The Bossier banner., 1881-04-14

cI v"P''h INC pig. an the cow, an Mr..
oiocnm: An then. jist like hghtnin'
what my father sed bout Mr. Slseum's
keepins me company, flashed through
my mind; an sez |. iist as bold as brass.
Mr. Slocum's s out ter the barn-would
yer like ter see imp
'' Yer orter see that mans face fall.
knowed he thought | wuz alone, as
things looked kinder quiet aroun the
house. Sez he:
:. ".Gin i'm my best respects an tell
i'm I'll call .agin sometime
An he gin an ugly leer an slunk
OF down the road, an KEEP a-watchin'
I'M TIL he wuz out O sight, tho | pur.
tended ter be a-weedin}s the verbena-
bed: l wuz tremblin' so could scarcely
git in the house; but L. bolted the. door
and sot down to think. S'posin' he
should cum back, wot should idop
;" But he din't cum back, an pretty
soon l felt better an | went out ter the
barn an fed the creturs, an .patted Mr..
Siocum an gin him an extra dinner |
wuz so kinder thankful; an sez to Mr..
Slocum, Yer sarved me a good turn
this time. an won't forgit It nuther. ,
He pricked up his ears an oin a
kind o whinny when l spoke to i'm
he wuz dreadful KNOWN old mule.
Then | he'd dinner myself; an list
as l wuz a-puttin' the dishes away / see
a nice iookin' man comm in the gate.
l begun to feel real scared, but | sed to
myself, Mr.. Slocum IL keep me COM
pany.' g.
so | walked out quite pleasant to
meet i'm. He bowed quite perlite, an
sed he wuz- the draft man, an come to
git names for the drafted. / gin i'm
fathers sname,s but he wuz @over age.
Sez he, Where's your fatherP'
6 Sez |, He's gone ter the show
: Sez he, Amt there any other men
'boutP' 1873 -
"Now l wuz afeard to tell i'm there
wasn't cause l thought he mought be
sassy eff he knew wuz alone; so / up
an sed, MIR. Slocum's out ter the
barn
How old is hep sez he.
.'' He's pretty DID, sez I. He's
thirty - ~.
"s-That amt DID, sez he; an he
wrote it down. ..rG t''e Fs
~. go Wot's his fust namep' sez he.
g Then didn't know wat ter say fer
a mint, butI wuz afeared eff didn't
tell i'm somethin' he'd 90 an ask Mr.
Slocum himself So sez [. His name s
Elkanah' Yer see that wuz old deacon
Scran's name, an sometimes father
would call Mr.. Slocum Elkanah list for
sport. So when l sed Elkanah's his
name, he wrote it down.
"' Any disease?' sez he.
& ss No, sez T. --i yssEs x-rfY
"An' he wrote that down.
"Then wuz so afeared he'd ask me
more questiensI offered i'm some cake
an cider, which he took an thanked
me quite perlite an got up ter go.
''Sez he, It don't matter bout my
seein' Mr.. Slocum. You kin tell i'm,
an I1lsend roun's eff he's drafted
60 Yes sez |, I'll tell inn an I
wuz SO near laughin' in his face. that
stopped down an picked up crum' O.
cake to bite my lips in shape. at
'' 'Arter he wuz gone, iist threw my
apern over my head an laughed till
cried. | guess l wuz kinder narvus,
that when father an mother cum back
told 'em wot time 1 he'd. Father
laughed when | told i'm bout draftin'
Mr. Slocum, an then he looked sober.
'Weamay hey trouble ,bout thet,' sez
he.rT -~srN A-7;rg ..-,f-. .r+qy ..-r
's Mother felt reel bad; an sez she,
TH-neVer leave yer agin, -Cynthy, not
if Queen Victoria asks me- ~'a@S
Fer while arter that we didn't
hear nuthin' from the draft man. But
one day man druv up to the gate, an
told father that Elkanah Slocum wuz
wanted. stN.ft ,Tf fv 4e -.
Father wuza skeery kind O. man,
an he wuz afeared there'd be trouble.
So he jist sed 'yis,' ar the man druv
off. They sent fer i'm twice arter that,
but father made some excuse ev'ry
time, but he felt dreadful bout it.
: $ ssOne day when father was up in. the
fields, mother an me see a hull lot O.
men marchin' down the road. They
all filed in through, the gate, headed,
by reel -handsum man that
looked like aCapting. Sez he to moth
er, .a-taking off his cap, We've come
fer Elkanah Slocum wot' s been drafted
Mother she didn't know wot to say;
an thought twas time the thing gWuz
explained. So sez l ter the Captlng,
8 Walk rite out +, ter the barn eff yer
out there
$50 we all marched out ter the barn
an l opened the door. an sez 1
a-pointin' in, There's Mr.. Slocum.'
- Look here seq the Capting,
turnin' aroun'e quite savage, Il didn't
come here ter be made fool of! Sur
roun' the barn!' sez he reel sharp ter
the men. F
Il couldn't help smilin' little as l
see 'em a-scamperin' aroun'. Then he
turned to me, an seq he: DO yer
know, Miss, yer trifling with the United
States Gove'muntaae n Where's Elkanah
SlocumP an he spoke dreadful snappy.
g By this time father cum up, an he
an mother. looked real scared. Then
father sez, Tell i'm all bout it, Cynthy
there amt no other way.'a aaN
So up an told him jist how it wuz;
and sez mother, I'VE never left her
lone afore. Capting, an we feel reel
bad bout it, '2feT 50
"Wul, the Capting begun ter smile
afore / got through with my story,
an by. the time /, got ter the
end, he jist haw -fawed rite out, an the