Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1896-12-24


December night pairing and cutting up
a great, knobby, sweet pumpkin, for
pies. ''I'll be dinged to gosh eff 1
wouldn't give a milkin' of the Jersey
cow fer Their eyester stew termorrer
down ct the church jest ter know what's
ken over tibet boy Jake of ourn. He
bain't seemed like hisself fer year
past; not tibet l am perticalor anxious
tibet he should. fer eff ever youngster
he'd change of heart and manners
withouten the help. of revival 1 be-
ieve cts him. He hessant given me a
sassy word fer weeks end 1 Almost git
lonesome and humsick to hear him saw
me off short er snatch me up sudden jest
ter hev the chance ter say sumthin' ag-
gravatin to him and call him an ongrate-
full scamp thet don't know when he's
well off and continner riling him end
not low him ter sass back, cos I'm his
father. I reckon the boy hain't always
he'd a picnic and frosted cake and linn
ming aid livin' end worliin' fer me eff
I am his dad, end me es should be his
best friend end show him tibet love
him the best next ter you. He made me
ashamed o myself end Jake's honestly
greater then he tibet taketh a city, es
the Scripter says. fer when he ken gov
ern his temper round me, es see myself
now, he's got the stuff in him wuth hev-
in. Somethin' IS KUN over him-there's
no blindin' yer eyes ter tibet. He seems
ter be livin' outside of hisself-fer other
foxes like-fer me end you most per-
ticulerly-es if ct were a pleasure for
gettin' of his own wants and notions.
You've noticed, Dorothy-of course you
hev-fer I've hearn you thank him a
dozen times-how yer wood-box is al
1us filed without yer askin' end the
water drawed, end the back stoop swept,
and the chickens drinkin' crooks kept
full, end the aigs fetched in, end the
sour milk kerried outen the cellar, end
a snarl O. things done fer you what
afore you alters he'd ter do yerself er
nag Jake and argy end coax till you'd
-druther ten times over do it yerself,
end liker es not you'd hev ter then when
-alis said'n done.
He's cheerful end chick about his
work es a cat bird cheemering round
her nest in alder bush, es if he were
gain continually onto Christmas din
ner, end he had a seat next to the turkey
end brown gravy. Tother night hearn
him talkin' ter the cows when he didn't
plCiOn tISIS was HODOOJ Gnu
he told old Boxy thet he'd never kick
her again eff she'd forgive him end said
n lot O. things to the 'tother ones thet
I cudn't hear, ner didn't want ter hear,
fer I felt like l was stealth list'nin'.
"Yer night I saw him end the Eaton
boys end the schoolmaster settin' on
the bridge over Sogger run. They was
power busy talkin' about sumthin,
specially the teacher. and when I ken
up they looked kind of upset like end
. dandered off about the crick end the
. crops end corn huslsin'. end eny gump
could see ct wasn't what was onter their
minds.
"a spell back-end not a long spell,
either, I'd sed they's a-plannin' some
onruliness, some chico mischief that I'D
make folks swear es air in the habit of
ssvearin'. Some one would like es no find
Their two-hoss wagin onto the top of Their
barn termarrow mornin', er her smoke
house onto Their front stoop. But I hain't
a-worryin' now. Them youngsters he'd
: sumthin' onto Their minds besides lark
in end cussedness, end we skell see,
mcbbe, what we shell see. es some cute
teller sed.''
And with the last ring of pumpkin
pared and cut up and put to stewing in
HE big pot on the kitchen stove Uncle
Sluman took down the wooden boot