News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1886-11-11
A PIKE COUNTY PROPHET.
lie Reads the Signs and Says the Coming
Winter will be Il Hummer.

''Folks eZ amt got no Overcoats an
is hopin' that it'll be mild winter, SOS
| they kin skin through without one,
mowt ez well make up their minds to
| go an order one, an a good heavy one
at that, for the comm winters gointer
be hummer, less all the good ol-
fashioned signs is all wrong this fall, ez
| fur ez I've obsarvcd them"
This cheering bit of information was
vouchsafed by an old Pike county resi-
dent the other night, and he gave the
reasons for the belief that was in him as
follows:
In the fust place look at the corn
husks. Be they thick and good many
=of 'em, or be they thin an durn few2
Peel an ear O. corn if yer minetcr, an
yell see that it's got undershirt, a top
shirt, west'cut, coat, an a overcoat,
an all Of 'cm is made O. good stiff
| material. Natur' knows when rs more'n
likely that her doins' IL need a leetle
extry protection, an she sings it on to
EN-, an that's why she's put a good
stock O. kivcrin' on the corn. That's
ez good a sign ez | want that the
comm winter'll come in for business an
tend to it till some time in the fag eend
O. next March or thorabouts.
"Then, what dye think the groun'
hogs has ben doin2 off, Natur' didn't
build the groun' hog overpowerin' purity,
but she seems to hev hammered inklin'
o hoss sense inter his wuthless conk,
somehow or other. Well, what's he ben
e dom of th'ts smart? Nothin' 'cept
diggin' that cellar O. his'n sum.
PIN like two stories deeper to'ards
Chiny thin usual, an putin inter it
few extra linin's o. leaves an things.
The groun' hog do nothin' but sleep
ali winter, O. course, 'cept on Candle
mass Day, wen he gets up an walks
out to see if he kin get glimpse O. his
shadder, SOS to know whether
to go back an sleep six weeks
more or not; but then ez long ez he
sleeps he wants to be warm, or else he
mowt ez well be runnin round in the
snow wide awake. An so his weather
eye tells him th't OF Boreas lie be along
this winter with all sails set, an th't if
he ketches anything th't hain't ready
fur him he'll give it beelix So that's
why the groun'hog digs down furder
from whar the zephyrs lie be blowin' in
few weeks, and adds a few feather
beds and comforters to his bunk down
below.
"Whar was the wind wen the sun
crossed the line last month? An did We
see the sun, or was he behind cloud?
Well, the wind was in the northeast,
ruther, an the sun didn't shine no
more'n it's shinn' now, here at o'clock
at night. An that means th't from the
northeast our weather's goin' to come
mex winter, an th't We won't git much
heat Outen oil Sol to sarcumveut it.
But the best sign of all is the Gun.
MIN little muskrat. Wen he thinks it's
wuth while fer him to rig up a house Ter
himself long about now, then tn haInt
no doubt about wat the comm winters
gointer be. The muskrat don't hev
much time to waste, an he never fools
any of it away buildin' a reg'lar stop
pin place for hisself durrn' the winter,
less he's likely to need it. Well, that's
jist wat he's a dOin' of now l see one
at. it over long the pond to day. You
feilers Kin do ye feel like doin', but
ez fer me, I'm agointer bank up my
shanty from cellar to winders, an lay in
an eXtry lot O. pine knots. Winter
haln't only acomin', but he's bringin'
sumpin' with him, an he's agointer play
fer keeps"