The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-12-23

A Pathetic Tale or the He-iock nett. Ne
Told nv n Native.

He heard me rs | approached and looked up.
"Cap'n," said he. I'm settin' here right or
the spot where I fust met Aunt Hammer. Aunt
Hammer died Yesterday. an I've come over here
TO gaze an ponder. I was terrible fond OF Aunt
Hammer, though she did kill Uncle Bailey, an
tina want nobody ever lived that | thought
more Of than I did OF Uncle Bailey. An she
killed him. Yet I liked Aunt Hammer amazin'
She was a wonder. She had forty-cight young
uns, Aunt Hammer did, an ] killed 'em all.
Every one Of 'cm. Long afore she killed Uncle
Bailey, too. An right here ia where | fust met
Aunt Hammer. Cam. SO I've come over to gaze
an ponder
began to feel n little uneasy, for here wns
evidently a bushwhuckcr as crazy as a loon, and
there was n blood curdlirg prCpondcrance Of
murderous reference in his talk. | turned
quickly and started back up the creek. but the
native called to me.
Hold on. Cap'nl' said he. "You better wait
a spell. | want to tell ye bout Uncle BAILEY an
Aunt Hammer. 1tll be with your while. AFTER
yo hear about 'cm yen 10 sorry We never know'd
EN-. They was great
Thinking II might be safer To humor the man
than TO offend him by going away, | stopped
and said:
A right. What about them ~
Never know'd Hiram Teepy, did &c 2" said
the native.
NO" 1 replied. 4" never met him."
"Properest kind of n fcllcr.' continued the
man on the bank. Married Mag Fincher,
Hiram did. But that want what made me
think OF him. Tbacker's what made mo think
of Hiram. Plug t'backcr. He nilus carried n
big hunk o plug tbacker. an whenever I'd
meet him he'd nlius haul out his plug an say:
"'Huilo! liev n chawY'
An, o. course but say! II yc didn't know
Hiram &c know plug tbaCkCr. Got any -
1t happened that | had some. and / promptly
handed IL over. The native took the plug, bit
of It big chew. and put the rest in his pocket.
"Tain't noways nigh ~ sweet NJ liiram's
usety be-" said he, but faint bad. Lord! How
Uncle Bailey did dote on plug t'backcr! But now
he's gone, an Aunt Hammers gone. an here | set
an ponder"
| thought that now was a good chance for me
to get away, ana / started quietly up the creek
again. But the man called to me before | had
gone six feet.
Jest IA minute. Cap'n!" said be. IF ye don't
stop an hear about Uncle Bailey an Aunt
Hammer yen regret 1t to your dyin' day"
So stopped and sat down on IA rock.
AN ii want remOrse for Uncle Bailey, nor IL
want weepin' an wailin' fer her young uns,
that Killed Aunt Hammer" the bordering native
went on. "No! II was shame. Ginuinr. down.
right shame is what Aunt Hammer died Of.
Aunt Hammer was too modest an she couldn't
stan'it, so she up an died yesterday. II Uncle
Bailey wasn't gone he'd be scttin' here a ponder
in too. FER Aunt Hammer was pertic'lnr fond OF
Uncle Bailey, an well he know'd 1t. 1t was
list cause she was so pertic'lar fond OF him that
she killed him.
Five years ago I went over to Bul Belcber,s
pond. The fact is. Cap'n, the pond wa'n't BIN
Belcher's, cause tina want no Bill Belcher, an
when tina was a Bill Bclchcr he never owned the
pond. Tina hain't ben no Bill Belchcr fer twen-
ty year. The last day tina ever wasa BIZ Belcher
h ho III On tna' ponu. ~ .he nsn,m
hauh pen 50 good that day Bill
asbwopms with him in a ,.ma,cr can .Di p,nI
gallon o. worm o. the sim in a ,ng'
This wa. fer exhllaratin' purposes. Bii
allus exhilarated ar,cr ketchin' a fsh.
but the fish bit so fast that day that they KEEP
him buster than usunl exhilaratin', so hat when
ioiN. "o.T " rooN I nhi vi iouhu the oont
tina was less than two little jiEgor. Of toi
lon o. water i in '% Biil. 'I 1t WA ma, T"' % "p"wnd Tnt , G".,
was the student wa.hip' Of nil the s,h eii, ~T
out Of him by so much water rittin' inter- him
powerIn' disapp,in IN s'" A u'FI tbo,, s', ,ha OVER wny
Biil got the title to the pond, so it's ben called
Bill Bclcher's pond ever sence.
res. ! went over mere 10 set some mu'hrat
traps IN as was ro"ih crosst the inlet o the
pond | seen sumpin' a skippin' tO'ards my boat
ON ton a. the water. an a-conin, as ~ sonohod,
IA -, I, - 80. =. '
sumpin', an thought it amazin' queer that it
could leave setch a big wake "a vps foIIerin, NJ
p uo, an niph i" ths boat at i ssS ,ha, Mhen the snmpin,,
mebbS its eyes want hanrIn' ont on H. ,S.sts
nor nothin'y An good reason for IL MA
thourht was a yaI. behind ~, ~,
wax, AT ALI il was The sI,mmiros "tStmm."
pickeri I ever see an from TIE VA 1880
was hrny,d oman ILnow,d /, 80 $50, ~ LIVE
frog. When the frog was sumnin' III. ION t taat
from the boat and the MIMI ,icts al 'Vnna"mmYt
rnnre'n ~ ree inchas fr,,, tfihna'" imNeht "hnt
the frng I've nna az ,tWSe hlnu iess'
rz mn in The air liz : - vronL ~ ~ hiuh.
down kcrpinnk Inter tha 70" Nv tpng
down 'twiSt my feet and looked nj ~ me- wiih fi
bulgin' ewes an IL II could aStaiLsd
fcrent languages IL couldn', afsaiI ,n NJ
nlainer i'm w1r3s han wbat a.. sS W AZ mo NO
".Say. mister SAYS thsv smsSse H., L.,
that pIcke climb i'm hers an, cH'n,y !, !" !" ''
Mel sir I riz rigbt n N In M 30 &C .,,,,
an mar n, AM IA" Ihstp nich - a. taAh
~ .' . tt ~ az hii7b BlNhNT i I'LL At lhSI lie