News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1891-03-05
A NIGHT ADVENTURE.

/ suppose it is owing to my having
led an unusually free and active out OF
door life that | am exempt from the
nervous terrors and -hysterical coward
ice generally supposed to be inherent
in a womans nature. In spite of a
taint of inherited superstition and the
grewsome tales of the negro nurses, 1
grew fearless alike of bogies lurking in
dark corners, "hants" infesting desert
ed houses, or the more real terrors of
rural life at the south.
An only daughter was brought up
with house full of brothers. A no.
torious pickle" l set maternal and
schoolroom authority at defiance, and
indulged in hours of daily wandering
ON foot or horseback. My almost mas
culine training stood me in good stead
when the hour of peril came.
/ had been married about q year
when the war broke out. My mother
was then dead; my husband and broth
ers at once entered the army; my fa-
ther, though an old man now, joined
company of home guards, and l was
left virtual manager of our large sugar
plantation, and sole proprietor of my
baby boy and our household goods
My only reliable help was the overseer,
but the negroes seemed docile, and as
yet l had had little trouble
One autumn evening as l sat in the
hall rocking my baby to sleep my fa-
ther passed through and paused to say:
Nan, I'm called off to town in a
great hurry. They're looking for trou-
BILE with the negroes, and some wise
acres say they've nosed out a regular
conspiracy. You had better pack up
and go with me- don't like to leave
you here alone"
Tonight Oh, father, I really
coUldn'tl 1t would take so long to get
ready, and l can't thing of taking baby
Just look at that cloud in the north
west! I'd much rather stay at home.
I'm not the least afraid"
well, do rs you like. 1 don't think
myself there's any danger. No doubt
it will turn out a mares nest. But
you'd better have Simpson to sleep at
the house."
Every well. Hurry up or you viii
get caught in the rain"
As soon as my father was off / dis
patched my maid to the quarters to
summon the overseer. In a few min
utes she returned.
''De oberseer done lay up wild de
agur He done got de cramps pow'ful
bad fur sho CANT stretch he laigs
nummo'n dey's tongs, N he eyes done
roll up n sot en- de ruff er he haid.
N he tongue
Here the fearful catalogue of all
ments was cut short by the entrance of
Aunt Suke, my oldtime nurse and now
my cook.
Don't yer bleeve er wud er dat
jumbaree, Miss Nan. Dat gal de lyines'
linn er ole scratch eber wuz borned.
M | won'ers at you habin' her bout
dat precious lam, deed does /, chile.
Yer knows her husban', de wustis'
darlley on de place, N all de pains yer
tuck ter hender her fun marryin' him.
But lawsl when dem fool gals ticks er
notion ter er man, seems like dey des
loses de sense dey's borned wild, m
goes ter 'struction like dey's drug dar.
M now she ent no better'n him. Evil
munitions hez kreckted bad manners,
Miss Nan. Yer TEX my wud for dat,
honey
That's the very reason I've taken
the girl, Aunt Sukey." said |, trying
not to smile at this scriptural quota
ton. "She has neither father nor
mother, and her husband is almost al
ways run away What would become
of her without somebody to look after
herr"
Huh stitch cz her don't need none
er yO' looGiu' after. Trus' ole Sam ter
look after his own. chile."