The weekly Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 1882-188?, 1886-11-04
PIKE COUNTY PROPHET.
He Reads the signs and SAYS she CemirE
Winter will be a Hummer.

"Toiks ez amt got no overcoats an
IS hopin' tina. it'll be mild winter, sos
they kin skin through without one.
mowt ez well make up their minds TO
90 an order one, an good heavy one
at that, for the comm winters gointer
he hummer, less all the good OIL
fashioned signs is all wrong this fall, ez
fur ez I've obsarycd them"
This cheering bit Of information was
youchsafed by an old Pike county resi-
dent the other night, AMI he gave the
reasons for the belief that was in him ms
follows:
"In the fust place look at the corn
husks. BE they thick and good many
Of EN-, or be they thin an durn few
Peel ali ear o corn if yer minetcr, an
yell see that it's got q undcrshirt, top
shirt, wcst'Cut, coat, an overcOat,
an all Of 'cm is made o good stiH
material Natur' knows when it's more n
likely that her doins' ii need leetle
extry protection, an she sings it on to
EN-, an that's why she's put good
stock o. kiycrin' on the corn. That's
ez good sign Ell | want that the
comm wintcrll come in for business an
tend TO it till some time in the fng cend
o. next March or thorabouts.
"1hen, what dye think the groun'
hogs has ben doinl of Natur' didn't
build the croun' hog ovcrpOwerin' purity,
but she seems TO hcv hammered inkiin'
o boss sense inter his wuthIcss conk,
somehow or other. We'll, what's he ben
dom OF th't's smartl Nothin' 'ccpt
diggin' that cellar o his'n sum
PIN like two stories deeper to'ards
Chiny tn n usual, an putin inter it a
few extra linin's q leaves an things.
The groun' hog do nothin' but sleep
all winter, o. course, 'ccpt on Candle
mass Day, wen he gets up an walks
out to see if he kin get GLIMPSE O his
shaddcr, SOS to know whether
to 90 back an sleep six weeks
more or not; but then CT long Ell he
sleeps he wants to be warm, or else he
mOWt cz well be runnin' round in the
snow wide awake. An 50 his weather
eye tells him th't OF Boreas lie be along
this winter with all sails set, an th't if
lc ketchcs anything th't hain't ready
fur him he'll give it bcelix SO that's
why the groun'hog digs down furder
from whar the ZephVrs lie be BLOWN in
few weeks, and adds few feather
beds and cOmfortcrs to his bunk down
below.
"Whar was the wind wen the sun
| crossed the line last month? An did we
see the sun, or vas he behind cloud
| Well, the wind was in the northeast,
| ruther, an the sun didn't shine nc
morc'n it's shinIn' now, here at s o'clock
at night. An that means tint from the
northeast our wcather's goin' to come
mex winter an th't we won't git much
| heat Outcn Of Sol to sarcumvcut it.
but the best sign of all is the Gun,
MIN little muskrat. Wen he thinks it,
with while fer him to rig up house lei
| himself long about now, then tn halnt
no doubt about wat the comm winters
gointcr be. The muskrat don't hey
much time to waste. an he never fool;
any of it away buildin' reg lar stop
pin place for hissclf durrn' the winter
less he's likely to need it. Well, that's
| ji5t wat he's dom of now | see one
at it over long the pond to day. You
fellers kin do ez ye feel like doin, but
Ell fer me, I'm agointer bank up my
shanty from cellar to winders, an lay il
an cxtry lot O. pine knots. Winter
hMn't only acomin', but he's bringin
sumpin' with him, an he's agointer play
fer keeps"