Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1894-05-18
DEBORA'S IDEA.

''A woman's idee air sometimes
wurth considerin," began Fisherman
Joe, fitting his chair back and giving
incessant puffs at the stem of his old
clay pipe 81 hey found tibet out for
sure. Now, for more years an I can re-
member, we lived down on ther Pint,
Debora an me-
eve fshed, raised chickens, ducks an
geese, an between 'em all, with Their
eggs, we made a purity tolerabul fair
ivin an he'd little mite over. But
ther mite over went mostly for house
rent, so a mighty little was left to go
down in Their sock for a rainy day. How
sumever, ther little in ther sock cumi-
lated fust straight, an we made ther
fust payment on this place. An by Their
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 knowed we he'd a
mighty fine place. All it lacked was
ther house, an we lowed to hev tibet if
we lived long enough. An thinkin Of
tibet we belt up our heads proudlike an
worked on, every now an then haulin
out ther sock an droppin somethin tibet
chinked into it.
"We wouldn't count what we he'd
not for months, cause we wanted it to
cumilate unbel1nownst to us, but last
spring we got SO r'us 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 tibet idee fiat Times got
worse an worser. couldn't sell my fish
Or nuthin. People said times was too
hard to buy such things as ducks, spring
for me to fetch 'em round. But kept
goin an kept not sellin too
''From then on for about seven months
me an Debora didn IT 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 knowed how hard we'd
worked for it an what it was for, so
we'd just use it slow an hide our feel
ms best way we could. Now, not far
from where we lived ther was a purity
fair lookin house. 1t 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
+o, 1-o
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' as
one generally gifts, but Their house we
lived in belonged to ther man who
owned ther haunted house, so it didn't
do for us to air all we knowed about it.
'sTher 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 we'll liked by
everybody. They boarded up at Miss
Biscom's, but it was so far from ther
house tibet to keep from losin time Miss
Biscom would send their dinner She
didn't have no little children, but had
a grown daughter, Jessie, all every day
when ther - o'clock whistles would
blow Jessie Biscom would come down
with Their young mems dinner. They'd
spread it out on a 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
purity girl-plump as any partridge you
ever seen an as rosy as a 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 Their as fast as they could go,
just to be with Jessie. The boys was
good friends when they fust come to Their
Pint, but thet purity face of Jessie Bis
com come between 'em. Debora an me
COulu oSC ULSu DGIOlO NICy ~SOuIu SSO IL
themselves. We lived SO close we could
tell by theiy locks, first at her, then at
themselves, all more'n once Debora said
ther was trouble ahe'd for them very
same young people.
''Eyery Sunday Their three went out
walkin together, Jessie In Their middle,
Ed on one side, Tom ON ther other.
Tibet was all right, but when a dance
come erlong one was sure to get left, al
thet was generally Ed, Iom kept his
ears open for everything come along an
would ask Jessie to go with him, an Of
course she'd say yes to the first one tibet
asked her. SO things went on, an by
the time Their house was done things
was ,gettin seri'u us with ther boys spe-
cially with Ed. They was up to their
ears i'll love with JESSIE an she liked
Fom ther best Tibet made Ed mad
'nough to eat up everybody Twin On ther
Pint
Zone night ther boys didn't hurry up
home to Miss Biscom' S as they he'd been
aoin right straight along. They he'd
been quMreli1 most all day an 'peared
ike Chey was Soln TO new IL out then an
Their. Ed was dom most Of ther fussin,
al Tom tryin to make him hush. Me an
Dobora sat still an listened. Their boys
got madden an madden, an presently we
heard big slap in Their face an Ed say;
GO Take thet sirp
1--WE knowed he he'd hit Tom, an in u
minute more Tom hit him back. Then
such a noise you never hearn. They fit
fit, fit. All over Their room they scram,
bled an whaclled one mother l got
scared they was murderin an rushed over
to save 'em, but got there too late AS
I teched Their door Ed stuck his. knife in
Toms heart, an tler poor boy staggered
across ther room an fell dead. Edslipped
through ther door, an before could
catch him or even say a word he had
gone.
HE left ,ther place for good thet