St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1897-05-15

Human People Everywhere.
In my own day and generation /
have seen a right smart of this lost
and ruint world, and my notion is that
you will find human people more OF
less everywhere.
One of them lightnin rod men come
rumblin through this country two or
three weeks ago, and if he didn't cool,
old man Buck Ramage as done as a
cI'acklin then the world must be square
whilst the sun rolls round.
Six years ago Col. Alf Written moved
down here on Murder Creek from some
where's over in Georgy, bought him a
good plantation and put in to take the
lead in farmin and everything else. He
built him the most loveliest home, with
plenty of outhouses, stocked the place
with fine mules and horses, and soon
got fixed UP in red apple style.
Now up TO that time old man Buck
RaTpage had been callin himself the
lead dog of the pack. He lived in the
finest house and rode the finest horse,
and kept the finest mules in his lot, and
cut wider swash than any farmer for
miles and miles around.
Thus and so it come to pass in the
run of time that a redIhot rivalment
was worked up between old man Buck
Ramage and Col. Alf Written as to
which was which and who was who. If
the colonel turned up with saddle
horse that went all the gaits in better
style and speed than old man Bucks
horse could GO, then about the next
news we. got cid man Buck had lit out
for Kentucky and bought him the I'm
est saddle horse that money would
fetch. So here they went - who
should and who shouldn't, who could
and who couldn't
And it would seem like the lightnin
rod man was smooth and quick enough
to take in the general circumference of
the surroundins, and when he driv up to
the Ranage place that mornin he had
jest simply come to put up some light
min rods for old man Buck. The old
man swore by the livin and the dead
that he didn't need any sich red tape
and tomfoolery around his house.
"That house has been standin right
there where you see it for more than
40 years" says he, "and | reckon
can risk it for 40 years longer. What
if streak of lightnin was to start down
this way, do you reckon am fool
enough to believe that few of them
measly little rods could stop it and
turn it back? Young man, may look
like a native born idiot. and may act
ruther curious at times, but most any,
body in this country will tell you that
old man Buck. Ramage amt gone no.
where's
The lightnin rod man turned his
talkin machinery loose, but old man
Buck wouldn't even nibble at the bait,
and finally at last lie got to snortin
and cussin around considerable as to
what he would and what he wouldn't.
Everybody to their own notions, bus
some people have sense whilst ot.c'
have fts," says the lightnin rod
as he climbed on his wagon 81
last might at Col. Alf Whitten's aEe
the job of roddin his house from one
end to the other in less time than
have fooled off here tryin to show
good man where he was wrong"
"Hold on there a minnit,'' says old
man Buck. burned If I don't believe
viii let you take the job. I mought
be right and Imought be wrong about
it. You can put up the rods"
Inside of three hours the lightnin rod
man was done the job and gone, with
pro rata shore of old man Buck S money
in his flank pocket.
Now that was on a, Thursday, and
the next foilowin Saturday old man
Buck Ramage come along by our house
foamin at the mouth and mad enough
to fight his own baby. In talkin with
me he jumped on that lightnin rod
man, and cussed and cussed and
cussed, till the native air was all but
hot enough to melt the wax In my ears.
You see old man Buck couldn't rest
well at night till he rid down by the
Whitten place TO see which had the
finest lightnin rods, him or Col. Whit
ten. And when lie rid up in full sight Of
Col Alf's house he saw. right whe1e he
had dropped the jug and split his mo.
Iasses. By gracious there want
1lia1nc rod On ii. RUFUS saEDERa