Democratic Northwest and Henry County news. [volume] (Napoleon, O. [Ohio]) 1894-1905, 1894-04-26
DEBORA'S IDEA.

"a woman's idee afr sometimes
wuTth considerin," began Fisherman
Joe, tilting his chair back and giving
inoessant puffs at the stem of his old
clay pipe "I hev found thet out for
Eure Now, for more years an I can re-
member, we lived down ON ther Pint
Debora an me-
I'VE nshed, raised chickens, ducks an
geese, an between 'em all, with Their
eggs we made a purity tolerabul fair
hvin an he'd little mite over But
ther mite over went mostly for house
rent, 30 mighty little was left to 60
down in ther sock for rainy day. How
sumever, ther little in ther sock cumi-
lated fust straight, an we made ther
fust payment ON this place An by ther
time we'd saved up nigh on to er life
time we paid ther last cent on it, an
ther place was ours. We fixed it up
some givin it a tuch when we could,
an fust thing we mowed we he'd a
mighty fine place. All it lacked was
ther house, an we lowed to hev thet if
we lived long enough. An thinlin of
thet we helt up our heads proudlike an
worked on, every now an then haulin
out ther sock an droppin somethin thet
ohinked into it.
1--WE wouldn't count what we he'd
not for months, cause we wanted it to
cumilate unbelmownst to us, but last
spring we got SO Gurus about it we
looked to see how much was ther an
found most enough to start on our
house. An Just then hard times set in
an smashed thet idee fat Times got
worse an worser. I couldn't sell my fish
or nuthin. People said times was too
hard to buy such things as ducks, spring
chickens an eggs, so ther warn't no use
for me to fetch 'em round. But I kept
goin an kept not sellin too
From then on for about seven months
me an Debora didn't make as much as
2 bits An all the time rent he'd to be
paid, an we he'd to have somethin to
eat. So down in thet sock we he'd to go
every month. At them times we
wouldn't look at one mother nor say
word. We lnowed how hard we'd
worked for it an what 1t was for, SO
we'd just use it slow an hide our feel
in's best way we could Now, not far
from where we lived ther was purity
fair lookin house. It was built after we
moved to ther Pint an was standin ther
just like it was when ther carpenters
finished it. Nobody he'd ever lived in it,
cause it was ha' 'nted Everybody said
so, an it was, too, an no mistake about
it. We, Debora an me- knowed it.
"We lived closer to it 'an anybody
else an he'd seen an heard 'nough to
know thet house was as full of ha a'nts as
one generally gifts, but ther house we
lived in belonged to ther man who
owned ther ha'nted house, SO it didn't
do for us .air all we knowed about it
But this is ther way the ha'nts got in it:
"Ther carpenters was two young
men, considered well behaved an gen.
teel Tom was ther best lookin--he was
most purity. Ed was ugly as sin. How
sumever, they was both well liked by
everybody. They boarded up at Miss
Biscom's, but it was SO far from ther
house thet to keep from losin time Miss
Biscom would send their dinner. She
didn't have no little children, but had
q grown daughter, Jessie, an every day
when ther IL o'clock whistles would
blow Jessie Biscom would come down
with ther young mems dinner. They'd
spread it out On pile Of lumber, an
while they'd be eatin Jessie would be
laughin an talkin to 'em. An then when
ther turnout whistles would blow she'd
gather up ther dishes an go on home,
an ther boys back to work. Jessie was a
purity girl-plump as any partridge you
ever seen an as rosy as apple.
ether boys he'd only been to Miss
Biscom's two days when they said no
money could make 'em leave ther, not
long as Jessie staid with her ma Their
likin for her was plain as daylight They
would watch for her at noon an watch
her clear out Of sight when she went
back home. An in ther evenin's the'd
hurry up ther as fast as they could go,
just to be with Jessie. The boys was
good friends when they fust come to ther
Pint, but thet purity face of Jessie Bis
com come between 'em. Debora an me
could see thet before they could see ii
themselves We lived SO close we could
tell by their looks, first at her, then at
themselves an more'n once Debora said
ther was trouble ahe'd for them very
same young people.
EVERY Sunday ther three went out
wallzin together, Jessie in ther middle,
Ed on one side, Tom on ther other.
Thet was all right, but when dance
come erlong one was sure to get left, ar
tibet was generally Ed Tom kept his
ears open for everything come along ar
would ask Jessie to go with him, an ot
course she'd say yes to the first one thet
asked her. So things went on, an BY
the time ther house was done thing'
was gettin seri 'us with ther boys, spe
cially with Ed They was up to theil
ears in love with Jessie, an she Liked
Tom ther best. Thet made Ed mao
'nough to eat up everybody livin on the
Pint
"One night ther boys didn't hurry NJ
home to Miss Biscom's as they he'd beer
doin right straight along. They het
been quarrelin most all day an 'peare'
like they was goin to hev it out then al
ther. Ed was doin most of ther fussin
an Tom tryin to make him hush. Me al
Debora sat still an listened Their boy
got madder an madden, an presently W
heard big slap in ther face an Ed say
Take thet, sirp
. 1--WE knowed he he'd hit Tom, an in
y minute more Tom hit him back The
2 such noise you never hearn. They fl
/ fit, fit. All over ther room they scram
I bled an whacked one mother &c
% q. -. .chod Ovc