St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1897-03-13
..Old vpoe," the Home

''The little fea-bitter gray which now
belongs to your wife's husband is a
granddaughter Of old Spot" says to
Andy-which naturally of course that
brung on more talk.
In my day and generation have had
horses on top Of horses, but for general
road work-for speed and bottom and
stayin qualities old Spot was the gamest
and the best one Of them all. He was
a strawberry roan-built from the
ground up-with big white spot in
his left flank. From pure nigger luck
] had got the horse in trade with a
Kentucky drover, and better and better.
faster and faster every day the good
Lord sent SO long rs he looked to me
for his corn and fodder. By gracious,
on smooth hard road you could hear
his hoofs pop for mile away when he
hit the ground with his feet!
It is the naked truth-for I would
mortally hate to tell anything else in
regards to q horse-that nobody ever
driv up behind me whilst was drivin
old Spot. We would sometimes meet
people and pass people along the road.
butwhen Ioncst started anywheres with
that horse nobody would overtake us.
And by and by that winter-when the
crops had turned out bully and bought
myself rich with one of these clost-
built buggies-there want livin piece
Of horseflesh in the country that could
pass us by, and there want q young lady
in the settlement but what was NOR.
than willin to ride in q nice new buggy
behind old Spot.
So consequentially when the party
came OF that time Mt old man Berry
Ringstaff's, over there in the hills, !
put right in, did. and made my engage
,nents with Miss Callie Hickman. with
the general understandin that would
drive old Spot to my new buggy. and
we could knock the shine OF Of any
thing the country mought turn out.
And Miss Callie-well. she traded with
me on the spot.
Right then Miss Callie was another
fellows sweetheart, end nobody didn't
know that any better than me. Her
and Bob Travis had been gettin along
powerful sweet and swinmin for two
years past and threatenin to git married
all the time. But that didn't make 4
blessed bit of difference with me. Twas
foot loose and fancy free, as Aunt
Nancy Newton calls herself. and my
onlyest chance was to keep company
with some other fellows calico and rib
bons. or turn old Spot in the paster and
stay at home.
Now then. On our way to the party
that night me and Miss Callie we soon
got rale friendly and farnillious like.
l tried my level blanedest to do some
courtin and carryin on, but
she was jest the least bit skittish and
pulled on the bit considerable. She fin
ally at last owned up to it that she al
ways did think q pile Of me, but she had
give her hand to Bob. and she must let
him take her heart along with it. Come
to find out. and by gracious they had al
ready ret the day and laid in some Of the
weddin fixments. Man, sir, never
would of thought it up to that time
but I'll be hanged II it didn't make me
feel plum sick for Miss Callie to be
tellin me how clost she was to steppin
of with Bob Travis. The moon was
shinin bright like day. ] could zee her
face peepin forth from che wrappins
and trappins and by gatli1s ! did think
in my soul that she was the prittiest.
the neatest and the most sweetest thing
that ever wore clothes. Up to that
time I never did have no rale serious
thoughts in regards to Miss Callie, but
somehow it was mighty hurtin on me to
hear her talk 80 kind and lovin like
about another fellow.
Well, the general circumference Of the
was that I had fell heels over
appetite in love with Bob Travis sweet
heart. And that want al, white people.
l didn't have no better sense, and
didn't do . blessed thing but pitch in
and tell her 80.
hat the Cane Was "DEoeed."
Naturally Of course ca3't now recol-
lect for certain what Miss Callie said
that night in respcndin back to my
burnin words. but anyhow she made
few scatterin remarks to the general
extent that I was jest in time to be too
late. tried to hold her little hand in
mine, but got busted ON the first rattle
ont Of the box. next tried to steal
kiss, but clipped and fell before got
10 first base. Thought mought maybe
take my arm and gently l:eep the wind
from BLOWN her cloak ot5, but opcst