebody moved it,
and hit him lick tween the two eyes that
bro't him down like pine in a clearing.
( He Wal a fine Teller, biggern' me some
way, and all the way out as hard; and by jim
go 'twar u regular pleasure kneckin him
DOWN. Up he got looking mighty Wrathy;
and says he, it'll take little smell of
burnt powder to put away the smell of that
air blow-come out into the Forest The
sun were setting, and everything were dead
still, as if waiting to see what we'd do. /
follered him out readily enough, for 1 war
cool as an icicle, now l know'd the job had
got to come through; but when [ seed the
dyin' light streaming down the shadowy
arches of the everIastin' trees standin up
tall and grand, and whispering with all
their leaves as if God were speaking thro'
them in his own temple of MATURITY hev-
in, stranger. I come very nigh feelin' as if
1 war p'rap doin' wrong.
"Wal, that feeling didn't last long, I
reckon. The first click Of them locks were
like the smell of roast meat to a starving
man and when toed my mark at fifteen
PAGES 1 felt as comfortable as if I'd been
sitting fore big fire with glass Of old
rye in my hand. We both cracked off at
the same time; got a scratch on the left
side, and a bit of his sleeve went flying
just below the shoulder. "Better luck next
time ~ says [, and the second load went
out. He'd aimed higher this time and the
pill skiffted my hair and knocked off my
hat but jest in the same moment [ seen
him turn half round, and go ker-chnnk
right on his face. [ run right in on him
like a fool, forgetting that he'd got one
shot left and he hoisted hisself OH one ell
bow, and let slap just touching my thigh
as cum on (his hand war shaky you know
OF he'd not have made such a bad shot, J
but that war his last card, and then ]
knew 1 had him.
"'Ole feller,' says I, I've kinder won the
the hand this time, tain't no lodging it,
So fore you go under, have you any mes.
sage to leave?
"'Wal,' says he, sthar's gal at Burnt
Clearin' that war pretty bad on last fall
Kezia Harper, next door to the meeting
house guess you might gin this hym
ticket to her, if faint out'r yure way
"'She's as good as got it already says
1, putting it in my pouch.
"sThar's a man in the next village, Ma
than Hickman, they used to call him
Straight eye'-I war to have fought hin
this fall; yu tell him why l can't cum, fol
no one didn't orter think 1 war afraid
"'If the coon says a word agin you, says
L. 'I'll grease my boots with his liver. L
thar anything else?'
"'Wal,' says he, Il guess that's abou