The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1889-08-21
The Big MeetIns at Swingin
Limb.

We unS al tuEh 10 EIdh RsaN :, 50 il
pitch right into il without proceedin', =
as old Brother Cole says.
Grau'maw lives up Owl Hollow, in the
Coosa River Valley, and we'uns sill went
to see her-me and NAV and pap and
Badly and Cousin s4leny and sister
Fiurridy Tennysy. We chillcns was all
little fellows then, and never had been
nowhars in my life, 'cept Talladega town
ons time Nav she packed US all in the
ox-waggin, and pap he driv, aud it tuck
Us upwards of three days to get thar.
We eamped cut two nights on the road.
We mott have got thar quicker If
we'd had sich mules as Bdndy has got
now mules, YOU know, is so good to keep
the road even IL they run away but we
driv old Buck and BrindIe tthem's our
steers And if you don't know steers
they are sorter like = fice-dog, gyine
anywhars, they winds about all over the
road, and makes two miles outn one. Old
Brindle in partickler is 50 headstrong
you can't gee-haw him. he puts me in
mind Of pap when he's tight-never
wants to keep the road, gifts his legs tan
gled, and goes .catawampusp here and
thar across the road, fust one side and
then t'other.
Gran 'maw's house Is double Log cabin
with chimbley at each end and piaz-
zer betwixt, a loft overhead, and two
shed rooms back. Ii is sot right at the
foot o Big Tater Mountain, that is so
high it IS most dinner time fore the san
has riz, and you wouldn't know when day
come II yoa didn't hear gran pap call
in Of his hogs and yellin' al the goats.
+ They've got some good river-botfom land
that makes en- plenty they raise ev-
! erything they eat and wear, card and
spin and weave their ewn cloth, and
I don't git no bought truck 'cept a ~leetle
grain Of sugar and coffee to keep for sick
ness
But it's a powerful benighted settle
ment, gran'naw lowed. They were the
most idlesome and doIess set over in thar
back of her ever she sot eyes on, and
was raisin Of their ehillun like passel
Of mountain goats, without any sort Of
larnin' 'cspt devilment 1t was summer
time, and Uncle they call their preach
ers uncle Easterwood had gin it out last
meetin' day that they would have per-
tracted uleetin' at Swingin Limb meetin
! house, to begin on Saturday fore the
third Sunday in August; craps would be
/ laid by then, and they must all come and
fetch dinner, 50 as to have two sarmonts.
I The house amt big enough 10 hold all
the folks big meetin' times, 50 they made
bush arbor outside, driv down stobs
and laid planks across for benches and
kisered the ground with straw, and lit it
up at night with pine light-'ood fires on
stands. Uncle Easterwood loved new
preacher named Brother jeremiah Cole
was comm, and he begged every body to
come, and fetch ther friends and all the'r
chillun; be never said nothin' about
dogs, but they 'peared to take part of the
invite TO themselves. never seed the
like for dogs at meetin' afore in my life,
ali sorts and sizes, from hop-yeared
hounds down to the bench-legged fee,
and they yelped around all day Some
body would kick EN- out, and they'd
tuck their tails and sneak right back
through the cracks, and git kicked agiu.
It's jist in three miles Of gran'pap's, and
Ve'uns all rid in the waggin. Grammar
lowed she had footed it many and many
a time, and toted her Sunday shoes till
Fhe got most thar, and sot down on
log and put EN- on, and hid her old ones
under the log. The road all along was
alive with folks gwine to meetin', some
in waggins and some beast back, and
them that didn't have the critters to ride
was walkin'-gals and boys bIrefooted,
and sweethearts swingin hands, and
most all of the gals had big stick tooth
brushes full Of stuff in Their mouths, and
KEEP it up in meetin'. Wehearn the sing
in mile fore we got thar, aud as we
driv in sight We hearn good OLD Uncle
Easterwood a-linin' out the hime.
Chil-dring az the heaven Ii King,
As ye ioar-ni sweet-H si ng."
He amt got no book-larnin' much but
gran'pap lowed he worked whar the
high-larut ones wouldn't go, and had
done power of good in the poverty low
grounds and hy-ways and hedges of that
settlement but thar was heap of stub
ble and new ground to be broken up
yet.
The house was crammed full, men
folks all settin' on one side, aid Somen-
folks on t'other. The arbor was fall, too,
and part Of the gang was walkin' about
under the trees. taIkin and eatin ginger
cakes and apples, and drinkin water
meetin' folks alters wants water. You
could see a string Of folks from the arbor
70 the spring all day, women totin babies
in Their arms, and jerkin' the two-year-
old along by the hand, and il a-squallin'
loud enough to skeer the screech-owls
A passel Of bad boys was thar from town
to-git Their dinner, and make fun of the
crowd. They sot on the bench afore US,
with them tore-down Owi Holler BOYS,
and they whispered, and sniekered, and
chawed and spit terbacker, and Whitfield
on the benches, and writ in the hime-
books, and never hearn 4 word that the
preacher said. Brother Cole riz to the
stand, a tall, high cheek-boned, lean,
lank, hungry IoOkin' man, and his clothes
fits him about like a sheet fits bush
when its flung over it to dry. He don't
take no text nor say no Scripfur' he jist
relates togchin' little circumstances that
sets the women-folks TO shoutin' and the
babies all to yellin'; and that's what
makes pap call it distracted meetin'.H
lie tuck his red cotton handkercherou
ofhis hat and wiped the sweat ofFn his
face, unfastened his shirtcolIa and flung
off his coat ike he was gwine to maui
and split rails, cleared his throat, and
lowed
Brethering and sistering, you ken see
by the way old Blaze out thar is pantin'
that I've rid long ways to discourse to
You to-day--ar, and as / am belated,
viii pitch right in without proceedin'. |
thank my stairs my head ain'tupsot with
l. 7 f,..er