The Bolivar bulletin. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1946, 1889-08-09

her at the pasture bars a-driyin' home
the COWS.
I'm off to New York to make my
fortune. says I, gay and easy, 80
wish me good luckr'
She stood still for a mint there in
the shadder of the naples. holdin'
on to the post, and lookin' up as if she
didn't understand.
"Ain't you glad?' says I, wonderful
why her eyes made me feel so sorter
uneasy.
''Why, yes" she makes answer in a
hesitatiug way, ''but amt it dretful
sudden?"
Maybe tits to some. but faint to
me. I've been thinlzin' of it these two
months. hev a place in Jim Barker's
uncle's store-and I'm goin' to take
it."
She took out the top bar slow like
and patted Brindle's head.
"What'u the old folks do?" she avs
and then l knew partly why her eyes
made me uneasy. But l wouldn't own
to her 1 knew-a slip of d girl as had
never been to the city in her life and
didn't know how horse car looked!
| I spoke up loud and confident: "Oh,
they'll do all right, and besides, a
mans first duty is TO himself. He's
got ter make jest as much outer him
self as he ken-and I'm gOin' to
begin"
had heard that sentiment at a per-
litical meetin' and it had sounded first
rate, but somehow here in the fields
with them gray eyes lookin' at me, it
didn't seem to have the same ring.
MAY be you're right, Isr'el, may be
you're right. 1 don't know much
about such things. But any way, l
wish you luck an'-an'-al happi-
nessr"
With that she turned and hurried
up to the house aleavin' the cows
starin' over the bars in a perfect mud
die o. 'mazement Dunn fool that
didn't see any thing in that, but
didn't! / druv the cows home myself
and then cut across the fields into the
village.
The next day I was in the city, a
free and independent citizen, but
somehow it want half the satisfaction
L :
uncle's store was one o. them they sell
things at wholesale in, and my part O
the work was to tumble round bags
and boxes and SIGH things. 1t want
exactly what I'd looked for from Jim's
account, and I didn't relish it.
As the weeks went by l came to rel
ish it even less. The men l worked
with was freer and Independence in
their words than any thing else. Be
tween dust and Oaths | was pretty
nigh chozed to death. And the noise
at night was worse'n a Methodist re-
vivaI in full swing. couldn't deaden
it down under the bedclothes, cause
there want enough o. them, and ]
couldn't Groan out against it, cause
the man in the next room threw things
at the wall if / did. Boardin' house
biscuits want even second cousins to
| homemade biscuit and bOardin' house
girls-weu, l got over my notion that
all girls was Keziahs in pretty short
time.
l begun to think there want so
much room in cities as had imagined.
l come to hev dreams O. rock pastures
and naples and hemlOcks, and along
o. them come Keziah's face, sweet and
still as it had looked that afternoon.
OWN to dust and not relishin' my
vittals, a scratchy kind O cough fast
ened onto me and some fever with it O.
nights. l was lonesome tell We, and
finally | couldn't stand it no longer !
says to myself, 'may be this is the
way Presidents begin, and may be if
kept on and this cough didn't kill me,
I'd como to be one some day, but I'll
be hanged if I'll take the chances-rm
goin' home!
1t want much of ''see the con-
querin' hero come feelin' tibet I he'd
when got out o. the cars. Ididn't feel
nigh so big as l he'd planned to, when
went away, but l kalkerlate the
President gOin' to his Inauguration
want no gladder'n l was to see them
old hills again. l was so glad
couldn't wait FOR no wagon to carry
me, but struck out across the fields on
foot. 1t was jest the pleasantest after
noon in September l ever see, The
trees had begun to turn gold and
crimson, and the bees was GROWN
lazy, and the late flowers was smilin
cOntented, and the clouds nestled of
en- the age o the fields as if there
want no better place in the whole
world
didn't mind the scraggly bushes
l didn't care mite for the holes they
tore in my trousers. just took clear
satisfaction in stumblin' over then
and the hummuc1s. The hills, too
was SO easy / almost wished there was
more OF EN-. 1t seemed as if the
smell o them hemlocl1s down in oul
pasture was different from all other
kinds. and when l got to EN- I slowed
to drink it in.
l hcdn't thought o. Keziah-some
how / wouldn't let myself I had haC
a strange sort o sctness against it
, But now | was comm near where She
, lived and ! couldn't hold back no more
/ begun 10 tremble and dull sort o
. ache crept into my heart. / went t
: the naples we'd stood under that day
. and looked at the bars where ] hal
seen her last, wOnderin' if I'd eve
stand there again with her-me fel
low that had started out so loud ang