, 1889-03-14

up TO the mourners' bench, an Mary
riz, so dignified, an went for'ard, !
tuck a tritle intrust myself an went
up with n paSsle o. men fellers TO be
prayed fur.
"Atter meetin' 1 fined House out
side; l felt just as BACKYARD bout goin'
nigh his daughter as before. As / ex-
pected, he axed me to dinner an /
went long. There were three or four
f~ellers, mostly from our settlement, the
last one OF 'em a-hankerin' arter Mary,
jist lack so many bees a-buzzin' around
n fresh flower.
Il said nothin' TO her nor them
mother. / was u layin' low-somo'n'
toll me that when it come TO q stretch
wouldn't be no furder behind an any
the rest. Tho other fellers went on
ahead 18th the two women an Ishuffled
my deck o. guards with the ole man
you fellers III sec how the game was
played out
Purity o Mrs. House she drop
ped back with us, said she couldn't
stan Their foolish chatterin'. Then /
proceeded to git better acquainted
with her. l talked to her about the
o. her age most generally keer fur.
w y W. OA ~ III W. Wv a.
went in an tuck seats. l don't think
! ever sot down TO a better dinner, I'M
less il was at camp meetin' whar
people them times usu'ly tried their
se'vcs.
"NVell, after that / went thar toler'-
BILE often; mighty nigh ever time
mectin' some other fellers n hangin'
round.
when they was present l made a
pint 10 have mighty leetle to say to
them. | ginerilly put in my time a
convcrsin' with her father or mother,
an ! did the right thing %sartin, fur
they was most alays a-praisin' of me
in one way or a mother.
AN moreover, a blin' man could a
seed that Mary wasn't satisfied with
that sort o arrangement. AS oon as
| tuck notice o. her oneasiness l got
wuss mt H. Every blessed time the
other fellers I'D swarm aroun' I'd de
l~iberately move my cheer across TO the
old folks, or ef they wasn't convenient
I'd git squarH UP an light opt.
But on the other han, when me
and herd be alone the best of 'em
couldn't ahead me off.
"Well, things rocked on in that way
for n month, they'd progressed fur
enough, l lowed, so l considered I'd
fetch IN to n focus.
lone night in August think it
was about the third Monday, if l rec
ollect right came by TO take her TO
a big party Mt Ford's. 1t was n leetle
furder'n two miles; we was a-goin' to
take it afoot, It was n cle'r, moon
shiny night-jest fitten fur what l had
in mind.
II never seed 'er look as fine sence
I'd been a-knowin' of her. We went
down the big road, her on one side an
me on tother-about tho length of a
wagon axlo bctwixt us; she wasn't
willin' fur me to get higher. In fact,
she seemed TO be moro TEDIOUS AN I'd
ever seed her before.
Boys, l want TO remark Jest here
that thar is a mighty big difference IN
the way town people and country peo-
pie do their courtin'. I've seed both
sorts. Town folks always have plenty
to say, an are easy enough about it,
but when a country gal on a teller git
ready TO pop the question they are
more tongue tied N new born babies.
Lord, I'd thought up the most
nntcherl kind of a speech to say, but /
couldn't do it 10 ave me.
"Fust thing / knowed we'd done
passed the forks, not far from Ford's,
and / hadn't opened my mouth more
over, the road seemed TO be a-passin'
under our feet same as Of ives behind
a trottin' boss. l knowed that
wouldn't do, but / didn't know how to
better it.
I'D crossed over on TO her side o the
road, but that was as fur as l advanced.
l felt powerful inclined TO drap back q
step behind 'er, fur it was mighty
ticklish to be a-wallin' so nigh her,
an her o mo mother a-talkin, when
| knowed she was sartiu o what l
wanted TO say.
Il seed the light at Ford's on the
rise ahead, an she stopped at the
branch that run across the road to put
on her shoes an stockin's that she'd
been a%-totin', wrapped up in a towel.
In them days it was mighty common
fur gals TO presarve their shoes by not
wearin' 'em when they TUX a long
walk.
II drapped back n rod or so, out of
~perliteness, ~pertendin' ter be %inspectin'
Ford's chance of n corr crap tother
sido tho fence. When she riz from
the log she was a-settin' on / fined 'er
agin.
Thar was jist one leetle moro shady
stretch betwiXt us an the house; so /
knowed CT twas ever done on earth it
had to be then. Suddenly a thought
struck inc. l made up my mind at
I'd grab her an kiss 'er smack dab in
the mouth; she'd understan' my mean
in an thar wouldn't DO no particular
use in mother ono O. us a-talkin'
over 1t.
II changed sides with or an got a
trifle higher. An, jisS before we
re'ched the end O. the shade, l flung
my left arm aroun' her an'drawed her
squar agin me; an, 'foro she knowed
what was up, I'd slapped it to her
right in the mouth. .
she turned on me an clawed wuss'n
q wildcat, an jerked out'n my holt /
couldn't a helt her no more'n n baby
could a eel in water. Then she went
on ahead o mo like n tornado, 'thout
lookin' back, an went into the front
door o Ford's with n passle o. others.
Il never was Us tuck back. 1t was
N rro.t,,nA p,,n-a