The south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1879-1883, 1883-05-29

)ee1 prime ON your chapped hands.
They all yelled, and pa seemed to
have been knocked silly, some way,
for he pranced around and seemed to
think he had killed them. He swore
1t the wire-clothes-line, and then 1
missed pa, and heard splash like
when you throw cat in the river !;
and then 1 thought of the cistern,
and / went down, and we took pa by
the collar, and pulled him out. o,
he was awful damp. No, sir, it was
no duel at all, but a naxident, and /
didn't have anything to do with it.
The gun wasn't loaded to kill, and
the salt only went through the skin,
but those men did yell, Maybe it
was my chum that stirred up the
chickens, but don't know. He has
not commenced to lead different life
yet, and he might think it would
make our folks sick if nothing oc-
CURED to make them pay attention.
1 think where family has been hav-
ing good deal Of exercise, the way
ours has, it hurts them to break off
too suddenly. But the visitors went
home real quick after we got pa out
of the cistern, and the minister told
ma he always felt when he was in
our house as though he was on the
verge of yawning crater, ready to
be engulfed any minute, and he
guessed he wouldn't come any more.
Pa changed his clothes, and told ma
to have them wire clothes-lines
changed for rope ones. l think it is
hard 10 suit pa; don't you ?"
80, your pa is all right. What he
needs is rest. But why are you not
working at the livery-stable? You
haven't been discharged have you ?"
And the grocery man laid little
lump of concentrated lye, that looked
like maple sugar, on cake of sugar
that had been broken, knowing the
boy would nibble it.
'No, sir, l was not discharged, but
when livery man lends kicking
horse to take my girl out riding, that
settles it. l asked the boss if l
couldn't have a quiet horse that
would drive hisself if I wound the
lines around the whip, and he let me
have one he said would go all day
without driving. You know how it
is, when fellow takes girl out rid
ing he don't want his mind occupied
holding lines, and so when 1 got my
girl in; and we went down on the
Whitefish Bay road, and it was just
before dark, and we rode along under
the trees, and l wound the lines
around the whip, and put one arm
around my girl, and patted her under
the chin with the other hand, and her
mouth looked SO good, and her blue
eyes looked up at me and twinkled as
much as to dare me to kiss her, and l
was all of a tremble, and then my
hand wandered around by her ear
and l drew her head up to me and
gave her smack. Say, that was no
kind of horse to give to a young
fellow to take girl out riding. Just
as l smacked her felt as though the
buggy had been struck with pile
driver, and when l looked at the
horse he was running away and kick
ing the buggy, and the lines were
dragging on the ground. l was
scared, tell you. I wanted to jump
out but my girl threw her arms
around my neck and screamed, and
said we would die together, and just
as we were going to die the buggy
struck a fence and the horse broke
loose and went off, leaving us in the
buggy, tumbled down by the dash
board, but we were not hurt. The
old horse stopped and went to chew
ing grass, and he looked up at me as
though he wanted to say 'philopene.'
tried to catch him, but he wouldn't
catch, and then we waited till dark
and walked home, and. 1 told the
livery man what 1 thought of such
treatment, and he said if I had at
, tended to my driving, and not kissed
the girl, would have been all right
He said / ought to have told him
wanted a horse that wouldn't shy al
kissing, but how did know / was
going to get up courage to kiss her
A livery man ought to take it fol
granted that when a young fellow
goes out with girl he is going tt
kiss her, and give him horse &C
cording. But quit him at once.
won't work for a man that hasn't go
sense. Gosh! What kind of maple
sugar is that? Jerusalem, whew
! give me some water. o, my, it is
taking the skin off my mouth"
The grocery man got him somt
, water and seemed sorry that the boy
had taken the lump of concentrated
. lye by mistake, and when the bo,
went out the grocery man pounded
his hands on his knees and laughed
and presently he went out in front o
the store and fonnd sign "Fresl
. Let's, been picked more'n week
tuffer'n tripe.
f "One must be poor to know thu
S luxury of giving" That may be So
| but va thinl anyhody pan enjoy th,