The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1888-11-27

a-plckln d lew SIrlHS UeduS LUZ uiAiioI, l
seed somebody comein' down the road. l
looked mighty hard, an pretty soon L
made out that it WIS Sam an another
man. AS they got nearer [ seed it wus
the sheriff. Thinks [ to myself, " Will
wonders never cease? Of all things,
what is Sam higgins bringing the sheriff
to our house fur?"
AS they cum up they motioned to Josh,
an all went out to the barn, an stayed
there a long spell, an I could hear thur
voices an l knowed they was talkin' all
at onest. Finally, an mabe a little after,
they all cum to the house, but still they
said nothin'. I wus bilein' over with
curiosity, but I said nuthiu'. q do know
how to keep still if I want too, if I be a
woman.)
I seed Sam a-castin' sleeps eyes at Ia
bitha Ann, an a-lookin' at her mighty
funny. You see Sam knowed all about
her bein' engaged to the city chap, but he
kept his mouth shut.
After dinner they all welt ont to the
barn agin' except me an, Tabitha Ann.
We haden't more'n got the fishes washed
afore I heard the dog bark. an | looked
down the road, Fan seed Taiitha AIMS
bow a-cumin,. He cnm like = whirlwind,
jumped out, an hitched his team, am
cumed a-rushin' in like he had seed a COST.
He had hardly got sot down afore he
sez to me: "Miss Crabtree, [ have a tele-
graft frum my father an | have to 60
away at onest. Now can't | take Tabitha
Aun in my buggy, an you an her father
an Mr.. Crabtree come on in the wagin?
And Tabitha Ann an me can be married
now, as [ want to take her with me-"
jist opened my mouth an eyes as wide
as / conld, an was paralized. [ coulden't
nov my tung till l took my thumb an
finger an pulled it down from the roof of
my mouth. Then l sed, sez I, "Be you
a-dreamin' or be you under the infoonce
of licker?"
II am neither one," sez he, an [ mean
it."
/ tuck my sunbonnet an started for the
barn, an as I am a Twin woman when I
got there there the men was all hid in the
hay except the sherif-he was crawling
out an 1 told him I wanted to see Tabitha
AIMS pap. At that they all cum out an
I told 'em what the city chap had said.
He had told US his nam was Raymond
Whitefeld.
The sheriff said "he gessed he had a
llGlc UlAucSS WILL IItJIlOLU, ill We Will
all step up to the house and see him."
We all went along, the sheriff ahead,
an as he got near the door he put his
hand on his hip pocket. When he got
too the door he pulled out a revolver an
made a Jump, an sooner than | can tell it
he was by Raymond's side an had slipped
a pair of bright new shineing steel brace
lets on his arms. You ought to lave seen
Raymond, he will never be whittier when
he is on his coolin' board.
The sheriff said: "Well, Mr.. Windy
Jim, I have got you this time. Cum
along with me, an [ guess you won't do
no more horse-stealin fur a while"
Tabitha Ann jumped toward him an
screached an started to fall, but Sam
caught her in his arms. She had tainted.
Sam jist coolly pulled the ring off of
Tabitha AIMS finger and handed it to
Raymond Whitefeld, alias Windy Jim
the notorious horse thief. The sheriff
took him away, an Sam laid her down on
the lounge, an as | seed she was a-cumin'
to herself again, [ nodded to Josh to cum
out with me under the live-oaks where
Ike was, about the meekest-lookin' man
[ ever see. I'll bet a button he looked
meeker than Moses.
What Sam said to Tabitha Ann I don't
know nor 1 don't care. They talked two
or three hours. Anyway, when she an
her pap started home a few days after
that, Tabitha Ann SEE to me, "Good-by,
Ant Samantha. 1t won't be long before
you see me agin, for Sam is a-comin' to
our house to fetch me back to his ranch"
"Wall," seq 1, II pray that you may
learn sum sense" An she did, an cum
back an made Sam a good wife, an I
often think of Raymond Whitefield, but
[ never recall the circumstance to her
when she brings her an Sans baby an
comes to spend the day at Crabtree ranch.
San J~acinto, Cal.