Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1886-05-26

feathers, an look at himself and take
kinder of an inventory o. things, his
countenance fell rod, tell yc. But if
you'd ben there, as l was, an seen the
moasses and oats drippin' Off his trow-
scrs.legs into the tops of his shoes, his
hands all paint an sand, an his stove
pipe hat all stove in on one side, with
big gaub O. putty you'd "a thought the
specimen O. humanity was the wust you
ever see. He went round an begun to
pick up things, an says I: Josiah,
what's become O. that cud o. tobackcr
yo put in yer mouth jest as ye started
oTr
"Goshl Samantha, I must hev swal.
Tered it,
"Yc oughtcr sccn his eyes when he
said it. Ef it had a pizcned him then and
there, should have laughed to seen that
scarf and melancholy look on his faco
as soon as I reminded him ont.
"'swallcrcd itT" say, I,
"'Yes, swallcrcd II. ! guess II you
had been jounccd out Of tim. er wagin the
way was, you'd a.swalcNd yer tongue,
an I declare 'twould been good thing
for me ef ye had
"Jcst as he said that, I looked down
the road. What should I see a-comin'
but Sam Pease's team, an if yon had
seen Josiah Jones and them feathers
a-strcakin' it through that cornfcld yon-
der, you'd a thought the Evil One was at
his heels.
Gas Sam como along up, says he;
"'Why, Mis- Jones, what's tho mat.
tcr7 Did yc git split outp"
"No, says |, Th'aint, but ev'rything
else has
"I should think So says he, HAS
everything gomez"
"'Ycs, even to Josiah,
"'Wos Mr.. Jones with ycl"'
"'Hc cas but he amt now;' an
laughed agin, as thought how that corn
must be fcathcrcd out by that time
Cant help yo to right up things a
littlcr"
"'No,' says /; Il guess Josiah'll be
back pretty quick
"'Thcn he didn't git hurt, did heH'
"'Oh, no! l guess he'll ken out ont
all right, says I, but / KEEP up terrible
thnkin' al the time, wondcrin' how he
was gittin' out ont without me there tc
help him find his shirt an things; lol
tho I've lived with that man goin OF
twenty-five years. an alias put his shirt
in the same place, yt he alias come tc
me saying:
Samantha, where's my shrt~
"Wal, Sam ne histcd the waoir
round little so't he could git by, an
he picked up some o the things, an ht
drove along. Dy.an'.by hcerd thc
bushes a kinder cracliir' behind mo- an
I looked round, an there was Josal
ii mcachin' along, pcckin' through thC
bushes, an whispcrin'
Samantha, is anybody round thcrcl
" Me- says ]. "'What yc '!rail on
h'aint yc got rugged up yet"
"'Ycs, the best l could. + can't eli
it all of my hands, nor out O my hair
an don't want to see nobody till We
get out o this scrapc. For goodness
sake, Samantha, l wish you'd scratch
some dirt over that paint nm stuff there
so 'twon't look quite so destructive. ScE
consarned luck, anyway mother time
Samantha, I wish you'd stay to hump
"'Good land O. livin! what hcv
done? Didn't tell ye not to take thi
roadn
"'Wal, mother time, set in the wagin
then, an not be a-pilin out jest fer a lit
tie HILL
"Jest fer little hill! I should sa,
so! You'd jest like ter had me a-wal
lcrin' round in that mess, too, wouldn'
yc' tell ye what tits, old man, don
caro- to feather my nest in that way
/" wal, feather yer nest or not, W
shall have to work mighty hard to max,
up this ere loss; an that amt all, In
thinkin' nuther. That jouncin' | got MI
the run through tho cornfcld has shool
my dinner down, an I shall be might,
glad to git hum an git somcthin' teNt.
"Therc he was, ben through what h
had, an mournin' over all he'd lost, an
yit the fust thing he thought on when h
really come to his Senses was eatin.
Wal, we got hum aforc dark, an sicl
kecpin' Sataday night you never see
an to save our gizzards we couldn't gi
that hoss cleaned off so We could driv
him 10 mcetin' Sunday; an Josiah hat
to stay to hum for the same reason tn
hoss did.
Somehow I felt so tickled all tn
time a-thinkin' O. the scrapc that IVAN
in very go-to-meetin' mood myself; bu
I thought mebbe 'twould sober me dow
an guess 'twould if it hadn't ben 70
the sermon. Yc see, our minister preach
ed to young men that Sunday, an whel
he says, says he: Young men, beware o
the down-hill road; it leads to dcstruc
tion," thought o. Josiah an his de
struction on that road, an l snickcre'
right out couldn't help it. An t.
this day can't hear them few word
without fcelin' cs' so."-Rma Rirorton
Not High Enough for That.
"Oh, papa" exclaimed little boy pas
senger with his face to the window, ''wha
a great high hill that isw
"Yes, my son, said the mn, with
weary look in his face and Grape on hi