The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1888-05-12


there. I've hearn em say sence that Car
RE used to show Marian the letters Jack
| writ Ter f'om collldge, an that she even
ioked at er bout SIGH questions as he'd AK
| bout my little Yankee gal, an so on.
CAT last times got so hot they want no
coolin' 'em, an Jack come home fur good,
an they begun to talk bout war; an call
fur volunteers, an kick up their heels gin
er'ly. Wv co'se school broke up an Miss
Marian packed up to leave, She'd bin
a-boardin' at Imboden's, an when the time
cum fur her to hunt a new place, old Miss
Imboden found Ter a-settin' in Ter room
a-cryin' one mornin', an she ies' up'n says
to her old man. Mr. Imboden, it's sin an
a shame to let that poor thing go off that
way. Les keep Ter here
"Well. they had it up m down, The old
man didn't s'picion nothin bout Jack, fur
he thought that was all safe; so at last they
greed to AK 'er jest to stay there till times
got better, She wouldn't hear to it at fust,
but as the POI thing didn't have nowher's to
go, she fin'ly concluded to stay for awhile
Well, sir, when Jack come home, he Jest laid
siege He done it in such a quiet way tell
the gal herself didn't know hardly what to
think NV i'm. EAy'd rattle an run on with
Carrie Jest like he al'us did but he wus al'us
on the lookout fur Miss McAlpin. l didn't
blame i'm much, fur as soon as she got over
her first proud fit she jest dropped right into
the family as natchul as life. She got so
she could manage things jest as well as Mis-
Imboden, and a dinged sight better. AM
how she did flesh'n' up. She got as red as
rose, an her arms got to be as plump, an
never seed SIGH a come out in anybody
''Well, the war broke out. Everybody went
crazy, an the men commenced to leave in
comp'nies an fragments, an all was harum-
scarum, helter-skelter. | didn't go as long
as could help it, but like great many
others had to go alter awhile. The draft
tuck Jack lmboden just as he come Nv age,
but the old man didn't keer He had money
'nough to pay fur a substitute
Now comes the curiousest part. Jack
'ud jest got to lovin' that Yankee gal to kill.
an she, POI thing, loved i'm back, fur no
body couldn't hep that. He was Just as
clever as he could be, an as handsome as
one O. them ere pictures you see in history
books what reads bout the heathens an
Their gods. So one day Jack jest up'n axed
her the question right out. Well, sir, hit
like to a-scared the gal to death. She did'n'
know what to do. Fin'ly she said
Mr.. Imboden, I've bin here at your pay
rents house a good while now, and it's bin
a mighty pleasant home for me. | know
that they intend for you to marry Miss
Weldon, and it would be wrong for me to
step in the way, and l won't do it,
Jack begged an begged, tell fin'ly she
told him that eff his people was willin', an
ef he hadn't never promised inset to Miss
Carrie, she might study bout it. Then she
went an shet herself up N had bout Nv
cryin'.
Jack he jestw right up to the old man
an told i'm plump out that he loved the gal,
an would have hor or nobody. Whoopee!
The old man was dumbf'unded.
"'Whatn says he. Marry that ere Yam
kee gal when everybody knows hits as good
as settled betwixt you and Carrie Why
this gal hain't got the wrappin's of her fin
ger, an Carrie Weldon's got seventeen likely
niggers besides the plantation.
sit don't make any difference to me,
father says Jack; IN have Miss McAlpin
if she'll have me, and there is no use in dis
cussing the matterr
"Well, sir, there was a storm raised. The
old man kicked up a terrible rumpus, an at
last it all turned out jest as mount 'a'bin
expected. Miss McAlpin got ready to hunt
Ter home, an Jack, bein' cut out on every
side, got on his boss an rode to Jonesboro,
an before anybody Enowed what he wus
up to he wus in Virginny, a-tightin' Yankees
like the very dickens.
"Afore he left, though, he went an told
Carrie the whole business, an she laughed
at his long face, fur she wus his cousin, his
father an old man Imboden bein' fust
cousins; an she got right up an went over
to Imboden's an tuck Miss McAlpin home
with 'er. / al'us liked Carrie, but | never
knowed ha'f how good a gal she wus till
then. She said a'ter'ards that while she
mout IA had Jack eff he'd IA axed 'er, at
the same time she never did love i'm more'n
a sorter sisters love.
"The old man sulked round a few days.
an talked bout Yankee spies an hus-
ban'-hunters an all SIGH as that, but he
''peared to be onrestless. Now, this is what
parnt a'ter'ards for you see / was in Vir-
ginnY, too, bout that time, alvin on short
rashuns an fightin' Yankees fur all wus
wo'th. In bout a week he rid over to Mis-
Weldon's an aXed alter Mamie as they
called Miss McAlpin. 1t wusn't long afore
he had her Persuaded to go back to I'm
bodens, fur old Mis- Imboden tuck on
terribly when Jack an her both left 'em. So
she sorter settled down thar agin. But
she WANT the same gal no mo-. Hit seemed
like she was a-totin' dead weight on Ter
shoulders. rally don't b'lieve she'd agone
back eff it hadn't IA been that she blamed
herself fur Jacks gwine off like he did, an
she wanted to sorter make up fur it some
way. Once she got letter rom Jack, but
she never opened it, an jest answered it
with short note, akin him not to write
any mo-
"Well sir, them wus rattlin' times. A
Teller had to take his life in his haversack
up there in Virginny. Grant an Sherman
an all them fellers wus jest a-shellin' us an
a-bombardin' us an a-blockadin' us all the
time, an less'n we wer' a-ightin' we wer'
a-starvin', an so what wus the diffunce!
But them sort o. things hain't got nothin to
do with my tale, excep' hits jest to show
you the ways an wher'fo's.
''Bimeby Their come desperate cavalry
fight way up thar in the mountains; hit wus
long towards the last NV the war-an' who
should get hit but Jack Imbodenl He was
badly wounded, too, ! kin tell We. They
sent i'm to the hospittle an he stayed ther'
awhile, an somehow mis- daddy got i'm sent
home. When he come home, he didn't look
like the same Teller what went off so hi
lariously He was persisted most to DEATH
an nearly dead with that wound, an gan
creme d setin.
"Wel, sir, you orter "a seed them women
folks. They tuck that boy home, an they
sot up night an day with 'im an they doc
tored on him tell they got i'm started to