Tombstone epitaph., 1890-03-01
A DOUBLE WEDDING.

Almost everybody knows old man Strinrfellow. He is a tall, lank person ace. with shoulders like a dromedary's. His face is long, like that of horse, and he has black hair, streaked with gray, on his haad, with tuft of the same on his chin. Old man Stringfellow wears neither mustache nor whiskers, being very par. ticuar to shave himself at least twice week, undergoing some pain, and twist ing his long face into all manner of con tortious-which a circus clown would give S1 GOO to be able to imitate-during the operation, owing to the stiff nature of the crop, he is reapng and the dullness of the instrument with which he works. He seldom wears a coat, going in his shirt sleeves summer and winter, only chang ing the garment of hickory for the gar ment of wool as the seasons vary-his jean pantaloons being hoisted up with suspe- ,ers-galluses he calls them-al- most to his arnpits, making him look at little distance like some queer animal with very long legs.
 He lives in, a log cabin of one room, with shed attachment, and has wife and six children, equally divided as to sex. In the room, which is roomy enough, he and Mrs. Stringfellow occupy one bed, and the three girls-Nancy, Gin, for Jane, and Merier-another, and here all the cooking is done in the wide clay fireplace of the stick and mud chimney. The shed attachment accommodates the boys, Bill, Ben and Jim.
 Occasionally belated traveller will stop at the Stringfellow mansion and ask for a nights lodging. He will be invited to ''1ight an come in," and when he has done so will be treated with primitive hospitality.
 These people are poor and uneducated, but there is a spirit of independence about them that nothing can conquer, and so long as their potato banks hold out and their razor backs come home, to pick up pick up a little fat in the field after the crop is garnered, and then pay tribute to the larder, they care not for king nor kaiser They never treat anybody, no matter who he may be, as anything more than an equal, and would show no diff ference to the czar of all the Rus sias should he chance to travel their way, with all his coryege. Should he stop he would be invited to slight" and the boys would ask about the price of potatoes in town, the old Woman inquire as to market value of eg~s, while the girls stood by and giggled, and the old man put in a request for a chew of tobacco-that is, if they did not mistake the whole affair for a circus as ike as not, they would. They had walked fifteen miles once to see a circus-all eA- cept the old woman, who rode a shaggy pony about as big as a yearling calf, and with more hair on his hide than flesh uI.- der it.
 happened to be guest of the String fellow family once. Finding myself near
 
 dark that that could see nothing but the glimmer of the light in their cabin rode for it through brush and brier, and when reached it halloed in the usual country style. Immediately the light, which came from the open door, was shut off by two human forms, and I was bid to '''light an come in"
 The family was just preparing to eat supper, and 8 savory mess of pork and potatoes was being dished up. was in- vitel to join them il their meal, during which l was pumped pretty dry of all I knew about the affairs of the town, which was too far off to be visited by any of them very often. But to this I did not object, knowing that such information as l could impart was all I would have to pay fer the entertainment of myself and beast-which had been led off by one of the boys to share the stable of the shaggy pOny-so I let the ripple of my talk flow in q continuous current, turning on my inventive valve at the same time, to give a sparkle to plain facts indispensable to make them enjoyable
 During the evening I gathered from the whispering and giggling going on among the young folk that there was some mystery aloat-something in which they % ] S,,fa toI when they had gone to bed (the old wo- man had retired immediately after SUD- per, getting into one of the beds without my knowing anything about it until I heard her snorin9 old man Striugfellow enlightened me after a rather peculiar fashion of his own.
 ''Well, stranger" he said, "I disre- member yer name. I reckon you'll stay"
 had already told him my name half a dozen times, and he had as often disre- membcred it, so I did rot repeat it, but told him proposed to stay-a fact which supposed he was already cognizant of.
 "Yes, 5 he said, rubbing his long jaw bone thoughtfully, 1T lowed yer w'uld, an I'm glad uv It; yes, am; fur the mo comp'ny the better on sich 'cashin. Ye'ru be welcome, stranger, an hon OEetl BueS'
 was a little puzzled, and began to think the old man was not exactly in his right mind, but l said nothing, and he went on.
 ''You see,'' he said, looking at the fire, while he talked, 'tgals en' boys will git married sooner CT later, an thar ain't no usca throwin' obstickles ill thar way, an so when Merier, thet's the younGes', an Nanc', she's the oldes', come an tole me thct they lowed to take unto tharse'ves he'pmeats, which waz Dick Dander an Pete Pringle, why, says l, all right; jes' gOabcad an fix it to suit yerse'ves;' fur though nyther one uv them boys comes uv es good stock as the Stringfellers, reckiD' thcy's 'bout cs good es yer'll pick up here aO0uts.' So they done like l said, an ter mOrrcr'5 the time it's to be-"
 "Ah," 1 said, 'so there's to be we'd ding
 "Yes," he replied, still looking mus iD-ly at the fire; "the marrge giarments heve been prepared an the guess heve been bidden, an' though you wuzn't bid den, yit, e5 l said Gfore you'll be welcome gu' hOnorcl gu-s'.'
 As was in no particular hurry con.