Daily Yellowstone journal., 1889-10-25
A TALE OF VALE CRUCES.

Oi NOrln SarOllna on his nVaS
through the wild, mountainous coun-
try in the western portion of that
state.
AT night, sitting around a blazing
log fire, we were often entertained
by tales of mountain life told by the
mountaineers in their own inimitable
way. The following little history of
the life of n of these mountain peo-
pie, usually so free from anything
like romance, told us at the little place
called Vale Crucis, in Mitchell
county, was especially interesting to
our party.
'Jedge," said an old mountaineer.
apparently 80 years Of are, addressing
the g~ubernatorial candidate, 'thar's ar
leetle grave up Their mounting side
which III take yer ter arter risin' time
tsr-morrer. 1t hcv been ar mighty
long time ergo since il war made: but
even now when | sets down an thinks
bout Their life of Their one that hes in
that lonesome place, wharther wolves
howl an Their wind blows SO cold, |
can't keep back Their tears; no, Jelge,
cant. An ther amt none of this
here stuff what yer read bout in
books in this what Ill tell yer nuther;
ther whole thing IS true sho as the
Lord made me, ev'ry word, an ez
nigh ez | can I'll til it Ter you.
when / wa ar boy long, long
time ergo, ole Squire Smith lie lived al
Pig Pen Gap, bout ten miles down
Their creek. lie had ar leetle gal name
Mary. She had them great big black
eyes what nd slime like ar bucks on
ar dark night an them long curls that
'ud fly IN ther vim. She wuEar mighty
spry creeter. She could run m
elm ar tree wus'n ar squirrel with
ar dog arter linn. An cause she could
do all SIGH, we uns allus called her
Kildee.
"Ole Squire Pearson lived up her
branch not so mighty fur. He'd come
thar ar good many years afore, but
nobody didn't seem TO know nothin'
much bout him. He had ar chap
named Bill. Ne an Bill was pard-
ners, but, Jedge, we warn't no more
like than ar pig an ar punkin. Bill
he war Their best Teller you ever seed.
BE wouldn't hurt nothin'. If we'd
start out huntin' an fin some game,
Bill wouldn't want ter shoot it. An
then he didn't take no intrust in things
like me. When we'd go ter get chest.
nuts an SIGH, he'd forgit all bout what
he come arter an 90 set down on ar
log; he wouldn't say nary a word, but
look right at Their ground. Pear'd
like he war thinkin' bout somethin'
way oil. An ther he'd set till I'd
chuck him with ar burr an say,
Wake up Id allus be askin' him
what allied him, am he'd say, 'Nothin'.'
But L thought, am / knowed thar was:
an so m day when we were out fish
in an Bill was settin' on ther bank,
dun forgot bout fish am was lookin' in
ther water, ] went an set down right
close ter him an SCI: Bill, we uns
have been tighten good chums nearly
ever since WI wuz a whimperin', but
yer hain't never toll me what in ther
worI It's you air always studyin'
bout. Now, come, ole Teller, an tell
me what It's Pullin' hisself tergether,
turnin' round an lookin' me spang in
the eye, he sed: Ike, dad has allus
tole me this yer is a great big worl,
an he ulster, way long time ago, live
in one of them big things what yer
call cities, whar thar's mo- folks lives
tergether than han be in the Mitchell
county two times big. An ther folks
what live thar have got larnin'. |
amt got no min "a 10 what ther thing
be, but dad SEE tam mighty good. It's
gittin' gumption in yer head. Now I'd
jes' like 10 go TO one of them places
and git ar %peep-but you is the first
creeter evert ole, an Say, ~fellers,
i hev found a new cave ter make ar
house in. Come right onr Lookin'
up we seed Kildee. When Bill seed
her his eye begun 10 shine (mine too,
/ speks, iedge, said the old man, laugh.
ing. Ne an Bill both liked Kildee
like she were our sister; it were ther
only thing Inc an him was like in.
Jedge, yer bet we threeHIad her big
gest time round this yer ole settlement
you ever hearn of. We'd play like
we wuz growed up an nd keep house
an all SIGH things. Course Kildee nd
be Their ole oman an keep house.
Me an Bill did the huntin' and she'd
do the skinnin' an cookin', 'ceptin'
oncet in ar while when we didn't kill
enough tosuit her, she'd grab the ole
flint rifle, 90 in ther woods, an when
il banged soinethin' allus drapped.
WAL, yer bet she could shoot.
Things went on this way for ar
long, long time; playin' like, yer
know. But 'twan't so many years
afore we begun TO think bout sure
'nough.' That same kin of somethin'
what tells leetle bars they amt cubs
M longer begun TO tell us, yer got ter
stop yer playin' like
Zone mawnin' fer the first time, we
got ter talkin' about the matter. Bill
wuz allus ready TO talk bout Kildee,
10 we set an talked ar long time bout
which of us should have Kildee for
his ole oman. 'Twouldn't have been
Bill If he hadn't wanted ter give her
10 me, cause he were jes that good
hearted; but, yer know, Jedge. ]
couldn't, ] wouldn' let him do that.
But we couldn't agree on nuthin'; so
we said we leave the whole thing ter
Kildee fer ter fix, an we'd do ies'like
she sed, didn't make no difference
what il were. So mex day when all
three Of we uns were in Big Bar ~
I ups an seq
'Kildee, me an Bill air in trouble.
An when we tell yer what tits we air