The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1890-12-25

sence she was fourteen. But you
couldn't get no man nigh her with q
loggin' chain and two Jokes of oxen.
Bet amt as purity as some women
folks. Her hairs as red as old
Swiller's nose, and one of her
eyes looks down the concession
while the others lookin' across to
Deacon Shorts woods, and her feet
can't get into tens without crowdin',
and jobs scales amt never gone
right sence he weighed her once last
summer. All the same the scales
ain't runnin' against Job.
'There, | jest knowed that Missus
Deacon Short wanted one of them
there wooden pipes. The deacon has
a nephew workin' down onto the
blind line that always comes to the
Shortses for Christmas and fetches
the deacon a pound of smokin', and
Short always gives the nephew pipe,
but he don't smoke, and so he gives
it back to Short and the deacon gets
a hull outfit. Shorts got a head
longer'n churn. There's RUDE
Slasher chopped wood for him all
one blessed winter, gettin' half a
dollar n cord and payin' the Deacon
two dollars and a half a week tor his
board, and in the spring hanged if
RUDE didn't owe the deacon five dol
lars.
"But that amt no worse nor
Job. The folks do say, you
know, thatlast Christmas this bless
ed old villin behind the count
er give Squire Hopper that
big yaller mutfler he wore all last
winter and then charged the Squirrels
missus with a dollars worth of
sugar and two pounds OF tea that
wasn't got and made as much. as a
quarter out Of the operation. One
of these days John 60 to chargin'
his wife with her own keepin.' They
do say that Job Civ that Miss Up-
town that was visitin' his missus all
summer a bill for fourteen weeks
board at a dollar and half
a week, amountin' to more'n twenty
dollars, when she was startin' for
home, and made her pay every
blamed cent of it tore he'd drive her
boxes to the station. Job ain
bein' farmed by no visitors.
"'Spose Job'll give US clay pipe
apiece for Christmas boxes. He's
been dom that for thirty year to
my dead certin knowledge. He ain t
never Civ us nothin' else 'cept one
time dividin' up a lot OF papers
that was sent for givin' to the folks as
cum to the postotfice. Mebbe this
time Job'll throw in buttons and
thread. Job always does that when
the women buys the stuff, and
guess he amt charged for a clay pipe
in all his born days and it amt Jest
right for Job to be particular close
on Christmas.
"What's that you're sayin', Sol
Grabbit? You amt never Civ no
Christmas boxes? Not to your own
young ones? Then the Lord help you,
Sol. You don't deserve to feel the
children's caressin' hands, and the
blessed sunshine of their smiles, and
their soft and tender voices layin'
love against your heart. One time
me and Jane settled we wouldn't
Civ the babies no Christmas boxes.
1t was when William George was lust
toddlin', and Hannah Maria was
creeepin' and cooin' all about the
house, and the blessed baby that the
Lord took from us was nestlin' still
and lovin' in it's mothers arms.
Me and Jane wasn't so hard up but
we could have Civ the little ones
somethin' without hurtin', but we
was greedy and graspin' and nigger-
in ourselves nigh to death to get
that fifty acres that jined onto
Squire Green's. We kpowed Deacon
Short had his eye onto it, but we
didn't believe he could be ready as
soon as We could if we stinted our
selves any lived close and hard, and
jest two days before Christmas we
scraped ourselves jest clear to the
bone and paid over to the executors
every blessed cent we could raise and
cut the deacon of that fifty acres.
"Then jest as we were:goin' to bed
that night the baby wasn't seemin'
we'll and we was late. Jane asked
what we was goin' to get for Christ
mas boxes for the young ones.
An, l said l guessed we Was
too hard up and wouldn't get moth
ln, Nav seemed hurt and sorry
like and kept sayin' that We d always
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