, 1875-08-01

Z
two broad, wtng-1ike scaffo1ds where the cotton
was stunned. Close by was the great screw, Win
IT, long arms, where the cotton was snt paieat
Merry came out OF the pick-room, the apartment
which received through wooden nue the hSnt
downy cotton "a it came from the gin. and
where the fleece hung from the Walls ana
alters IN ss1eauers aud festcons Ike white
gauZe, and, piled in great drifts soft ana pure
as SNOW, Was banked up to the roof like
summer clouds. A plunge into one Of those
tempting banks Was not unattended with the r1sk
OF smotherlng, for it was unstable and tre:cher-
ous - down. OF COURSE theo. Merry ought to
have been in the plck-1oom with that lttls black
baby, but that the place WAS well-uigh empty,
containing only remnant Of last years crop.
which had been reserved for home consumption.
OVer the fence into the lane. scrambled Neryy,
pulled up ono eide OF the railfence and backed
down the ether. Throwing her arms behind her
aad c]asping the baby, ahe went trot1ipR
down the lane. Cotton-lint wss c1tnging
in fantastic stEeatners and bnnches all over her
| funny hair; her coarse homespnn dress WAS
streaming out behind as she trotied for it Was
slit TO the kuee exposing her bare iega aud feet.
l. "Yer bettar hnrry long" called her grand
mother 10 soaring tone. '' Wbar yer bsen al
desc two hours, anEhow an What yer dom "id
! all dat dar cotton in you head I"
! 4Nnftin'," said poor Merry NTH q haug-dog
look IS Bin playin' 10 de pick room" ehe sddsd-
[ "Yes, an fus' thing we-all knows yern 60
srnudder dat dar baby In do sof cotton. Playin'
t What business yer got playln', when Is wukkin
mysef to skin an bopes yer lazy good-far-
| nuttiu'!"
| Ag The speaker stood there, her fat hands
| epread out on her fat thighs. her monBtrous
chest rslng and falling with her effort at scold-
| Ing, Nervy giggled at the skin and bone image.
Being laughed at was one thing that Aunt cinoy
| always resented. ''Come yere, while show yer
| how ter laugh 'tother side Nv you mouf."
| What the speaker meant bY this threat can
not saY, and I nm equally unable to tell you the
location Of that 'sother sida OF heryy's mouth
] that Was not laughing.
Ut won't laugh no more, gran nanny, long es
I i've" the child pleaded.
II dou't reckons yer Eill arter I guy yar dis
boxin'. Yer'll member it long es yer Lbs. sot
| dat dar chile down while boxes yer"
| Merry deposited the littla hAsf-nude baby On
| the dirt floor, and stood up covering, slanciug
from the broad, strong hands to the face whose
/! cheeks stood out with fatnesa. There Was =
meek, supphcating look in the little upturned
| black face.
"Mockinf you aperiors!" continued the grand
mother +'It's my duty ter box YER fer you mud
dars rake. Law! yer looks jis' like yer nanny! :!
.'Go long!" she said, suddenly turning away
from the child with the quick tears in her eyes as
the graveyard at 'AoIe Mars Petter9ilPs. y
$50 10 do woods an fotch dat dar Tony,
she continued, without showing her face to the
child.
Neryv knalt with her back to the little black
baby. The baby scrambled TO its accustomed o.
place and c]uug with its arms and legs. Then
| Nervy trotted OF With her burden.
In PROCESS Of time Tony eppeared with three
small PIECES OF bark. and Was properly or I'm"
properly belabored by Amt cindy'a tongue. she
declaring that sho could " eat AL dat OAR Dos, ;,
ter cook dinner fer fou' puzzidnn' elduz Wit dAi
th;mbnlful Of boz. AM my cakes a-sottn' yele
waitin' all dis while, an al dat 'nifl,
kent white frof gistin' timber, an 81
vaIleri An beat dat dar egg till my arm ache
to de mof1er-bo Yer go loog an hurrp an
cotch old Jack an 60 to MIS- Ph'llpotts tel
oorrer somethiu'."
Tony hurried Of, glad to got swsy from Aunt
Cindy and her uncertain moods. II Was over II
hour, however, before he got started to Mrs
Pbillpotts' for, first, be had to indulge hlmses
| in repeated ciimbings aud sliding on the foJdor
stacks then ia divers tunnblings and leaplngf
! in the straw-pen then be . Skinned The caf "
round aud rouud the ba,nyard swinging on oil
Jacks tail: than be made raid Oh some black
| berry-busnea in the fence corner, Whete he at
berries as long and black as his rhuu11
| for ten niputes. Then he put bride on th'
old Fray mule, mounted its bare back, and en-
tered upon course OF pnllings, tuegipgs, ane
Eickinrs to the end OF making the sad mnle g
toward to Mira, PhiIlpot1s instead Of back
ward to its stall, a. it seemed determined to 20
As all the boys thoughts and energies were thu
engaged 1t never occurred to him that he dldn'
know what he vas going for until be stood II
Mrs Philipotts' presence. feeling and loox
ing very foolish Nothing RENAME
: to be done ~but to remouns his ga
!ant stead, return 70 n Auns aot,inn y G.nd, !,
was to borrow from Ms. Phulposts. Oh, ho
| he shrunk from the forthcoming intetv1eE
With Aunt C,ndy! Her dreaded hands double
il size to his frightened fancy, and hls en-
II seemed to t1ngle with the inevitable bo4in
| which Aunt Ciudy would be certain to feel 1t ne
duty to administer because she loved bis grane
/ mother. ..... :-..
Y "Vish she nebber dubbed my gran nanny
! wish she hate my an'mammy," Tony whlspere
to his beating heart ~ on vent Old JACK A.
spanking, bouncing tfot tina. threatened to NJ
| horse the nder 1t seemed to Tony that 20 othe
! mule ever trotted 80 relent1essly. He clung des
i perately to the bride aud the rosched name. 40
t | was Lrotted on by the merciless brute pase 60
! house, through the BARNARD and into the stanit
Tony throwing himself almost Under the oen
n saye bi1nsalf from being rubbed of in the ios
: w @Whyn't yer spen' de- night at Nils Phil
: | pnrts' ?'' Cindy asked when he appeared !
: ber presence. his eyes; aistsnded and, 1ol
ing in tnghtsned anticpstion: Ia, "Dat To,ts toas.
done gone back tw1ct walsln yer ia15 o,,n nons'
cake ft fer fou puzzidun' elduz onten sich tr1t
t ']ations. Don't yer know rs got ter ct Dune
fer fou' puzzidun' elduz :? But. law! y
wouldn't kese ef dey WIS fou' Bishops. M Wni
, do var ke<e bout reet8ion? Ye1'a 90 wicked
. Gin me DIT cin'1non-bok, an don't stan ds
4 shilly-shaily, like gobbler on hot tsra."
a Then came Touy's acknowledgment that q
= had gone ali the way to Mrs. Philipotts' Nithor
once thinking that be did not know wat M ne "a va
: fH;nd2 racalyed This when the idea bad fairl
q taEa1 nnssassiou Of her mind. It went to be