Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1895-09-28
THE WIDER WIZ wiLtIN..
What She Knew About Jim Blankenship
and His Attractions.

What She Knew About Jim Blankenshlp
and His Attractions.
Jim Blanl1enship was the beau-gal.
liant of the Pine mountains" said a
man who had seen a good deal of noun
tain life and numbering, to a reporter
of the Star.
"A moonshiner by profession, a sh oot-
er by instinct and a saw-mill hand by
adption. he combined in his makeup
all those qualifications which COM
mended him to the romantic ideas OF
mountain womanhood.
Il had been paying jim n dollar a
day and found for the past six months
as helper about the mill, and on the
day of which this chronicle narrates,
! was to look over lot of logs he had
been collecting.
AS / rode along, wondering why in
thunder anybody stayed in that rough
country who wasn't compelled to.
overlook a woman on horseback. She
was rather better looking than the
average, and, what was somewhat I'M
usual, she was quite 'sprightly,' and
when saluted her she responded in a
tone which suggested that l might
continue my conversation without
meeting with her disapproval.
THE Lord knows the mountains are
lonely enough, even with companion
ship, and when / found someone to
talk to l didn't look my gift horse in
the mouth, but accepted with pleasure
anything that the gods gave.
OF course 1 didn't know who she was,
but that cut no ice, and / Immediately
6oH TO lot
''She was about thirty-fve years of
age and as sharp as a briar. and we
found not the slightest difficulty in
having plenty to talk about.
81 reckon she said, that yoa air
the man that is with them timber peo-
pie, amt your
Yes replied, but why did you
think SOP
I seed you down at the mill t'other
dav, and Jim Blankenship told me you
wuz the boss
$ oh, you know jim, do you? and
smiled.
In course she admitted, with a
faint blush, every body in these parts
knows Jim. He was born and riz here.
Hes fine fellow, is JIM said
admiringly. Not many like him in the
mountains, fancy?'
Amt none, she corroborated, with
degree of positiveness which in
dictated that, Notwithstanding Jim
wasn't quite thirty, he had been as
polite to the older as to the younger
women.
lies a great lalles' man, too
wSnU on, innocently.
so I've heerd. I hain't seed much
Nv it myself, but I've heern folks talk.
81 think Jim is rather smooth in
such matters ventured.
"'How?' and she locked at me as if
she expected something.
't'Oh, nothing bad, of course / has
tened to explain. he is merely sensi-
BILE enough not to h~-st of his popular
ity.'
ooh she said, as If my explanation
were extremely lucid and more or less
satisfactory. Have you ever heern
jim say much about the women folks
round here? she went on.
"a little only, and all that very
complimentary, indeed
Did you ever hear him say any
thing about the Wilder Lewis?
Never
"'WeH, I heern he kinder hankered
for her more'n for t'other ms
!" She must be very fine woman if
he does
8 1 reckon she is. Leastwisc, heern
him say So
Il shouldn't think Jim would tell
one woman what he thought of an
other, if he thought well of the other.
"'Well, she hesitated, you see, I've
known Jim long while
Yes. Now, what do you suppose
the wilder thinks of Jim?'
Her face clouded, as if there was a
storm of Jealousy in sight
g She jist bankers after him power
full, she replied, briefly.
You must know the Widow Lewis
as well as you do JIM | said.
6 4 reckon 1 do, mister she an.
swered, with frightening face. Pm
the Wilder Lewis" = Washington
Star.