Audubon County Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Audubon Co., Iowa) 1885-1894, 1888-12-20
CHAPTER III.

CHAPTER IL
bah CARTER.
IT was in the flush and glow OF a gor-
geous sunset hat you might have seen the
dark form OF the P:tkn farm house rising
OH a green hill against the orange sky.
The red house, wit its overhanging
canopy o. elm, 5 God out like an old missal
picture done on a cDld ground.
Through the glimmer of the yellow twi
light mi CHE be seen thes acks OF dry corn
stalNs and heaps golden pumpkins In
the neighh ring tie is from which the
slow oxen were bringing home cart well
aden with farm pro ,uce.
1t was the hour before sup er-t me, and
Biah Carter. the deaCOn'S hired man, WIS
leaning against fence waiting tor his
evening meal, INDUCING the , lille a
stream of converse iOnal wisdom which
seem Il tn OW all the more freely from
Ia ing been damned up through the Iabors
of the day.
Bah was, in those far di >tant times OF
simplicity, ''mute, inglorious" newspa
per mau. New papers in those days were
as rare an uuheard If as steam cars or the
te egraph, but Biah had within him all the
making of thriving mOIern reporter,
and no paper TO Il c II ON. He was a
walking hi graphical and statistical die
tlonary of all the affairs OF the good folks
at Napoleon. He knew every piece Of
furnit re in their houses, an what they
gave for IL; every foot of land an what
it was worth; every OK. ass and sheep
every man, woman and child in town. And
all cOul give pretty good aracter
pictures also. an whoever wanted to in.
form himself Of the status Of any person
r thing in MapletOn wOul have done well
t. have ,urne the faucet ( bah stream
of talk, and watched 1t respectfully as 1t
came, for II wa commonly conceded that
what Eiah Carter du't know about
MapIeton was hardly worth knowing.
quit piece % prOpe ty this ere ar n,
he said, surveying the Srene arouni him
with the air of n cOnnOi,seur. None O
yer stun paStur lands where the sheep
cant get their noses down through the
rO:ks W thOut file to sharpen 'em. Dea
con Pithin did putty fair stroke o. bus
mess when he swappvd his old place
for this ere. / hat are old place was all
swamp land and stun pastLr; want good
for ra sin nOthin' bat niper bushes aud
bull frogs. But | tell yeu.' proceeded
Bah, with a shrewd wink, that ar mort
gage pinches the deacon; WORKS him like
a dose of Ges and picry, 1t does. Dea
con fairly gets lean ont
Why" sa Abner jerks, a st0id
pillow by, whom tbs stream of remark
was adlre 5sed this ere place amt
mortgaged, is it? u tell, naow"
why, yls; d MT We know that are?
Why. there riSin' two thousand dollars
due ON this ere farm, and IL the deacon
don't scratch for it and pay up squar to the
mint old Squire Orcross forecloSe on
him. It'd squire hain't no bowels, l tell
yel, and the deacon knows he hahn t: and
| tell you it keeps the deacon dancin'
lively as corn on IA hot shovel. >
"The deacon'S master hand to work,
said Abner; SOS the boys.
"Wal, yis, the deacon is" said Biah,
turning cOntemplatiyeIy to the farm
house: There ain a cr.ttur in that are
house tina there ain t the most work got
out of 'en that ken be, down to Jed and
sam, the little unS. They work like
gers every soul of EN- from four o'clo K
in the morn II as long as they can see,
and Mis- Pitkin, she works all the even.
ing-woman' S work amt never done, they
say.
She's a good woman, Mis- Pitkin is I"
said AOner, and she's smart worker. "
In this phrase Abner soIemnly express
ed his highes ideal of human being
Smart amt no word for t., said Biah
with alertness, 81 cellar tor I. the grit o.
that arc woman beats me. Had eight
children right along in. string thout
stoppin', done all her own work, never
KEEP no gal nor not in; al ers up and
dressed; alters to meetin Sunday, and to
the prayer-meelin weekly. and never
stops wOrEin'; when faint one thing il S
another; tookin' washin' ir min, making
butter and cheese and tween spells
cuttin and eew!n', and il she ain I
dom that, why, she's braidin' straw to
sell 10 the store, or knitting-she's the
perpetual motion ready founl, Mis- Pitk n
Is.
Want ter know said the auditor as a
sort of musical rest in this monotone of
talk. Amt she smart though -
smart Wei | should think she was.
She's over and into everythiu that q in
on in that house. The deacon wouldn't
know himself without her; nor wouldn
none of them boys, they just live out OF
her, she kind o. keeps EN- all up"
''Wal, she ain hefty woman, naow, >
said the interlocutor who seemed to be
possessed by a dim idea that worth must
| be weighed by the pound
"Law bless you, no she's a little crittur
nothin' to look to, but cry bit In her Il
live. She looks pale, kind o sill round
like m onshine, but when anything to
be done, there Miss itkin is; and hel
hand alters goes to the right spot, and
tn ngs Is done afore ye know 1t That are
woman kind o still; she II slip off and
be gone to heaven some day afore folk:
know it. There comes the deacon and jim
over the hill. Jim walked home from col
lege day lore yesterday, and turned RICH,
In to-day to help get in the taters, work n
right alopr. Leacon was awful grouty. y
"What was the matter o. the deacon
'Oh, the mortga % kind o works him.
The lie to pay comes round putty soon,
an the eea on's face alters goes down
long as yer ar n. IT'S putty tight pull.
havin' j 10 In college losin his work, and
havin' term bills and things to p:y. Them
are college folks charges up tell you.