Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1895-11-06

and smoked and talked. He had good
whisky and tobacco and could cook like
chef. During the afternoon we found
out all about him. He was nearly 70
years of age and had lived in the back
woods of Arkansas all his life. He was
born on big plantation and his father
had been one Of the most influential and
wealthy men in the south. In his early
youth-from the time he could walk, in
fact-he had been wild. He would not
go to school, and as he grew older he
grew tougher. At the age Of 10 he fell
in love with the daughter of neighbor-
ing planter, but there could be no mar
riage because of his bad reputation. One
night he killed the girls brother in
drunken quarrel, then rode to her home,
stole her bodily out of the family man.
sion and carried her away Oh his horse.
4 came right out to Arkansas and
built this cabin, he concluded. First,
changed my name. Then I began
clearin the land and tryin oraise some
thin to support my wife on. didn't
have no experience in work, and it was
powerful hard at first. But love put
muscle and determination in me, and
got along Babies were bohn, but they
died one after another, until Annie
came. Annie cost me my wife. She
died the night the baby was bohn, and
I buried her with my own hands up Oh
the hillside where the other innocents
is laid away. All got left, gentlemen,
is Annie.
"That night we all lay on the cabin
floor and prepared to go to sleep, but
the kunnel wouldn't let US. He was
thoroughly ignorant and simple minded,
but he thirsted after knowledge, and he
could argue like professor. 1t was one
of his ideas that the earth was fat-in-
credible as it may seem-and he got the
doctor into very warm discussion on
the subject. The doctor did his best to
convince the kunnel that the world was
round, but without success.
"'You all, he remarked, to wind up
the argument, is chuck full Of flosophy.
I amt got no use for fosophy. You
can It tell me that the stars, and the moon,
and the Jun stands still, and that the
yearth revolutes around 'em. I've set
right out there at the cabin door many
a night and see the moon a-movin jist as
plain as anything. I'll jist say that the
yearth is solid, and she don't move.
She's rock clear through, and all you
fosophy fellers will find it out eff you
dig fur enough
''With that the old oracle lay over
and went to sleep. The two shoemakers
were lying near the door, and Joe and
were back farther in the cabin Doc
went to sleep, but I lay there and
thought The moonlight came in
through chink in the logs and played
on the old mans silvery hair. I could
hear the steady tick tick of my watch
even above the sonorous breathing of
the shoemakers. My thoughts drifted
around to Annie and the three rifle
shoots of land When I finally drifted
into the land of nod, I dreamed a tall,
handsome female stood OH the bank of
the river beckoning to me. As started
toward her she changed into steam
boat and foated away, leaving me stand
ing where she had stood, disconsolate.
''We had boss time with the kunnel
for three days, hunting and fishing and
enjoying his unique stories and arguing
with him that the world was round. On
the fourth night, as we were sitting in
front of the cabin, we heard sound
like weird, sweet music coming from
away back in the hill.
"'Camp meetin up at Stacy's,' la
conically announced the kunnel. He
went into the cabin, took down his rife
and strolled off without word. He
didn't come back that night, and we
wondered at it. Neither did he come
back the next day.
'fThe next evening, about 10 O'Clock,
we started out for Stacy's plantation,
which was about two miles away, up on
the hills. calculating on finding the old
man. We had covered about half the dis
tance when we heard the durndest
steamboat whistling you ever saw. We
hustled back to the cabin, and there in
the river, drawn up alongside our house
boat, was one of the White river steam
boats, with the captain standing on the
gangplank and cussing as though he was
getting $5 an oath and his time was
limited. We hurried down to him to
find out what was the matter.
"'Where in is Kun
mel Kyahtah?'' he yelled at us. 'Hyah'
his Annie ON tn boat, come down from
Little Rock, an TIL
l,oxo