The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1893-05-18
GOV. TAYLOR'S JOKE.
How, When a Boy. He Directed the Smart
Stranger.

How, When Boy. He Directed the Smart
Stranger.
East Tennessee is truly the land of
crooked highways. they having been
laid off. on account of the undulating
surface of the country. wholly regard
less OF uniformity and symmetry, and
unlike the more favored sections of the
north and west. cannot be followed by
the cardinal points. 1t is consequently
difficult and almost impossible to direct
traveller with any degree of plainness
and intelligence in fact. and ii is often
the source of great amusement to stran-
gers unused to such experiences. The
most noticeable feature of their infor-
nation is that il is almost altogether
impaired in the negative. as it We're,
and the bewildered traveller, in trying
to keep track of the half-score of differ
ent roads he must not take. invariably
forgets the one he IS to follow. and in
his confusion knows far less than when
the sturdy old settler responded to his
nervous hello some half an hour be-
fore. Then. too, you are confronted
with the necessity of being perfectly
familiar with the country in order to
follow such directions as "turnin' to
the right o Tilson' farm or ''takin'
t the left o gran pas medder' and
"keepin' straight for ards where the
main road actually forks in two equally
divergent directions
Then YOU turn off, or don't turn off.
as the case may be. feminist" certain
landmarks that could be identified by
nothing short of Photographic sketch,
try to grasp literally. the ludicrous in
junction to take first "a house on one
hand an tree on t'other,' go over
the hills and into the valleys. past GER
tain stumps and rocks and trees which
you are to recognize by certain events
that have transpired near them genera
tons since, and heaven knows what
not, till your brain whirls and you
turn doggedly away as if under the
spell of some hideous incubus.
The incidents illustra ting such laugh
able weaknesses are numerous, but
chief of them all is one told of eX-Gov.
Taylor, Fiddler Bob. as he was called
at home. The eastern tourists and
visitors down in the Watanga valley
some several years ago found such ex-
periences so amusing that they had
fashion of driving a few miles out of
town and accosting the unsuspecting
inhabitants for directions to certain
distant and out-of-the-way places. And
true to their accommodating and hos
pita BILE instincts. it was always volum-
inouslv forthcoming.
= ono 10 10
hazing parties in question drew up in
front of the old Taylor homestead on
the Watanga and making their we'll
feigned pretense of being lost. accosted
a brown-faced bare-footed lad. who
was none other than the future gov
ernor of the volunteer state" In
quiring if he could direct them TO such
and such a place they had learned of.
he promptly responded that he ''reck-
oned as how he might" He had heard.
it seems, of their pranls and 50 sur
missing the object OF their GRAND, he
chuckled 20 himself in anticipation. as
sumed gravity betting judge. and
began:
We'll. in the first place. You turn
round back o the barn out Their. but
mustn't turn { the left ez that road
amt open now: you keep straight up
tibet hill over yander till you get t the
top: then You go down on t'other side
till you come to the woods: Their by an
ellum tree You take a path { the left
and You follow it till YOU come t the
top o the hill in the thick woods
where my fathers hired man killed
bear one time: there the path fades out
altogether. but jist go right straight
for ards. about as fur as frum here to
the spring. an You come to a fence:
look all about YOU and il You don't see
nobody git upon the fence an holler;
if you don't git no answer. holler agin:
an If nobody don't answer tibet time.
why. holler agin: an. then eff you don't
git no answer b gosh you re ost.'-De-
troit Free Press