The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1884-03-20
S,aaAAaasseg g,aaAAaasssseeg 9aatslltlggs 9aattsglltlggsneer.
A LETTER FROM BETSY HAMILTON.
THE LOG ROLLIN'.
Atlanta Constitution.

DEAR COUSIN 81 nave tOiu you a0Out
the candy pullin' at Aunt Mahaly's, and
the quiltin' at Miss Gooden's but haint
neyei told you about the log rollin' at old
man Hasher's Pap lows, them as never
has tried to clear :hick timbered new
ground mought think it was easy as
whittlin' of stick or takin' chaw to-.
bacco: and it is, when they set off and
watch t'other folks do it, but jcs let 'em
Law ho.. and hep while if they want to
know what its cracked up to be; and one
man needn't think he can do it all by
hisself; he is obecge to ak hands to help
him.
The Hashers had little strip of new.
ground twix them and the Prices, that
they was fxin TO c!eer and plant IN
corn. They cut down all the under
bresh and the trees, 'cept few whopPih,
big'ns, here and yam, and they chopped
around them when the sap was up and
deadened 'em. They split big chance
of rails outn the trees that was httin'
and them that wasn't fittin for nothin'
had to be got outn the way Of the plow.
They had done all they could do by
themselves, 80 they. turned in an axed
hands to log rolin, and the women
folks had quiltin' the same day.
Old Miss flasher lowed her rule alters
was work fust and play afterwards" GIT
the ground cleered and the quilt out, and
then frolic to ther "sadifnction," and she
was plur: w:,lin' 10 feed 'cln if they
could cat sich vittles rs she had, and
they was more'n welcome.
We knowed in reason thar WAS gwine
to be big crowd, bekase we seed 'rm
gwine by in gangs by time it was light
that morning.
The Bates boys went by with thcr
hounds like they was gwine huntin'.
and pap lowed if they was fool enough
to carry ther dogs he wasn't gwine to
take his'n, it was too dangersome, they
was shore to run in the way Of big log
and git kilt or crippled. You see they
are nosin' around for rabbits, and they
think you are turnin' over the logs to git
'em, and you can't skascly beat 'em outn
the way. Nav she fastened up old
"Scrouge," and "Tige." to keep 'em from
foiIeT.n' OF us, she loved she'd ru!her
they'd how! all dEy ss to git kilt; and
shore enough Tom Bates old "Bulgor"
got run over and kilt, and Cap Dewber.
ry's little bench.lcg flee got crippled
Malindy Jano and Ann Eliza and
Caledony was longer weuns, and we all
went by the newground to see 'em Mt
work. Pap and buddy was already thar;
they are both brag hands at q log rollin'.
Buddy's exile can't be found, fur as liflin'
is consarned. 1t was gin up thar that
day that he could beat airy two on the
ground. Most all the settlement boys
was thar. Jake Lofts, Ky Robertson,
Cap Dewberry, Lum Gabriel, Jim Wig
gins, and all that gang, and tell you
they vas cleerin' that land in hurry.
Some was plin' bresh some rollin' logs,
some pilin' 'cm in heaps, some gwine
along firm, and the blaze was high and
red, and the smoke retched the sky. All
of 'em had of ther coats, and ther faces
looked like the blood would pop out, 'cept
few that was black with pine smoke.
Malindy Jane hollered at Jake Lofts
Hey Jake, what makes your your face SO SO
folks," says Jake, then they all followed
and laughed bekase Jake is monstrous
ugly. They was all maxim q powerful
fuss, hollerin', whoopin', laughiu', and
havin' fund runnin' rigs aud jokes on one
another, and they had tormented one
poor feller tell he was most ready to cry,
and pap lowed the fust one said another
word to him he'd slap the life outn him,
30 they let him alone quick, for when
pap speaks they know he means what he
says.
They wasn't skase of whisky, but it
tuck 'em time gittin' of it. They sent
feller with Aug after it, and he stayed
and that'n stayed 80 long they sent the
he found 'em both tight, and by the
time he got back with the jug he was
d.unk'n airy one. Some of 'em mos.
kilt theyseivns try;n' ta prove they was
as strong as bud Hamilton, ami some was
sharp enough to let t'others do the iiilin'
and they do the gruntin'. Old Miss
flasher was as proud to git them ashes as
old flasher was TO git his ground cleer.
ed; she KEEP gwine on about them good
hickry and black. jack ashes, what strong
lye they make, and how she was gwine
to make her soap In the light of the moon
in March, and stir it with q saslack stick
and not low nobody else to tech it, and
turn it back ards. We gals wheeled in
and soon got tho quilt out. After while
the men folks come to ther dinner; they
stopped ct the branch and washed fore
they got to the house. The Hashers had
jest everything for dinner you could name,
and AZ pap says, "the whole face of the
yeth was kivered with pumkin pies" and
l do believe pap wouldn't have thought
1t was log rollin' without them pumkin
pies. Ha calls II "wood pills i.ssEt,"
bekase you cGn take pie in your hand
and set on the wood pile and eat it, and
that's the way they done over thar that
day; some Of 'em stood around the table
aud ct but the most Of 'em tuck ther Wit.
ties in ther hands and sot on the fence,
and on the wood pile aud ct it--them as
wasn't too drunk to eat-and they sll
peared to have sight of fun, Jes let
Bud Hamilton, or Ky Roberson>or Jake
LOFTS airy one open they mouths and
t'others all laughed. You mought have
thought after rol!in' all them logs, and
pilin' that bresh, them boys would be too
tired to play, but jes wish you could
have saw 'em.
a few of 'em sot about on the wood
pile, too shano to CONS III, ous thar
wasn't no Gimme in t'others. Buddy, and
Cap Dewberry, and Ky Robertson, and
Buck Simpson, and Jake Lofts and them
can look q mule out'n countenance, thew
haint Altered of nothin' nor nobody:
airy one Of 'em can walk right up to a
gal they never have saw before, 'th'out
any Introduction and talk to her ike
they had kuowed her alters Jake he
thought he was mighty much os man"
that night with his new blue breeches his
NAV had wove and made for him. The.
eeoais Williamson --they call her "Dosh",
is q good heatted. fat, simple minded