Daily tobacco leaf-chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1890-1895, 1890-05-21
DAN MASON'S ONLY LOVE.

QuGSbAOu oOuAo HbAdhHV W A'SH'
Once had hopes it might o. soun'ed right, |
but now, now 1t falls heavy on my heart an
makes mo think o. times that's gone. 1t
brings 'em all back in my mine--Bill, Their
SOUR, an Minnie, Their squir's darter; but
of 'em all Minnie comes fust. / amt never
hearn er name like so well as hern. Iuse to
say 1t over an over cause 1t blong to her, an
do it Wit when thar's nobody to hear me.
But it souns so dif'unt now, nothin' likeit use
to. After all, tho, thars nothin' strange
erbout it, cause everything Is dif'unt now;
nothin' looks like it use to. 1t may be me
that's changed. Yes, 'spect it is. Wall,
had 'nough to change me, SO faint surprlsin'
after all, you see, when man puts all his life
in somethin' an it's all Of a sudden took away,
it goes kind o. hard.
/ was out in Californy whom I met 'em,
an SOUR Duff got me to go in partnership in
Their mimi business. All | wanted was that
chance, so we sittled things then an thar an
went to work SOUR Duff had ther puttiest
darter ever seen, an it never took me long
to like her nuther. She was white an red all
Their time, with long black hair an little black
eyes-the shinyest eyes ever seen, too--tn'
was built up jist like pony. staid at Their
house, so me an Minnie was in one mothers
com'ny right smart With her han holm
tight to mine we use to go out under Their
trees, sot down on Their roots an talk Their
longest times together. Sometimes I'd help
her pick up burrs an SIGH like, what she made
pieter frames outer. Our heads would some
how git close unbeknownst to us, an I'd kiss
her fore knowed what l was dom. Any
Teller would done like me, an perticler If they
liked her as l did.
Their squir' had already gin her to me an
said we mus jis' wait year; then we could
git marrid. Min was fourteen an jis' the
kind of girl to make ther boys like her,
though she didn't pear to take to none o.
them but me- an was glad of it, too. Thar
was Ell crossin' what we had to pass over in
goin' ov mornin's to ther mines, an twas
gittin' in SIGH bad way we had to stop an
fix it. Mos every mornin' she'd go long by
mo far as Their crossin' then 60 back home to
ten to dinner. use to wanter go back with
her, but that would or bin knockin' off work
fore commenced, so couldn't. Any place
she wanted to 90 l took her, but that was
only natural, cause she sot a heap o. sto'e by
me, an i knowed thar want nothin' in Their
worl' love like her.
She was bout es happy over ownin' me
es | was FIR ownin' her, an she didn't kere
who seen us holdin's hans along Their rode,
neither. SOUR Duff tole me / was jes' ther
kind O. man he wanted for his darter, cause
he couldn't bear to see her git bad Teller for
a husband She was jes' Their one wanted /
know'd 'thout akin nobody's odds, an all /
was waitin' for was Their day TO roll aroun'
what made her fifteen. Then we was goin'
to cit Their knot tied sure. was all time
thinkin' bout how was goin' to rig up in a
bran new allapaclSer cote an pants an red
top boots an shinin' cap. AS fer Min, thar
want no tellin' what she'd have, but | spect-
ed Their finest lot o. rgin' er man ever seen.
When Their crossin' was fixed so thar want
no more danger to go 'crost it, me an Their
SOUR went on to work at Their mines, We
he'd struc' err vein an that meant somethin'
to us both, but more to me on count O. Min.
Their SOUR got flush an got her Their finest
nag he could git. Every time had er chance
put in er lick or two O. currin' ON her, an
by an by she was mos as shiney es Minis
| eyes. Min was Their puttiest sort O. rider, an
when she'd come by Their mines every man
| would stop work to look at her pretty face.
| She always Hoped hard an loud over theI
| crossin' so I'd know she was comm, for she
| know'd how / loved Their sight o. her.
want good loollin' much myself, an it made
my heart awful light some way or 'nuther tc
think she liked ther looks o me better'n thel
| other fellers. Then err gin twas 'nough tC
make me proud when knowd that ther on
| lest girl in thirty miles err bout b'longd tx
me- Every piece o. gold foun' put it by
fer her. Her face was fore mine from morr
| till night with that hansome smile, an then
| eyes what WIS brighten air hunk o. gold heC
come a'crost yit. On her han she wore thel
incest sort Of silver ring | he'd give her, an
she always hilt up that han so folks could sex
she wored Dan Mason's present.
Every time | looked at 1t | wished twal
| gold but twas ther onliest kind l could ri
anywhar near, an it come off Tom McGin
nises little finger when he sole it to me. Blu
| it was ring, an that she had to have. One
/ sprained my knee joint an was laid up tw,
weeks at Their house-ther best weeks eve
know'd, too. Most every mint she'd come t.
see how was gittin' erlong, an at night she'
talk an laugh SO I'd fergit all erbout the
ruckin' in my knee. While | was laid up
took some bark from Their big trees an made
rope big an strong. When got well noug
Iinade swing under Their biggest tree 'roun
an fastend er piece o. chain on to it S
'twould rattle. Their mines was only er littl
W.hys off, an wanted to know when she wa
swingin. Whenever hearn that chain raj
tie felt better to know she liked somethin'
he'd fixed, an Their best times ov all was whe
we sot in thar together
sent for her weddin' ring six month
b'forehan', so as to git it on time tried t
git her size, but she didn't pear to know wha
her number was, nor what finger to measur
on, so l jes' tole Their man ter SEN er girl
| .;o no No,,fl
all safe an we'll, though Their box what hilt
looked like it had saw rough rode. ha
err hard time to git Min to try 1t on, cause sh
said twould give US bad luck to war 1t for
Their weddin'. But to satisfy me she put it o
all her fingers TO see what one it fit ther best
1t looked too pretty fer nothin' on her middl
finger, SO she said she knowed tibet was wha
, il 'blonged.
They more / thought bout our weddir
ther harder worked; what wared me out a
fust seemed nothin' then. An when W
: started home after knoekin' off work the
. thought of Minis waitin' at her gate for he
pa an me made me feel es fresh es If | ha
jes riz out o. bed ov or mornin'. It's c
mighta nice feelin' to know thar's somebod
waitin' at home fer you, an wishin' you
d come; somebody's smilin' face at Their dooi
: an er smokin' supper on the hearth. Thar
+ nothin' like it. II make er man think NOR
e ov Their worr an Their people in it. 1t make
him proud he's Twin an think more O. Coz
Out o. all Their miners me an SPUR Duff Wa
Y Their onlies ones what he'd anybody TO thin
& o'bout an love. We was always in hurr
!. TO git home o eveninis, an never loss no tim
4, in talkin' to Their boys
Rut they didn't kere nothin' 'tal ibot
their camp, didn't pear to mine II they nev'
got thar. An what was their use g hurril
o to a ole, empty, miserble lookin' campf ThI