Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1892-05-19
Uncle Tom Bankers Fight
with the Parson.

and feared not tIu0 uGr regarded M M.
but one dav It camp-mreiing. while
Bishop CASTOR was sinking up thu sin
ners ard scmching them over the infer
nal pit. Tom got alarmed. md before
the meeting was over e protested
religion aud became a zealous Uutspnk-
en- convert, and declared his intention
of going forth into the world and
preaching the gospel he Was terribly
in earnest. for be- said lac mad lost q
power OF time and must make II up
Tom was rough ialkeT but he WAS .
good one. and knew right smart oi
sscriptel" and a good macy Of the old
fashioned hy INNS hy heart. The con-
ference thought he was a pretty good
fellow to send ont into the border
country smong the settlers. and so
Tom sirsddled his old lea BIT IN gra,
and in due time was circuit riding in
north Mississippi,
In course OF time Tom acquired motto
rietv, and from bis strong language
and stronger gestures aud muscular
eloquence they called him "Old S!edge
Hammer and after awhile old
Sledgen for short Away down in one
corner of his territory there was
blacksmith shop and wagon shop and
whisky shop aud post office at Bill
Jones's crossroads, and Bill kept all Of
them. and was know n far and wide as
Devil Bill JONES' 50 - 20 distinguish
him from Squire Bill. the magistrate
Devil Bill had Swore that ~ preacher
should ever toot horn ur sing a hymn
in the settlement, and il one of the
cussed hypocrtes ever dared to stop at
the crossroads he'd make him dance a
hornpipe and sing bl mn, and whip
him besides.
And Bill Jones meant just what he
SAID. for he had mortal bate + men
of God 1t was reasonably supposed
that BIZ could and would do what he
said. for his trade at the anvil had
made him strong and "a )dY knew
that be had As much brute roUFAge As
was nee 4ssqry. And So Uncle Tom
WIS advised 10 take rcuudauce and
never tackle the crossroads He NC
cepted this for time. end left the
people 10 the bad influence Of Devil
Bill; but il seemed To him that he was
not doing the Lords will. and when
ever he thought of The women and
children living in darkness and growing
up in inidelity be would groan.
One night he pr we'd over it with
great earuestness. and vowed To do the
Lords will if the Lord would give him
light, and it seemed to him as he rose
from his knees that there was no longer
any doubt-he must GO. Uncle Tom
never dallied about anything when his
mind was made up. He went right ut
it like killing snakes; and so next morn
iEg as a "Dabor' passed on his way to
Bills shop, Uncle Tom said:
MY friend, will you please carry a
message to Bill Jones for me? DO you
tell him that if the Lord is willin' | will
be at the crossroads 10 preach next
Sunday at IL o'clock. and am shore
the Lord is wllin. Tell MIN to please
'norate' it ia the settlement about, and
AK the women and children to come
Tell Bill Jones | will stay At his house.
God willin', and / m shore he is willin'.
afid I'LL preaGhh Sunday, too, if things
get along harmonious
When Bill Jones got the message he
was amazed. astounded, aud mis- indig-
nation knew no bounds. He raved and
cussed 81 the aonsult' as he called it,
and he Swole he would hunt bin up
and whip him for he knowed that he
wouldn't dare come 20 The crossroads.
But the 'nabors' whispered itaround
that Old Sledge would come. for he was
never known TO make an appointment
and break - and there was an old
horse thief that used to run with Mur-
rels gang, who said he used to know
Tom Barker when he was sinner and
had seen him fight, and he was much
OF a man.
SO ii spread ike wild fire that Old
Sledge was coming, and Devil Bill was
"gwine' to whip him and make him
dance and sing a chime, and treat 10
gallon of peach brandy besides.
Devil Bill had his enemies. Of coarse
for he was hard man, and one way or
another had gobbled up all the surplus
of the ,'naborbood' and had given
nothing in exchange but whisky. and
these enemies hoped for somebody to
come and turn him down They, too.
circulated the astounding news, and,
without committing themselves to eth
er party, said frat hell would break
loose on Saturday a crossroads and
that old Sledge or the devil would have
10 so under
On FriduY The settlers Began TO drop
into he crossroads under preteuse of
business. but really 20 get to the bot
tom f4cts Of the rumors that were
ailoat
Devil Bin knew ful well " hat they
came for, aud he talked and cursed
more furouslg than usual, and swore
that anybody who would come expect
ing to sre Old Sledge tomorrow was au
Internal fool. for he wasn'ta coming
He laid bare his strong arms aud sand
he wished the lying, deceying hypo-
critic would come, for il had been nigh
onto fourteen years since he made Il
preacher dance
Sunday morning BY 9 o'clock thu
settlers began to gather. They cam,
on foot ana on horseback and in carts =
men, women and Children-and before
II O'Clock there were more people Al
the crossroads than had ever been there
before.
Bill Jones was mad at their creddlity
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