Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1895-08-23
Wasl'in9ton Standard
OLYMPIA. WASH.
4 Mot NTAIN COURTSHIP.

tCdutlluI' i''l ittItN - HDt u no
tiCeablc characteristic OF mountain
Women. Old or Young. and how she
had ever come to marry Lem
Skagg> was "a wonder to me, for
Lem was by all odds the homeliest
man on the Lick, and LONELINESS i,
"A characteristic of mountain men.
| knew Lem quite well, and had
betriended him on many occasions
even loaning him money enough
to get married on, as his crops
were not in and he was scant OF
funds, and when they had been
married about "a month | asked
him one day how it happened. He
was good fellow all over, was
Lem, as guleless as a baby and as
honest as the sunlight. and when |
asked my question he blushed and
grinned.
She was tuck by good looks "
he laughed.
"Of course, OF course" | laughed
back; anybody ought to see
that, but my eyesight is weak.
Tell me what you did to win herr
Z" | q int do nothin', colonel. l
jist W."
THAT won't go, Lemuel. You
are not the kind that win that
way; you must have made your
self attractive in some other way"
Hope to die, colonel, eff l did,"
he insisted. Il jist wuz and she
got tuck"
didn't you court her pretty
hard?"
Did II" and he drew a long
breath as of relief at the thought
of its being over. Well, l should
say | did. Why, l come mighty
nigh mortgidgin' the farm to git
her things she didn't seem to want
when l give 'em to her,
What did you give herr"
Everything, colonel. 1t got SO
bad lords the last the folks at the
store told me eff I'd lump my deal
ms they reckoned they could let
me have 'em at wholesale prices"
"She could stand your liberality,
Lem. That's what got her."
"Not bit NV it," he continued.
"All the time l wuz takin' her all
sorts NV things, she wuz maxim
eyes at every Teller that come
along, and sorter expectin' me to
keep up my end Nv the swingle
tree, jist case l kinder seemed to
banker after doin' it that away"
But you kept at it p
Il reckon not" he laughed
AL NV sudden | sot in fer Mary
Finnel, and give the store folks a
rest on buyin'."
"Then what happened?" l in.
quired, with hope that would
now get some information.
He laughed a low, gurgling
laugh, such as a boy would give
vent to when caught in some of
his natural depredations.
Well" he said, "she kinder
snapped eends on t'other fellers.
and swung round my way, but l
wusn't givin' inch, and l didn't
have no talk with her fer mighty
nigh two weeks, and then one
evenin' as 1 wuz passin' her house
on my way to Mary's, and she
knowed it, l seen her hangin' on
the gate lookin' out into the future,
er somethin' NV that sort that
seen picter NV one't an agent wuz
se!lin'.
"Good evenin', says l, not Of
ferin' to stop.
"Good evenin', says she. Pears
to me you're in powerful hurry.
Kinder, says I, slackin' up
some. I promised to be down to
Mary's bout this time
"She kinder looked down at the
ground when l told her that, and
kicked a little rock out of the path
that wuz layin' thar, and I felt like
sheep-stealin' dog fer sayiR' what
I had.
az reckon you'd better be
hurryin' along, then, for Mary amt
the kind that likes to be KEEP
waitin'," says she.
81 s'pose,' says I, that you
don't keer eff l stop and talk to
you fer a minute do your
al amt keerin' what you do,
says she, kinder sullen.
"You look like you wuz expect
in somebody yerself,' says I, feelin'
ez eff I'd like to choke whoever the
Teller wuz.
"' That's what says she, and l
felt more'n ever like chokin' some
body.
"' Who is it?' says l, watching
the streaks of a laugh round her
mouth and eyes.
That, Cor mn 70 1no,,, onJ yo,, = -