Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1889-10-25
A TALE OF VALE CRUCIS.

Carolina on ms canvass 'hf"uph thS Wlid
portion of that state
At night, sitting around blazing fire
We were often entertained by tales Il
mountain life told 10y the mountaineers il
their own inimitable way. The following
little history or the lie uf one of thes
mountain people, usually 50 free from any
thing like romance, told us az the ltd,
place called Vale Crucs, in Mitchell coun
", was especially interesting to our party
"Jedge,' said an old mountaneer al
dressing the gubernatorisl candidate
4'thar's ar leetle grave up ther mounting
side which.I'll take yer ter arter risin
time termorror. 1t hey been ar mighty
long time ergo since it war made; but ever
now when sets down an thinks 'bou1
ther life of ther one that lies in that lone
some place, whar ther wolves howl an
ther wind blows so cold can't keep bach
ther tears; no. Jedge, l can't An theI
amt none of this here stuff what yer read
bout in books ia this what I'll tell ye1
nuther, ther whole thing is true sho as the
Lord made me, ev'ry word an e nigh -
| can tell it ter you.
when | was ar boy long, long time
ergo, ole Squire Smith he lived at Pig Pen
Gap bout ten miles down ther creek. He
had ar leetie gal name Mary. She had
them great big black eyes what nd shine
like ar bucks on ar dark night an them
long curls that I'D 6y in ther win She
wuz ar mighty spry creeter She could
run an elm ar tree wus'n ar squirrel with
ar dog him An cause she eould do all
sich, we uns allus called her Kildee
"Ole Squire Pearson lived up ther branch
not SO mighty fur He'd come thar ar good
many years afare, but nobody didn't seem
to know nOthin' much bout him. He had
ar chap named Bill Me an Bill was pard-
ners. but Jedge, we want no more like
than ar pig an punkin. Bill he war ther
best feller you ever seed. He wouldn't
hurt nothin If we'd start ont huntin' an
FIN some game, Bill wouldn't want tel
shoot il. An then he didn't take no in
| trust in things like me. When we'd GO
ter get chestnuts an sich, he d forgit all bout
what lie come fur an go set down on al
log, he wouldn't say nary Il word, but look
right at ther ground. Pear'd like he wal
thinkin' bout somethin' way off. An thel
he'd set till I'd chuck him with ar burr an
say, Wake up I'd allus be askin' hin
what allied him, an he'd say, 'Nothin. .
! T1nt an / Inc
so one day when we were out fahin' an
Bill was settin on ther bank, dun forgot
bout fish an was lookin' III ther water,
went an set down right close ter him an
SEE Bill, we uns have been tighten good
chums nearly ever since we'-wuz whim
perrin, but yer hain't never toll me what in
ther wOrl' lis you air always studyin
'bout. Now, come ole feller, an tell III,
what It's Pullin' hisielf tergether, turnin
round an looLin' me spang in the eye, ht
sed: Ike, dad has alus tole me this yer i
a great big worli, an he uster, way long
ago, live in one of them big things what
yer call cities, whar thar's mo folks lives
| tergether than thar be in the Mitchell
county two times big. An ther folks what
thar have got larnin'. ] amt got no min
as what ther thing be, but dad SEE it an
mighty good. It's gittin' gumption in yel
head. Now I'd jes' like to go one of them
places and git er peep-but you is the first
creeter ever tole, an'-'Say, iellers, hev
| found new cave ter make ar house in.
| Come right on Lookin up We seed Kildee.
When Bill seed her his eye begun To shine
(mine too, [ spcks, jedge. said the old
man, laughine). Ne an Bill both liked
kildee like ahc were our sister; it were
| ther only thing NE an him was like III.
ledge, you bet we three had ther biggest
ever hearn of. We'd play like We wu2
growed up an I'D keep house an all sich
things. Course Kildee nd be ther ole
oman an keep house. Ne and Bill
did the huntin' and she'd do the
skinnin' aud eookin, 'cepttin' oncet
in ar while when we didn't
kill enough to suit her, she'd grab the ole
flint rife 60 in ther woods, an when il
banged somethiu' allu5 drapped WAL
yer bet she could shoot.
Things went on this waJ for al long,
long time; playin' like, yer know. But
'twan't so many years afore We begun to
bout sure 'nough.' That same kin of
| somethin' what tells leetle bars they ain t
| cubs no longer begun to tell US, yer goi
ter stop yer playin' like
One mawnin' fer the first time we got
ter talkin' about the matter Bill wuz al
lus ready to talk bout Kildee, so We sci
an talked ar long time bout which of us
| should have Kildee for his ole oman
'Twouldn' have been Bill if he hadn't
wanted ter give her to me, cause he were
jea that good hearted; but, yer know,
| Jedge couldn't, [ wouldn't let him do
that But we couldn't agree on nuthin';
| so we said we'd leave the whole thing ter
Kildee fer ter fix, an we'd do jes like she
sed, didn't make no difference what it
were. So mex day when all three of We
ms were in Big Bar cave ups an seq
- 'Kildee, me an Bill air in trouble.
An when we tell yer what It's we ali
afraid you will Just holler, an make
all sorts of fun outen rs, but We amt a
carin'. Its jes this: we uns hev BEEN cubs
long enough, an now it's time we be git
tin growed up. An we amt perticuler
smart, but we got gumption 'nough TO
know two fellers can't hev the same gal
fer his ole oman You bain't never show
ed no difieruns in yer likin' of ~, Kildee,
but you must fix some way fer one Of us
! ter git yeI Now the one what gifts left
he'll hev to go over an work ON Squire
| Carter's gal Course, Kildee, don't nuther
one of rs want ter heY ter leave yer (and
Jedee when | sed that my eyes begun u
get watery), hut it's better fer one
ter git left than both. Now, whatever
you say wen do without ar word say yer
say, Kildee'
Everything war so still you could heal
u deer tread We knowd shC
were ez peart an bright an
ar cricket an would do right. She stop
ped, thought AZ leetle, then, raisin' hel
head, with them eyes ar shinin', sed:
" no, fellers, thcr amt nothin bout
that ter laugh over. | he'd been thinkin
'bout that, too don't Ike Like Bill "
better than yer, and yer no better than
Bill, but it's yer SEE; so I'll jes' do this;
"'Olc Squire Pearson has been talkin'
lots to dad an man bout cities an larnin'
80.