Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-06-26
TINES NIMBLE FLIGHT.


5quire?" said the Old Settler, as he showed
broom splint through the stem of his
pipe to enlarge its draft. 1T slides along
like saw log down rollway 1t don't
stop fer nuthin', an it don't turn out fer
uuthin', an the longer y see it runnin'
the faster it goes 1t don't seem more'n
las week sence sumpin' pitcher happened
over In the Sugar Swamp deestric', an
yit it were fifty year agol Fifty year ago
1t happened-ffty year ago t'night- Dye
member of it. Squire! 'Twers sumpin'
pitcher"
"Um-m-m, lemn,e see, Major" replied
the Squire, looking at the ceiling and evil
IDENTIFY turning his memory back half
century "Th' was a number o things
happened long about this time, en-
leesle arlier-ffty year ago But it
strikes me tht the p'ticler thing th't you
mean must ha' ben Frizzy Cobsack's mule
an oil Gunderman's cider. Yes, that
were it surel It's jist fifty year sence
that happened That were a funny sar-
cumstance an no mistakel Want it,
Maori Hal hal hal Poor OF Gunder-
man! An want Cobsacks mule q cor
ton? That mule, boys, couldn't be KEEP
put O. mischief, not if y'd hopple all
his four feet an put poke on him be-
sides The night the major is thinllin' on
the mule got inter OF Gonderman's cellar
an gnzzied hull keg O hard cider, He
come out ez drunk ez q lord, an went on
e moonlight sur'nade round the clearin'.
Vile he were maxim his rounds he met
ole Gunderman on the hill by the red
school house. Gunderman were on his
way hum f IN the tavern, an had a snug
an comf't table cargo O tanglefoot aboard
hisself COosack's mule went fer him at
wunst, an chased him round an round
the school house Oh Gunderman, hol-
lerin' fer help at ev'ry jump, were SO
skeert th't he tore 'roun' the buildin' so
fast th't he passed the mule three times
Ithout KNOWN it. The mule, seem th't
he couldn't ketch Gunderrnan that way,
turned an went back t'other way round
the school house to head him off, but b.
that time the OF man had plunked inter q
barl th't stood at one corner o. the
buildin to ketch rain water in, thinkin'
tht the mule'd slide on by. But the mule
were sober enough not to be fooled that
way, an drunk enough to be bound to hev
all the fun he KID skeer up that night, eff
it took an ear oil He sInelt OF Gunder-
man in that bari ez soon ez he come to it,
al foppin' round. tail to, he histed both
heels up agin the barl. Over she went,
an Eclxy -to-split down the hill she rolled,
with old Gundersnan tosstin' about inside
Of it, an thinkxn' tht his eend were
nigh, an the mule q clatterin' long ahind
IL, list more'n maxim the hills ring with
the way he heehaw'd an squealed, he were
30 uncommon tickled with the joke. The
barl KEEP IN the road til it got to the
bridge at the bottom O. the hill. an then
1t squeezed to the right an dropped kar-
plunk in the creek, ten feet below. The
mule
Squirrel" the Old Settler exclaimed.
with red in his face and snap in his eye,
81 don't know nuthin' bout Cobsack's
mule, an don't know nuthin' bout OF
GunderInan's cider If yer friend o
mine, b'gosh, y orter member well wat
happened the time I'm a-hintin' at.
Were thar" asked the squire, inno-
Gently
Yes, y was thar" said the Old Set
tier An Croni1y McSly. an Pete Grim
Minis. an Banky Mudfat, an a heap
more O. the oil tins boys was thar, an
you know itF
"Oh-h-h, yesl" said the squire, with a
malicious wink to the boys, 81 member
how That were the night O. the apple
cut at Rocky Bottom, wen Bib Totem
fetched his gal an got jealous Of her.
You member her, major, Betsy Jane
Swank2 Want she stunner2 Betsy
Jane were the high stopper O Sugar
Swamp. She were put together to stay.
Betsy WERE an could take in an apple cut
or husl.in' bee six nights outen week,
dance III sun up an never miss q set, an
then go hum an eat salt pork an 1asses
an apple pic fer breakfast, an turn in an
do the washin' fer forty men th't worked
In the tan'ry, pst ez easy ez most gals
nowadays kin thump a poky or camp
meetin' tune outen the PLAINLY. Betsy
were way up in sciety, an were gittin'
s3 a month an her feed She could ha'
had any bark peeler tn were in the
clearin, an yit"-
An Wit yer mem'ry Is scatterin' Like
shot loaded fer pigeon" interrupted the
Old Settler. getting hotter and hotter.
1T s consumed funny, said he, '-th't you
kin set here an think o folks an things
ez never heerd on, an yit ye can't git
yer mind onter sumpin' TIT act ally hap
pened fifty year ago, an sumpin' tht were
durn p'tic Ter, too
Were tn any fun long with it?' asked
the squire
Il thort TIL were at the time" replied
the Old Settler "W'at think bout it
now hain't got puthin' to do with it. Not
q consumed bitP'
I'm bet all the Eaters III raise this
year sh't We mean Phil Byer's beefn' bee"
exclaimed the squire Boys, | mus tell
We bout that. fer tn want never nuthin'
like it ever happened afore or sence, We
had heerd th't Phil Dyer were gointer
beef steer o his n th't had got a leetle
too rantankerous to be handled fer work.
Ez mono on US hadn't never heerd o setch
g thing ez a beehn' bee we ruther cal-
clated ez twere bout time to git one up
an we started to give Phil sprise.
Fer miled or so fore we got to Pills
we herd fearful yeHin' and howlin',
but we thort 'twere only O cattymount
singin' over in the swamp, an We hadn't
time to think bout a leetle thing like
that. The moon Were bigger'n O wash
tub. an we could see jist bout ez well ez
if the sun were shinin'. 1t were coider'n
Greenlsn' The howlin' an hollerin'
crowd louder ez We got higher to Pills,
an when we struck his clearin' an como
up to the house, thar We sec Phil on the
roof o the cabin. ssraddle o the ridge
pole. yellin', 'Helpl help e. if soneun
were butcherin' ON him a prancin' an
bellerin' round the cabin fust on one
side an then on tother. were the steer,
PAWN the snow wus nor IL 'twere havin'
more'n bari O. fsn. an 'twant ccstin'
of him q cent. Il were q funny sight,
an we jest had TO yoop.
What aye dom up thar" Philg we
hollered An how'd We git up thar
IL elm up the chimbly, O. courser
said he, Madden wild cats. 1t were SO
du-n hor II, the cabin that | cluub Ed