Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1885-02-19

or might happen that ar tow headed young
feller downstairs 'ud like to buy it fer you ;
seed he was sweet on you afore he got you
outen the hack"
"Marthy Jane! You Mar,hy Yere its q
half hour TO dinner an that ar chicken amt
even dead You uns mustn't pay no 'tention
to me- added Aunt Fanny as the three sp-
peared at the head of the stairs, "but ef
Marthy Jane don't pearten up an thrash
round yere lively thar ain't goin' to be no
dinner, an men folks 'thout dinner is
wussen wild steers
As the "men folks" had gone out to ex-
plore the country the four women went into
the kitchen together. A stove. loom, a
long table, and an enormous fireplace were
here, few sparks Of FIRE visible on the
hearth among the ashes.
at amt luck to have the fire on the
hearth go out" said Aun, Fanny, vigorously
| sitting -four into the bread-tray, that thar
fires ben burnin' sense Marihy Jane was
| baby
"Mar,hy" Jane here entered with the de-
voted chicken squswking in her hands.
She wrung It's head off calmly and tossed it
out of doors. dropping the chicken on the
| kitchen floor, where it Topped aimlessly
while Martha Jane poured little hot water
into tin pan. Then she picked the headless
| chicken up, stiiled its last quivers in the
boiling water. picked 1t, cleaned it and cut il
| up. Herenpon Aunt Fanny took the neck,
| back, drumstieks and fee, and laid them in
| round pan with little water. Her visitors
/ were growing interested and positively held
| their breath az she took the dingy dough
! from the tray, rolled it thin and pulled II
1 thinner, and p.astered it with hard working
! of her knuckies all around the sides Of the
! pan each little square Of dough being care
! fully fitted and stuck TO its neighb n a few
/ loose bits were thrust down amid the gory
| pieces OF chicken and the whole was put in-
/ 10 tn, oven as a pot-pie. The res, Of the
| dough was converted into biscuit tha, turned
out TO be positively black, while the res, Of
/ the chicken was put into pan with little
water and set in the stove 10 ffy' In ad-
/ dition TO these yiands the table was Sc, With
( fresh raw tomatoes. delicious green corn.
honey. peach pie-an unspeak able eoncoction
/ ss having power Of sugar In it-fresh but
( ternIlA and viliainous coffee. The preach
ers wife asked for some water.
la, woman" exclaimed Aunt Fann,
"whatn yearih are you goin' to do with
/ water p
WHY, I'm going to drink il, Aun, Fan
ny"
/ brink tcdfer when ihar's buttermilk an
coffee sei,in' right afore We ? Wal. never
see gal do that vii :"
{ But shes eaiin' corn bread stead o.
+ them biscuit" said Martha Jane, who though
waiting on the table stood munchng corn
+ vigorously. "Shes like me. take. corn
bread every tinie-none o your -four doin's
/ inside o me :"
"Marthy James fond o cora in what
someyer shape said Aunt Fanny. ''bat she
can't more'n half eat II on the cob-her
front leeIh's gone but she's that set in her
ways she SAYS she's goin ter hev them
snass pulled out an new ones put in
"An' ! will too" she answered I'm
plum sick an tired o. hayin' no front teeth.
/ \ woman over the mounrain-she had bern
. pulled an everybody told her hit I'D kill
. her--she's a sight clder'n me but when she
I felt the chill comm on. she TUX good
drink o corn whiskey an went TO bed. an
she got we'll, an she amt dead yit. neither"
well. YOU uns gil along now" said Aunt
Fanny. 81 see you's c, all YOU want les
set down thar in the porch. an Marthy Jane
AZ nell clear away this we're truck"
The men soon set of for the mountain,
but the wonsn, having been assured by
Aunt Fanny that "seDee the rain hir was
POW 'ffdl drabbly walk" preferred 10 stay
where they were, and DO up Martha James
haIr They were willing 10 believe without
ocular proof the fact that great part Of the
side OF the mountain is slovlv-aot sliding,
but s.nking dropping into the bowels of
the earth.
Hits jes' a-caving in. We uns thinks"
Martha Jane said "all the old folks say the
lnjuns had big silver mine under thar. an
the moneys in thar yir, ef anybodyd try 10
git hit out bat don't s'posen anybody ever
viii hit I'D cost a sight o money"
You'll have 10 make your sweethear, find
II for YOU some day." said the blue-eyed
young ady wickedly.
MY sweetheart La" said Martha Jane,
with chuckle al her own w.t. '.he's busy
putin in gold an silver. not git,in' EN-
out. He's tooth-den,ist, he is-leastways
my principal sweetheart is-an' he lives IN
Ailanty. He's a-oomin' up here this fall, -
giancing up eoquet,shly with her dark.
close-set sparks of eyes and wrinkling her
thick skin in a smile that brought ber lack
Of front teeth into painful prominence
lies dead in love with me, he is. Last
summer he put four gold plugs into nav
mouth an never charged me a cent did hii
al, for love an he's goin' to take out these
yere snags and put in some front teeth for
noth;n, when he comes. He's made 1e a
real hanson offer bu, | amt give him no
satisfaction VT. He an mes ben sorter
courtln', though, three or four year he
wrote me two letters in six weeks oncet"
And are you going to give him satisfac-
toni? asked the girl, as Martha Jane paused
for breath and turned her head to one side
10 take in the effect of the twists.
Now, | amt goin' to tell you that" she
said with another coquettish glance. Il may
never git married. I've got seven sisters
marred-sisters an haif-sis,ers together
my names Kirby an ma was a widder with
70 chillun when she married Pa Smith. He
was an old Young man, Pa Smith was, an
ma thought he'd do better by US n ef he
was Younger an pearter; an he's done we'll;
he's mighty good man."
But you started to tell us about your
sisters.'
"Oh, yes. Well, I've alters ben poor
little sickly, doucey thing, an they all say
ought not to git married my husban' might
put too many hardships on me an la, ef
he amt the right kind you'd be ruined for
ever an eternal man takes all you've go,
when he takes you, an you hain't got
no right to the quilts you pieced with your
own hands. or the sun-bonnet YOU wove
yourself. No, sir! My sisters all 'dvised me
never by no means to marry-nothin' but
trouble an mindin' chllun, an can't say
when you'll work or when you'll rest-allers
a man to boss you-an' ef he's pernicketty
maxwell! %
'But did you always think so badly OF
marriage? Didn't you ever encourage any
hody?" queried the preachers wife as Martha
Jane evidently waited to be drawn out furth-
er.
"Well, ef did twas no harm done.
never did promise anybody yit in cold earn
est I'd tell 'em had a scatterin' mind, an
might not stick. amt goin' to court no.
body, can tell you! But I've had some
pow'rful good chances-amazin good three
on em was really above ME. The men all
SAYS I've got such a way about me they
can't resist. One feiler told me not long
ago he thought / had the most pow'rful out
fiatterin'es' tongue he ever did see in ary
mortal woman's head. That's what he said
-les' the out -fatterin'es'."
'.And who was that?
"Oh, school-teacher up 'tother side the
branch. He's q han'some mamie might