The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1880-09-30

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drop in often" @@H@.>&.t
And he did drop in often; SO often
that Johnsoh's folks began to smell q
rat, and used to have fire in the best
room when the evenings were chilly.
Wall, the matter of four months
slipped away, and Ben thought he'd
staid with Hitty long enough to pop the
question. He consulted his father
about it and the old gent thought he
might as we'll ask her and be dope
with it. ru 8 =.
So one Sunday night Ben fixed up in
his best rig and went over to Johnson's.
1t was little rainy that evening and the
dampness went right into Ben's hip,
but he thought Of Hitty and didn't
mind il.
Hitty met him at the door and 'peared
powerful glad to see him. Ben got
little bolder when he seen how smiling
she looked, and he jist slapped one arm
around her neck and rumpled up her
muslin collar so it looked like % dish
cloth, and give her q little mite of O
smack. She blushed and told him to
go way with his nonsense and tell her
the news. ... ..r.
Ben was determined to tell the hull
story of his fection as soon as posibble.
So, soon arter she'd invited him into
the fore room and got him comfortable
in the cornar bo tool, o,,4 t., Il. -,
sed that it was jist o'clock.
"Afore 6, so1 he TO himself, :sI'ii hev
it all decided"
"Hitty, "sezhe, putting back the watch
into hispocket, "doyoulove spruce gumq"
"Wall, yes" sez she, "pretty well only
it's opt to make my teeth ache" Ben. put
his hand in his pocket, and pulled out
something wrapped up in blue paper.
Here, Hitty, is;aYhopping big piece"
sez he, "and whensyou git it all chawed
up, let me know shd;I'n bring you some
more-our woods is full of it." "Thank
you, Ben," sez Hitty, opening thepaper,
and biting off a piece cit is first rate,
amt it?" -~
eyes," sez Ben, gapin; "I think So"
andthen there was alongsilenc "Hitty,"
sez Ben, all of sudden, rolling his eyes
up to the plasterin. ."WalJ, Ben," sez
she, looking up to see if Ben had discov-
cred any cobwebs.
"Hitty, Ilove you better'n all the airth;
better than skating, better that our
forty-acre timber lot OF ugh-blast
it-ugh Tarnation take it !! It's enough
to make Belezebub cry for massy VI" And
Ben went dancing round the room, like
a wild cyitter.
FIFTY stood still in the middle of the
room, with her blue eyes starin eanamost
out of her head. Ye see she despised
any one who swore, and wouldn't have
kept company with swearin man for
the world. And Ben would swear at
times jist to git the wind off of his
stomach. he said. You see, how it was.
Jlst as he'd got in the middle of his luv
story, n terrible pain seized him in his
hpJ and he stopped his luv telling, and
went to swearing. Hitty wouldn't hear
any of his explanations, but told him he
needn't cum to visit her any more, and
she give him back the spruce gum,
paper and all.
81 Ben tried hard to make her under
stand that it was his rheumatic that
swore, not him but she only pinted to
the door, and told him make himself
skerce. '' - 4r,~" b.
Poor Ben offord her his watch If. she'd |
let him stay, but she profused him de-
cidedly, and he lookup his hat and went
off a cussing and raving like all nattr.
Uncle Ben's an old bachelor to this
day, all, as he sez, on account Of his
rheumatic, He" has to go with cane
now, and wear mustard-seed poultices
on his back every dull, rainy spell, and
it mixes up in all his worldly affairs.
Once he sot out to jine the'church, and
live different life, and got all ready to
be baptised, and the minister had got
his coat off and was in the river wading
round to find the best place to dip him
in, and the people was all gathered
alongside Of the river singing
that fine old hymn, "Down
in Old Joydan'a Cooling Flood -
The minister found the ripi,s SCOT, stuck
mp mis- cane there TO mark the spot, and
come out and took Ben by }E,s hand and
began to wade in, and hs1 gok about
half way the distance to the cane, when
poor f' Ben's hip began aclaing as though