The Jackson standard. [volume] (Jackson C.H., Ohio) 1847-1888, 1880-02-12
rom n. Y. Tribune by Resident of eorgia.I
GEORGIA SKETCHES.
GOSSIP GRAY.

GEORGIA SKETCHES.
GOSSIP GRAY.
Il reckon I've been livin' here mos
fifty year." said the old man, my
neighbor Gray, Its more'n fifty, ain t
it, old woman?" appealing to his wife,
an even older looking person than
himself, who sat, white and aged, stol-
id as an Indian, calmly smoking her
cob-pipe by the big fireplace.
1T must be ffty-three year," the
old woman said after due pause; 'the
widow was jus learnin' to walk then.
[ remember how the little thing used
to git about; an she's goin' on to
fifty-two, now, the widow is"
1t sounded SO strangely, this worlds
name for their eldest daughter, from
the lips Of her oAn mother, who re-
membered her toddler on the cabin
floor. | wished, with vague discom-
fort, that she had called her Jane or
Betsy instead of ''the widow" But
-twenty-nine years! For this eldest
daughter of the old couple had been
the widow" all those long years
time
| sat in the old log cabin, by the
bedside of the invalid daughter, Sarah,
to whom I had brought some new
magazines to read. For twenty years
this most uncomplaining of Heavens
creatures had lived life of quiet,
helpless suffering. 1t had refined her
till she was like a ily-the whitest
human being | ever saw, with pure,
plain, reserved face, lying there placid
in her bed, the pale, brown hair
smoothly and neatly ordered, the
hands long, white, and thin, with the
delicate nails of lady Her voice was
low and pleasant, too, not a jar of
complaining in it, not an approach to
whimper or impatience I reverenced
Miss Sarah as a real saint, although
the chinks and walls about her were
papered with penny dreadfuls" which
she had read during those motionless
years picture papers Of the rankest
sensational type.
Miss Sarah's bed occupied one cor
ner of the big square room, and the
bed for the old folks the other, with a
small high window between. At the
foot of the old folks bed was the front
door, with it's primitive fastening
latch and bobbin-and opposite, at the
foot of Miss Sarah's bed, the door
leading into the second room of the
log house, which was dining-room and
kitchen together. The fourth side Of
the room was taken up by huge
stone chimney eight or ten feet wide,
with fireplace three or four feet deep,
and by two small windows, one on
each side Of the fire.
The old mother had her regular seat
by this fireplace, and whether | found
her there in Summer time, when only
a few embers glowed among the ashes,
or in Winter, when the great ''back-
log" simmered slowly and the lesser
ones roared and blazed merrily, her
trusty pipe was never far from her
hand. I did not like Mrs. Gray when
| first made this ladys acquaintance [
admit, but she grew upon me. At
first she almost alarmed me-so frail
and sickly was she, with such a faccid
white cheek and faded white hair, COW
cred with a spotless, dead-white cap,
but with dark deep eyes which had a
way Of resting upon you with seri-
Gus, not to say malignant, fxedness;
these dark, fixed eyes, and large
brown mole or so contrasting strange
ly with her pale complexion. She
spoke little, and the little she said
came forth suddenly and unexpected
ly. Altogether she seemed to me an
uncanny old soul.
The old man was always as cheerful,
on the contrary, as the sparkle of a
Winter fire He is tiny, brown old
man, whose general aspect suggests
that he was bigger once and has shriv-
elled to his present proportions. He
is a great gossip, and always comes III
to talk when [ 60 to see Miss Sarah
sitting in low rush-bottomed chair
a ad-brimmed felt hat on his gray
head, no coat on his back, but wearing
plain homespun cotton shirt, an old
pair of gray breeches and waistcoat:
he wipes his mouth and shaven chin 8
good deal, as he talks, with his trem-
bling old brown hand, and looks al
you with twinkling brown eyes where
life and yivacity still linger, though
the old man has passed his eightieth
year.
''Yes, it was ffty-three year age
that we come here to settle, the ole
man said. 1.-The ground was all maid
en-cane and pea-vines then, an the
cattle roamed through the country il
| borJo Tbic bOuca bod baaD b1,i1+ ON
one acre fenced in, but not cleared
when | come here an bought it. Tha
want no neighbors for miles an
miles. Thar was only few houses IL
settlement whar Decatur is now
An thar was all kyinds O wild beast
in the woods around. An deer! "
shot fine buck standin' here in m,
house door, as they dashed right acros
below yonder whar the widow live
now"
"Wasn't it dangerous to let the cat
tie roam around loose, in those times?
[ queried, in order to keep him talk
ing.
"Well, every man owned more'n h
could house; thar was a hundred o
more runnin' loose with each man
mark on 'em; an the owners d all gi
together an divide off and brand tn
calves in the reg'lar season, an git u
a lot to send off to sell Thar was lot
of profit for little work. The cattl
wa'n't no way harmed-not otter
: Sometimes a wolf d git after new
born calf, but it d blate, an it
L / j