Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1890-03-19
MORE THAN HIS MATCH.

MORE THAN HIS MATCH.
One morning, the customers who
came to Beckett's mill with their
turns were little surprised to find
the mill door closed and a written no
tice posted thereon, which read:
Mil closed on ercount of wife dvin'.
Have to 90 TO burryin' ever to Coon
Run Meetin' House. VIII be back III
two hours. SAM BECKETT
Two or thrre customers, who had
come from the extreme end of 'PosSun
Ridge, concluded to wait for Beckett'S
return rather than 10 make the trip
again; and SO, tying their horses, they
sat dOwnOI a log and fell into a friendly
chat.
IN tell you what, feIlers,' Rial
darder said, after the weather and the
crops hal been discussed, the takIn'
off of old Sans woman is purity dog
gOned suddint, amt it?'
Yes, it air, Rial, fur a fack,' Dan
Hawkins replied. Reckon there warn'J
nobody spectiu' of it,
No; and l guess Old Sam hadn't fig
ured on it a y hisse!.'
Wonder If it'll glt sam down much?'
IAGOhbA llbN bdh OA SIC, W lIGlA q
feller'S buried four wives, he materially
gifts sort - used to it, and the takin' of
of The fifth hain't likely to 20 SO hard
with him as it would II size was the
| first. It's all II bein' used 10 things
Yes, that's so, Rial. And If fellcr
| ever gifts used to wives a-dyin', | guess
sam ought TO lie. There amt many
! men as kin boa I o. bIryIn' five of 'ei4
hanI-ruunin''
J No, there amt many, Dan, that's
| 80. Wonder wn) Sam'N marry next
| me!'
'Lor'. hain't no idea. Nobody ever
| thought of HIM InarTl in any of them
women be has married. Seems Ike he
has a mighty takIn' way with the
women folks soueuoT, and il does
| pear like women do the most unac-
countable things. Now there Wasn't
anybody as ever thought of TIlly Smith
| a-marTyIn' old Sam, was ther?'
Il guess not
But she married him, though
Yes. that's 50, she Gid.'
We'll, and that's { t way it'll be
az in. Old sam dUg- ned lucky when
! it comes TO marryIn', and 1 guess he
| ought 10 be, after all the experience hes
! had.'
anu lAlt AllSL lLAlll5 YOU hllO" T.,
| neil have another wife. And she won t
be an Old hag, either, but the purties.
| gal on 'POssum Ridge
'AZactly-az ,ctiy. lie has always
married young gals, and | low he'H DO
| it this time
L wouldn't he a blamed bit sur
priseI '. Dan, II lie did spruce around
I Bet Higgins. Bets the best-lookinI
, woman Oh the Ridge, and most am
| body u be CAD enough To git her.
'liut that wouldn't do him any good,
| Ria Reckon that Preacher has got
| her fast enough
lie may have and he mayn't have.
| We kin tell better a week from now.'
! The two hours had run out anu
Beckett returned.
Sorry l had to keep you waitin',
men, said he, as lie came up; but il
couldn't be helped. Folks will die, and
| they can't be blamed Tor 1t; and they RE
| jus, as liable to 90 one time as another.
| IaIn't III the nature of things for peu-
pie to choose their own lime for dyin';
and when they die they have to be
buried, you know
shore, Sam; that's all natural
| enougl. Reckon you find it power
ful hard blow, comm SO unexpecteIr
Yes, l do, Rial. It's awful unhandy.
| lilly was smart woman, and l hated
TO give her up; and besides, there Is
always more or less time lost in buryin'
of the dead one and lOOkin' round foI
( somebody to take her place.
Reckon you'll marry ag'in?'
why, yes, of course; but L hain't
settled on anybody yet. 1t takes time
for these things. you know, ard a man
l n lnnLr nrfh a lfffla
Old Sam Beckett was well-to-do, and
on 'Possum Rilge he WAS looked upon
as the money king of the world.
lie owned good farm, bes des the
old mill, and lived in = O-story frame
house-a luxury that was rare at thai
me, and which lOomed up immensely
among its numerous log-cabIn uegh
! bprS.
Some time previous to the death oil
| Beckgtt's fifth wife, old Jerry Higgins
had died, and having a daughter Il
leave to the tender mercies of he
world. bequeathed her to old Sam
fatherly care.
Betty Higgins was just r sing onto
eighteen, and was as pretty girl d:
ever graced 'Possum Ridge society, an
for that matter she would have beei
no mean ornament IN more arist6cTatil
| ciTcllS.
For years she had constituted Jerry
! Higgins family, and he being a MAI
Ve!l-to-do financially, and justly proul
Of his daughter, had devoted consider
able means TO giving her an education
and had even gone SO far-against tht
protest of his neighbors, of cOurse-ag
TO send her away to attend school il
The city.
Old Sam was a rude, gruff fellow
who had seen the suns OF fifty summers
but who was perfectly preserved physi
ally. and in good trim for taking a sixtl
! vile at any time.
The work at the mill had run behini
little during lilly Beckett's shor
illness, aad for two or three days afte
the funeral old Fam was kept quit,
OuSy grinding tile accumulated 'grIsts.
In tie meantime Nose Hackett, The
preacher feller,' had spent good dea
Of Lis spare time in the nsighborhooc