The Bolivar bulletin. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1946, 1896-04-24
SUBSCRIPTION: Sl.00 Per Year.


through round about the old log
schoolhouse--i them plain old days.
when people want so ccnsounded par
ticIar as to keep two schools a runnin,l
one for the males and one for the fe-
males-when the boys made hyin Jen-
nies, grapevine swings, seesaws and
sich Iike-when you boys and girls
went royin after chinkypins and chest
nuts, after heart leaves, after sweet
shrubs-when the sap is bilin upards
ar,5 the bark slips on the hickory, and
you teei like you would love to make
some whips and flutes and Whistles
anything to please the children-when
you feel too dadburn lazy to do any
thing to speak Of
Well, that's the time for fishin.
So it come to pass one day last weel1
the weather was so warm and dreamy
like and pleasant-that Bunk Weather.
ford and old man Jeems w. Staggers
they took their hooks and lines and bait
gourds and went down on Murder creek
a fshin.
Maybe you W would love to know who
In the thnGderations is Jeems w. Stag
gers? You ask me ruther quick and
suddent, but I viii tell you all l know,
He is son of old MfseS Staggers. In
his own wild and wicked way, he is a
right tolerable good man. But so far
as know, the pulpit and the amen
corner never have been seriously thrcat-
ened with his manly presence. AS to
religion, Jeems w. Staggers never did
L. 4. Il q
any, and l reckon Aunt Nancy New
ton was right when she put him
down as "about the most wickedest
man in this wide and wicked world"
But the good Lord never blowed the
breath of life into better soul than
old man Ebenezer Staggers, which he
was q preacher of the word in his day
and generation and the father of Jeems
w.
No more of that. 1t leaks out now
that Bunk and old man Jeems w. didn't
have no tremendous big run of luck in
regards to fish. But man by the
name of JeemA w. Staggers got snake
bit, and that is what makes me tell you
what / do.
'You see, Rufe, had went down
the creek, whrlst Bunk he took up tha
creek" says old man Jeems W., in
giving out the facts to me. II was so
scandlous bad off for one good mess of
fish till / could smell the gravy, you
understand, and consequentially
didn't go down there loolxin for snakes.
But, by thunder, found one, Rufe,
and he found me. All of a suddent
stumbled over one of these big old
rusty moccasins, and he nailed me ON
the calf of my left Leg. Naturally, Of
course, / jumped up and down right
there in the some place till the snake
turned loose and I had stomped him
to death. Then / laid down and hol-
lored for Bunk. and him mile up the
creek. So there 1 was, Rufe, way down
there in Murder creek swamp snake
bit, three miles from home, ten miles
from the doctor, with my old leg SWELL
in to beat six bits, and marry drap OF
sperits. Somethin had to be done,
Rufe, right away Immediately, and for
the first time in my life l felt like
would love to pray. But, TO be plum
honest with you, didn't know how.
Up to then, you understand, never had
scraped up any acquaintance with the
Lord, and felt like l was q rank stran-
ger to Him. In the main time the
hurtin and the swellin went on, with
Bunk Weatherford mile up the creek.
So at last pitched in and told the Lord
who / was and where ] come from, and
then prayed to the best of my feeble
ability"