Daily Yellowstone journal., 1889-03-07
ABRAHAMS C0URTSHIP.

~ OA
Georgia plantation n of my chief
pleasures was to listen to the charac-
tRistic stories related by the unedu-
sated ruralists.
One day during the summer while
. dozen OF more negro and white
hborers were resting at noon, after
having eaten their dinners from their
TN buckets in the shade Of the trees
which bordered a vast wheat field,
Abraham Jennings, a tall, slender
nan of about As years, was induced TO
recount the story Of his courtship-a
theme to which he had not unfre-
quently alluded as being of somewhat
more than passing interest.
His innuendoes had excited the in
tsrest of his hearers, and the entire
group sat open cared during the re-
ci<al. .
"Gi' me the water jug, Jake, you
knck rascal, eff you're left anything
Ia IL" he called out to q giant negro
Who had Just lowered the article in
question from his lips to the grass.
After ministering TO his thirst with
he neck Of the Jug between his lips,
he began, with the air Of one who very
much enjoys telling an experience:
II saw my ole oman fur the fust
time" be said, stroking his full, iron
gray beard with his srnburned hand,
whilst a tender expression stole into
his face, over thar on the Preston
farm.
"Her pap, Jim House, had jist come
over the mountain from Fannin', and
was one o. the Preston renters. ]
went thar fur the purpose o. buyin' a
poke o. seed corn Of a special variety
which had been the talk considerable
fur its bearin' qualities, an which he
bad fetched from Fannin'.
Il fust went to his shack, a pore
enough cabin il was, too, fur SIGH
agreeable folks to live in, but it was
tke best they could git as it was late in
yesr when they moved, an good, COM
tortable houses was as sca'ce as hens
tseth them times.
His wife was busy a-cookin' dinner
safhe chimbley, was a-pattin' q batch
o. meal dough in a oven as i come up.
Che had q neat look, an while she was
ardirectin' me whar to find Jim, / cast
my eyes a bit on the inside.
I'D seed as many cabins as the next
un, but that was the most home like
I'M I'd seed in manya day.
''The fat rocks o. the hearth was as
clean a. new straw, not even a speck
o. ashes. An the shelves, agin the
logs, ives kivered 18th papers cut not
chity on aige. Everything vas as
bright as a pin.
II found Jim an his daughter Mary
down in a ten acre field in the creek
bottom. He was a layin' off corn rows
with a bay nag in first rate order; she
was a drappin' the seed, an her brother,
ayoung strip Of a boy, was kiverin' it
Nth q hoe.
"She come up, ketched up 18th the
plow, while me an her pa was talkin'.
I thought on my soul / had never seed
smother SIGH. Her face, which / seed
when she showed back her bonnet, was
he purttiest I'd ever put eyes on. /
didn't hear half what House had to say
pscommendin' o. the seed, which he
wss powerful partial TO. kase | had my
mind on her.
'He toll Mary to go back 18th me to
the house an fill my poke with the
corn; an when j axed i'm how much
the damage was he shuck his head an
aid: Never mind about that-that he
b'lieved in bein' neighborly.'
"No words passed 'twixt me an her
ON the way. She was so powerful shy.
Is afeard almost TO draw my breath,
much less 10 strike up a conversation.
Her motions couldn't a-been beat on
earth.
"When VIC riched the crib, nothin'
'cept o pen o. pine poles, she riched in
an filled the poke. / toll her | was
very much obleeged fur the 'commo-
dation.
"'Not at ALL she said, 'thout lookin'
up, an left me thar.
81 stopped behind a clump o. bushes
in the big road an watched her Oh the
way back 10 the field. / never was
much OF a han to take on over wo.
men. in feet, no end O people was Of
the opinion at I'd live an die n ole
batch. but just thar l firmly believe /
tuck a turn-leastwise ! knowed !
hadn't seed the last o. that gal.
''The fust step i tuck after that was
30 find out whar they went 10 meetin'.
The meetin' house was two mile
furder'n the one I'd been goin' 10, but
that didn't mex no odds. 10 was all i
could do 70 wait till Sunday, ! was 30
sot Oh seein' her agin.
"'You are agoin' TO jine our SIDE
ole Beasley said. agrinnin' KNOWN
like, when | overtuck i'm on the
meetin' house road. You may have
my ole hat ct faint Jim Houses gal
ats a fetchin' so many o you fellers
from t'other side the river. You got
up an fed fore day, I'll bound you.
The parson1l have TO have the meetin'
house made bigger 70 'commodate the
congregation. Tharg a powerful sight
q intrust abein' tuck lately in the
word O. the Lord
. al never said nothin'; il wasn't no
~. / jest whipped my mule TO make
IN keep up it'll his hoss, an we went
On 10 the meetin' house.
II hitched am went In.
ssThar they sot, Mary an her mother
ode by side on the women's side, and
House an his son on t'other.
al didn't pay overly much attention
10 what the parson had 10 say. fur ]