News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1885-03-12
A SCENE IN ARKANSAW.
A STORY FROM MARK TwAIN's ''AD-
VENTURES OF HUCkLEBERRY
FINN.O
RoUps Goes on his Regular Monthly Spree,
and Dies with his Boots on.

$3.50
One day when Finn and his compan-.
ion were pretty well down the State OF
Arkansaw, they struck tumble-down
town, where the houses were on stills to
be out of the water when the river over
flowed, The gardens raised nothing but
iimpson weeds, sunfowers and ash piles,
and the residents had little to do but
drive out the hogs. The stores were
along one street, where the loafers, in
wide yellow straw hats, roasted all day
long on empty dry goods boxes, whit
fling and chewing tobacco. There was
considerable whisky drinking, and Huck
saw three fights. Presently somebody
sang out:
"Here comes old Boggs lin from the
country for his little old monthly drunk!
Here he comes, boys !"
All the loafers looked glad-I reck-
oned they was used to having fun out of
Boges. One of them says:
'!Wonder who he's gwyne to chaw
ND this time. If he'd chawed up all
the men he's ben gwyne to chaw up in
the last twenty year, he'd have consider
able reputation now"
AuOtner DIG Saws.
81 wisht old Boggs'd threaten me,
'cuz then I'd know warn't gwyne to die
for thousan' year.
Boggs comes a-tearing along on bis
horse, whoopipg and yelling like an In
jun, and singing out:
''Cler the track, thar. I'm on the
wawpath, and the price Nv collins is a
gwyne to raise"
He was drunk, and weaving about in
his saddle he was over fifty year old,
and had very red face. Every body
yelled at him, and laughed at him, and
sassed him, and he sassed back, and
said he'd attend to them and lay them
out in their regular turns, but he
couldn't wait now, because he'd come to
town to kill old Col. Sherburn, and his
motto was, "Meat first, and spoon
vittles to top off OF"
Boggs rode up before the biggest
store in town and bent his head down so
awning and yells:
"Come out here, Sherburn Come
out and meet the man you've swindled.
You're the houn' I'm after, and I'm a
gwyne to have you, too - And he went
on calling Sherburn everything he could
lay his tongue to. By and by a proud
looking man about fifty fve-and he was
a heap the best dressed man in that
town, footsteps out of the store, and
the crowd drops back on each side to let
him come. He says to Boggs, mighty
cam and slow-he says !:
"Im tired of this, but I'll endure it
till / o'clock. Till l o'clock, mipd-no
longer. If you open your mouth against
me only once after that time you can't
travel so far but l will find you"
Then he turns and goes in. The crowd
looking mighty sober. Nobody stirred,
and there wasn't no more laughing.
Boggs rode off, Safeguarding Sherburn
as loud as he could yell all down the
street, and pretty soon he comes back
and stops before the store, still keeping
it up. Some men crowded around him
and tried to get him to shut up, but he
wouldn't; they told him it would be l
o'clock in about fifteen minutes, and SO
he must go home must go right
away. But it didn't do no good. He
cussed away with all his might, and
throwed his hat down in the mud and
rode over it, and pretty soon away he
went a-raging down the street again,
with his gray hair a-fying. Everybody
that could get chance at him tried their
best to coax him off his horse SO they
could lock him up and get him sober;
but it warn't no use-up the street he
would tear again, and give Sherburn an.
other cussing. By and by somebody
says:
go for his daughter quick, go for
his daughter; sometimes he IL listen to
her. Ii anybody can persuade him, she
can."
So somebody started on run. I
walked down street ways and stopped.
In about five or ten minutes here comes
Boggs again-but not ON his horse. He
was a-reeling across the street toward
me, bsreheaded, with a friend on both
sides of him aholt of his arms and hur-
rying him along. He was quiet and
looked uneasy; and he warn't hanging
back any, but was doing some of the
hurrying himself. Somebody sings OUT
"Boggs p
looked over there to see who said it,
and it was that Colonel Sherburn. He
was standing perfectly still in the street
and had pistol raised in his right hand
not aiming it, but holding it out with
the barrel tilted up toward the sky. The
same second I see young girl coming
On the run and two men with her.
Boggs and the men turned round to see
who called him, and when they see the
pistol the men jumped to one side and
he pistol barrel come down slow and
steady to level-both barrels cooked.
8oggs throws up both of his hands and
Jays, ooh, Lord, don't shoot |" Bang
goes the first shot, and he staggers back
'lawing at the air-bang goes the Sec
md one, and he tumbles backward onto
he ground, heavy and solid, with his
rms spread out. That girl screamed
'ut and comes rushing, and down she
hrows herself on her father, crying and
aging, ''Oh, he's killed him, he's killed
him p The crowd closed up around
hem, and shouldered and jammed one
mother, with their necks stretched, try
ng TO see, and people on the inside try
ng to shove them back and shouting,
Back, back give him air, give him
ir p
Col. Sherburn he tossed his pistol onto
he ground and turned around on his
eels and walked off.
Boggs dies in the drug store, his
laughter is pulled away, screaming and
rying, and the excited crowd is dis |
ussing the tragedy. By and by some
'ody says Sherburn ought to be lynched |
n minute everybody was saying it, |
nd the mob swarms up the street to- |
Yard Sherburn's house, snatching down |
very clothesline they come to to do the |
angling with. Sherburn steps out on
he root of his front porch with a
ouble- barrelled gun in his hand:
Sherburn never said a word-just |
TODD there, looking down. The still
ess was awful creepy and uncomforta-
lie. Sherburn ran his eye slowly along
he crowd, and wherever it struck, the
eople tried little to outgaze him, but
hey couldn't; they dropped their eyes
nd looked sneaky. Then pretty soon
herburn sort of laughed; not the
leasant kind, but the kind that makes
GU feel like when you are eating bread
hats got sand in it.
Then he says, slow and scornful
''The idea of you lynching anybody
is amusing. The idea of you thinking
on had pluck enough to lynch man
because you're brave enough to tar and
,ather poor friendless, cast-out women
nat come along here, did that make you
link you had grit enough to lay your
ands on man? Why mans safe in
ne hands of ten thousand of your kind
as long as it's daytime and you're not
ehind him.
"Do | know you? know you clear
trough. Your mistake is, that you
ldn't bring man with you; that's one
istake, and the other is that you didn't