The times., 1897-06-27
MR.. FEB WHITE.


mighty bad,'' said old Zeb White as we
sat smoking our pipes. Il seen il comin'
on him and knowed thar'd be trubble, and
the old woman she seen IL coInin' and said
to me:
'Zeb, our son Tom is gittin' ready to
make fule o. hisseif, and / want you TO
keep an eye on him. He imagines he's as
big as mounting, and ne feels that he kin
lick ten men all to once
when the big-head gifts hold of young
man it takes powerful dose O. medicine
to care it. Tom kept growin' wuss and
wuss. lie got lazy, and he got 10 braggin'
and BLOWN. andfrofD the way he looked at
me now and then outer the co'ner o. his
eye knowed he was achin' To tackle lie.
jest To let him know that his ole pop was
on deck grabbed him one day and throwed
him sky-high over the fence, and he was
mo- humble arter that IL didn't cure
him, however. He went aroundrubbin' agin
folks and steppin' high, and one day ne
comes home and sez to me:
Pop, did 20 ever tackle railroad?'
No, sonny, I never did I've tackled
men and bars and wildcats and circuses,
but not a railroad h
They've got one over in the valley,
and l think l kin whop it in about five
minits.'
Tom had never seen a railroad" ex-
planned the old man, land they had fest
run one down Little Valley, twelve miles
away. l told him what it was like, but he
wasn't bit discouraged. He Jest bumped
up his shoulders ana spit on his hands and
said:
shuck my hide, but I'm dying to whop
somebody, and III 20 over tomorrer and
tackle that raiiroadi II nobody around
yere has ever wEopped a railroad then it
will be all the more glory for me- ii
Tom, don't go and make 10 fule o.
yerself, sez I. -
. As TO howe sez he
LAS tO tacklin' a railroad. Thar arr
some things as even yer pop can't do,
and one OF 'eni is whopping a railroad.
Jest 20 60 out and find bar and hev
some fun with him and git over this
non sense
HE didn't say nUthin to that, but I
knowed he wouldn't mind what / said.
He went to bed airly, and jest at day
light heard him movin' around / told
him if Re was bound to go over To Little
Valley Ia go along with him arter break-
fast and see far play, and 50 he waited
Wien we sOt out he was feelin' in aigh
speerits. He whooped and hollered and
pranced, and the road wasn't wide huff
fur him 70 walk in. Befo' 1 left the
house the ole woman sez TO me:
"Zeb, ar yo' gwine to let our Tom
foUt u reiiroad?'
That's the idea sez I.
'''W III he get whopped?'
He VIII. He'll git whopped so power
ful quick and hard that he'll be a. humble
as a nursin' babe fur var to cum
we got over to the valley bout 10
O'Clock in the rnawnin','' continued tho
old man, ''and Tom got his fust sight o a
railroad He was disappointed Thar
wasn't nuthin' but the iron rails to rout,
and thar was tears in his eyes as he sot
down on stone and seZ: .
. Pop. thar nuthin' TO whop, and we've
walked twelve miles fur nuthin'. In feel
in tha. this State o. Tennessee is agln me- >
'TouI,' SCI L, arter thinkin things over,
thar ain't nuthin' ycre to fout, jest as I
told We, but Inebbe it would console We TO
bluff one o them bullgines'
4 can bluff anything from a mounting
to a grasshopperi whar's yer buIlgine?'
Comm down the valley, with some
kyars behind it. Yo've bin bIowin' and
braggin' all the spring, and yo' Jest fee.in'
that you've got TO whop sUnthin' or die.
Git down on the track and turn yerself
loose" !
IN do it, pop, and If don't take
seven different twists in this ole railroad
then III never look another wOodchuck in
the face
What ] figgered on" said Zeb, as he
heaved long sigh, was that Tom would
hev sense 'nough in his head to git off the
track " hen he seen what that buigine was
He hadn't though. He stood thar and
jumped up and down and cracked his heels
together and whoOped, and when I hol-
Tered at him he turns to me and sez:
Pop, yo' just watch my smoke and
don't lose any of the fun. Yo'r boy, Tom,
ar gwine TO pun this railroad up by the
roots, or perish in the attempt -
And did ne wait for the engine to
strike hiIn?'' l asked.
Yes, jest waited right thar, prancin'
around aud whoopin',' replied Zeb. II
started fur him, but befo' l got thar
the bullgine struck him and be went sailin'
out over the grass. 'Peared to me he
never would get done saflin', but bimebJ
L
looked him over, L found he was all broke
TO pieces. l was liftin' him up when hg
opens his eyes and smiles and sez: T
Pop, did I tackle the railToad?'
Yo' did, my son. sez L.
And there was fout?'
Thar was.'
And which got whopped?'
"As he was a-dyin', and as didn't want
to hurt his feelin's told him that he had
licked the hull outfit and kivcred the
family with glory. He lifted up one hand
and tired TO whoop, but that whoop was
only a whisper. and he died in my arms''
''Then he never knew how it wasp
Never knowed it, sah. Jest went to
his death thinkin he had twisted that
railroad clean over two mountings and
back agin', and that he weighed a ton
nore'n any other critter in Tennessee.
Pore Toni II I'd a gone at 1t and driv
him about two feet into the airth when
the cusseduess fust got hold o him he'd
bin livin' and a humble man today, but
let him tackle a railroad and he gos
busted all to squash"