The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1893-09-05
A HOMELY HERO.
s.Poor Abe Dodgero

Poor Abe DodgeW
That's what they called him, though
he wasn't any poorer than other folks
not so poor as some. How could he be
poor, work as he did and steady as he
was? Worth a whole grist of such bait
as his brother, Ephe Dodge, and yet
they never called Ephe poor-whatever
worse name they might call him. When
Ephe was off at show in the village,
Abe was following the pillow, driving
straight furrow, though you wouldn't
have thought it to see the way his nose
pointed. In winter, when Ephe was
taking the girls to singing school or
spelling bee or some other foo lishness-
out till after o'clock at night, like as
not-Abe was hanging over the fire
holding book so the light would shine
first on one page and then on the other,
and he turning his head as he turned
the book and reading first with one eye
and then with the other.
There, the murders out. Abe couldn't
read with both eyes at once. If Abe
looked straight ahead, he couldn't see the
Lu1AOW AAOA tiAAAi5 CAoC ALL DA4dO ultkJ-
ter. His best friend couldn't say but
what Abe Dodge was the crosseyedest
cuss that ever was. Why, if you wanted
to see Abe you'd stand in front of him,
| but if you wanted Abe to see you you'd
got to stand behind him or pretty nearit
Homelyl Well, if you mean downright
''humbly," that's what he was. When
one eye was in use the other was out Of
sight, all except the white of 1t. Humbly
amt no name for it. The girls used to
say he had to wake up in the night to
rest his face, it was so humbly. In school
you'd ought to have seen him look down
at his copybook. He had to can't his head
clear over and cock up his chin till it
pointed out of the winder and down the
road. You'd really ought to have seen
him; you'd have died. Head of the class,
too, right along; just as near to the head
as Eph was to the foot and that's sayin
good deal. But to see him at his deski
He looked for all the world like a week
old chicken peekin at a tumblebug! And
him grown man, too, for he staid to
school winters so long as there was any
thing more the teacher could teach him.
You see there wasn't anything to draw
him away; no girl wouldn't look at him.
Lucky, too, seein the way he looked.
Well, one term there was new
teacher come-regular high up girl,
down from Chicago. As bad luck would
have it Abe wasn't at school the first
So she got to know all the scholars, and
they was awful tickled with her-every-
body always was that knowed her. The
first day she come in and saw Abe at his
desk she thought he was squintin for
fun, and she upped and laughed right
out. Some of the scholars laughed, too,
at first, but most of 'em, to do 'em JUS
tice, was q leetle took back, young as
they was, and cruel by nature. young
folks is most usually always cruel
don't seem to know no better)
Well, right in the middle of the hush
Abe gathered up his books and upped
and walked out doors, lookin right ahead
of him and consequently seeing the
handsome young teacher unbeknoWn to
her.
She was the worst cut up you ever did
see, but what could she do or say? Go
and tell him she thought he was maxim
up face for fun2 The girls do say that
come noon spell, when she found out
about it, she cried-just fairly cried.
| Then she tried to be awful nice to Abes
ornery brother Ephe, and Ephe he was
tickled most 10 death, but that didn't
do Abe any good-Ephe was jest ornery
enough to take care that Abe shouldn't
get any comfort out of it. They do say
she sent messages to Abe, and Ephe
never delivered them or else twisted 'em
so as to make things worse and worse.
Mebbe SO, mebbe not-Ephe was ornery
enough for it.
Course the schoolmarm she was
boardin round, and pretty soon it come
time to go to ole man Dodge's, and she
went; but no Abe could she ever see.
He kept away. and as to meals he never
set by, but took bite off by himself
when he could get chance. cCourse
his mother favored him, being he was
so cussed unlucky) Then when the
| folks was all to bed he'd come in and
poke up the fire and peek into his book,
but first one side and then the other,
same as ever.
Now, what does schoolma'am do but
come down one night when she thought
he was abed and asleep and catch him
unawares. Abe knowed 1t was her quick
as he heard the rustic of her dress, but
there wasn't no help for 1t, so he just
covered his crosseyes with his hands
and she pitched in. What she said
don't know, but Abe he never said O
word, only told her he didn't blame her.
not a mite; he knew she couldn't help it
no more than he could Then she asked
him to come back to school, and he
answered to please excuse him. After a
bit she asked him if he wouldn't come to
oblge her, and he said he calculated he
was obligin her more by stayin say.
Well, come to that she didn't know
what to say or do; womanlike she upped
and cried, and then she said he hurt her
feelings. And the upshot of 1t was he
said he'd come, and they shook hands on
| it-Abe givin his other hand of course.
Well, Abe kept his word and took up
| schoolin as If nothing had happened,
and such schoolin as there was that
winteri / don't believe any regular
academy had more learnin and teachin
that winter than that what that district
school did. Seemed as If all the scholars
had turned over a new leaf. Even wild,
ornery, no account Ephe Dodge couldn't
help but get ahead some-but then he
was crazy to get the schoolma'am, and
she never paid no attention to him, just
went with Abe. Abe was teachin her
mathematics, seeing that was the one
thing where he knowed more than she did
outside of farmin. Folks used to say
that If Ephe had Abes head or Abe had
Ephes face the schoolma'am would
have half of the Dodge farm whenever
oil man Dodge got through with it, but
neither Of them did have what+She other
had, and so there it was you see.
Well, you've heard of Squire Cation Of
course. Judge Cation they call him since
he got to be Judge of the supreme court
and chief justice at that Well, he had
a farm down there not far from Fox
river, and when he was there he was
Just plain farmer like the rest Of us,
though up In Chicago he was high up
lawyer, leader of the bar. Now II so
happened that a Young doctor namAd