The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1885-10-09
Heard Them Counted.

Old Nose, who sells eggs and chick
ems on the streets of Austin for o liv-
ing, is as honest an old negro as ever
lived, but he has got the habit Of chat
ting Familiarity with his customers,
hence he frequently makes mistakes in
counting out the eggs they buy. He
carries his ware around in small cart
drawn by a diminutive donkey. He
stopped in front of the residence Of
Mrs. Samuel Burton. The old lady
herself came out to the gate to make
the purchases.
Have you got any eggs this morn
ing, Uncle Mosep" she asked.
eyes, indeed has. Jess got in ten
dozen from the kentry."
"Are they freshp''
81 gua'ntee 'em. I knows dey am
fresh jess dc same as II had laid 'em
myself"
"Tll take nine dozen. You can just
count them into this basket"
"All right, num-" He counts, Zone,
two, free, foah, five, six, seben, eight,
nine, ten. You kin rely on dem bein'
fresh. How's your son coming on at
de SCHOOL, He mus be mos grown"
Eyes, uncle Nose, he is a clerk in q
bank at Galveston"
''How ole am de boy?'
HE is 49,"
''You don't tole me so. Eighteen
and getting salary already, eighteen,
(countlng), nineteen, twenty, twenty
one, twenty-five, twenty-free, twenty
foah, twenty-five. and how's yore gal
comm onp She was mos growed up
dc las time seed her"
''She is married and living in Dali
las"
"Wall, | declar'. How de time
scoots away! An yo' say she has
childruns? Why how ole am de galP
She mus be jess about"
''Thirty-three."
"Am dat so? (counting), firty-free,
firty-foah, firty-five, firty-six, firty-seb-
en-, firty-eight, firty-nine, forty. forty
one, forty-two, forty-free. Hit am so
singler dat you has SIGH old childruns.
/ cant b'leeVe you has grandchildruns.
You don't look more den forty yeahs
old yersefl."
Nonsense, old man, see you want
to ilatter me: When a person gets to
be 50 years old
Fifty-free' | jess dun gwinter
b'leeve hit, fifty-free, fifty-foa6, fifty
five, fifty-six-I wants you to pay ten
shun when ! counts de eggs, so dar'll
be no mistake, -tifty-nine, sixty, sixty
one, sixty-two, sixty.free, sixty-foah-
Whey! Dat am warm day. Dis am
de time oh yeah when | feels Use get
tin ole myself. amt long for dis
world. You comes from an ole fam
lily. When your fodder died he was 20
years ole.
''Seventy-two"
Oats old, suah. Scbenty two,
Sebenty-free, sebenty-foah, sebenty-five
scbenty-siX, sebenty- seben. sebenty-
eight sebenty -ninc-and your mudder?
She was one oh de Notwithstanding
ladies ! ebber see. You remind me OBJ
her so much. She libbed to mos 100.
l b'lecves she was dun pass centurion
when she died.
mo, Uncle Nose, she was only &c
when she died.
"Den she warn't no chicken when
she died. | know dat-ninety six,
ninety-seben, ninety-eight, ninety mine.
one hundred, one, two, free, foah. five.
six, seben, eight-dar l0S nice fresh
eggs-jess nine dozen, and here am
one NOAH egg in case | had discounted
myself"
Old Nose went on his way rejoicing.
A few days afterward Mrs. Burton
said TO her husband:
81 am afraid we will have to dis
charge Matilda. | am satisfied she
steals the milk and eggs. am posi-
tive about the eggs, for l bought them
day before yesterday, and now about
half of them are gone. | stood right
there and heard Old Nose count them
myself, and there were nine dozen. y
IeraS SytingS.