Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1891-10-28
CHARACTERS IN A VERMONT
VILLAGE.

HeIc uSeu 10 i've III eTuuOnu
village, which may be called Green
wood, five Tom Pratts, distinguish
ed respectively as Old Tom, Young
Tom, Our Tom, Tom, the Devil, and
Lying Tom. 1t is the latter only of
whom | wish to speak, for he was
the most remarkable one of a quar-
tette known as "the cuds;" the APP
pellation of "cud" being in that
region sort of peaceful cousin to
the Western term ''rustler." The
"cuds" were four brothers, Sam, 81,
Tom and Jim Pratt, and all now
sleep with their fathers. ST climbed
the golden stair first, nearly genera
ton ago, possibly the sooner because
he rose from his last bed Of sickness
to throw the doctor down stairs, but
all the others lasted until within a
dozen years. ltshould be said, how
ever, that neither ST nor any of the
others often broke the peace; they
were good-natured if rough, but
were densely ignorant, peculiar be-
yond measure in thousand ways
and very uncouth. They lived in a
couple Of houses which stood near
each other little out of the village,
and made community by them
selves unlike everything around
them and unlike everything in the
ordinary course of human nature
They got a living by working,
little farm, and for diversion Sam
played a fife and Tom a fiddle, while
the other two managed drums and
all told stories. They were orderly
when sober, and were sober as much
of the time as would naturally be
expected.
The brothers were born Munchau.
sens. They had, one and all, the
most astonishing imaginations, and
their tales were remarkable, not be.
cause they stretched the truth OF
lied in any ordinary way, but because
they concocted the widest stories
imaginable out of whole cloth and
reeled them off by the hour with
such gravity and earnestness and
references to witnesses as to make
the inexperienced listener fairly
stagger. Some times the yarns were
of nature to be shocking, but as q
rule they were harmless and purely
amusing. Many time did sub.
stantial citizens of the village enter
tain friends by taking them to visit
the 'cuds," for there was no bash.
fulness in telling or stint of material
for the romances, and stranger
with the least atom Of fun in his
soul would unfailingly laugh at The
strange variations until his sides
ached. Sam, the oldest, was the
man Of property, and he married
and left children, but they, alas! in,
herit only his failings, and the glory
of the race has departed. A great
many, and indeed the most of the
stories were too long and complicat.
ed for print, but speaking of Sans
playing the fife reminds me of the
shorter tales given by that man
which showed how one famous in.
strument was ruined. 1t should be
promised that his playing was Sc
rude that il was never encouraged
in public in even the most modest
way, and never appeared there except
when rum started the "cuds band
out to parade the streets and make
an entertainment the like of which
was never seen before or since
Sans recital, however, was to the
effect that he was once one of 9
corps of musicians playing for q
regiment of militia drilling; tina,
the marching was so hard that al
the other players, one after another
gave out; that he alone shouldered
the burden and played louder ant
louder, and he got to the climax in
his peculiar way, thus: "That fife
had six silver FERRIS on it, dye see
an KEEP a playin' an they KEEP a
marchin' an there want none o
tl.A ot1,o~. thot ss.>I. - -