The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1878-11-01

cheat about bosses when they won't
about most nothin' else" And Sam
leaned back on his cold forge, now
empty of coal, and seemed to deliver
himself to mournful train of general
reflection. "Yes, bosses does seem TO
be sort of unregenerate critturs,"' he
broke ont "There's suthin about
bosses that deceives the very elect; the
best of folks get tripped up when they
come to deal in hosses."
"Why, Sam, is there anything bad in
horses?" we interiected, timidly.
"'Tain't the bosses, boys" said Sam,
with solemnity. "Lordy-massy, the
bosses is scriptural animals. Elijah
went up to heaven in chari't with
bosses; and then all them lots O bosses
in the Revelations, black and white and
red and all sorts O. colors. That ere
shows bosses goes to heaven; but it's
more'n the folks that hev 'em is likely to,
eff they don't look out"
ministers, now," continued Sam, in n
soliloquizing vein; folks alters think
it's suthin' sort o. shaky in a minister to
hev much to do with hosses-sure to
get 'em into trouble. There was old
Parson Williams, of North Billriky, got
into drefful mess about a boss. Lordy-
massey, he want to blame, neither, but
he got into the dreffulest scrape you
ever heard on-come nigh to unsettlin'
him."
"Oh, Sam, tell us all about it, We
boys shouted, delighted with the pros
pect of story.
"Wal, wait now till get off this crit
tur's shoes, and we'll take him up to
pastur', and then we can kind o set by
the river and fish. Hepsey wanted a
mess o fish for supper, and l was CAL
latin to git some for her. You boys go
and be digging bait and git yer lines"
And so as we were sitting TRANQUILITY
beside the Charles river, watching our
lines, Sans narrative began:
"Ye see, boys, Parson Williams-he's
dead now-but when was boy he was
one of the great men round here. He
writ books. He writ track agin the
Arminians, and put 'em down, and he
writ big book on the millennium Owe
got that ere book now, and he was
smart preacher. Folks said he had in
vitations to settle in Boston, and there
amt no doubt he might "a he'd Bos-
ton parish eff he'd "a been a mind ter
take it, and he'd got good settlement
and Il handsome farm in North Billriky,
and didn't care to move; thought, /
s'pose, that twas better to be number
one in little place than number two
in big un; anyway, he carried all be-
fore him where he was.
"Parson Williams was tall. straight,
personable man, come of good family
father and grand'ther before him all
ministers; he was putty up and down,
and commandin' in his ways, and things
had to go putty much as he said.
He was good deal sot by, Parson Will
Jams was, and his wife was Derby,
one o them rich Salem Derbys, and
brought him lot O. money, and so they
lived putty easy and comfortable so far
as this worlds goods goes. Well, now,
the parson want RELY what You call
worldly-minded, but then he was one of
them folks that knows what's good in
temporals as well as sperituals, and al
lers liked to hev the best that there
was goin' and he alters had an eye to
good boss.
"Now there was Parson Adams and
Parson Scranton, and most of the other
ministers, they didn't know and didn't
care what boss they he'd; jest logged
round with these ere poundin', pot
bellied, sleepy critturs that ministers
mostly hes, good enough TO crawl round
TO funerals and ministers meetin's and
associations and SIGH; but Parson Will
Jams ,he always would hev boss as was
n hAc no, L. g.,
these ere Vermont fellers would come
down with drove, the parson he he'd
his eyes open and he knew what was
what. Couldn't none of 'em cheat him
on boss flesh; and so, one time when
lack Buel was down with drove, the
doctor he bought the best boss in the
lot. lack said he never see a parson
that he couldn't cheat, but he said the
doctor RELY knew as much as he did,
and got the very one he'd meant to a.
kept for himself
This ere boss was a peeler, I'll tell
you. They called him Tamerlane, from
some heather teller or other; the boys
called him Tam, for short. Tam was a
great character. All the fellers for
miles round knew the doctors Tam,
anu uScu 10 cOiue cledr over from the
other parishes to sec him.
oval, this ere sot up Cuffs back
high, L tell you. Cuff was the doctors
niger man, and he was nat1ly drefful
proud critturl The way he would swell
and strut, and brag about the doctor
and his folks and his things! The doc
tor used to give Cuff his cast-off clothes,
and Cuff would prance round in 'em
and seem to think he was Doctor of
Divinity himself, and had the charge of
all natur'.
oval, Cuff he RELY made an idol O.
that ere boss, regular craven image,
and bowed down and worshiped him;
he didn't think nothin' was too good for
him; he washed and brushed and cur
ried him, and rubbed him down till he
shone like lady's satin dress; and he
took pride in ridin' and drivin' him
cause it was what the doctor wouldn't
let nobody else do but himself. You
see, Tam warn't no lady's hoss Miss
Williams was 'fraid as death of him,
and the parson he had to git her sort
of low-sperited crittur that she could
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