The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1897-01-28
REUBEN'S PLUNGE"

REUDEN y, 1LUNUE.
There was a certain sadness in Uncle
Reuben's manner as he served me that
night-a certain silence which you al
ways recognize as a foreboding in those
whom you know we'll. He brought the
dishes and went away without ever
word Of comment and went about his
attentions to the other guests Of the
evening with that manner which beto-
kened an intense absorption in some mat
ter outside the dinner courses. When
he put down the coffee, he leaned over
and asked in deferential way if I
would mind staying awhile-he wanted
to talk to me on "mattah which is
much worriment tub me, subj" Of
course said I'd stay, and waited with
not little curiosity to hear what Uncle
Reuben had to say. That it was per-
tentous affair which weighed upon him
was too evident.
Finally the place was empty, save for
my presence, and Uncle Reuben came
over to me and sat him YEARLY down.
His eyes were shining with the resolve
of some great purpose, but he approach
ed it cautiously.
81 reckon yuh member, sub, bout
Majah Baxtah comm to New Yawk tub
live?''
nodded assent. = I remembered well
the night when he and Uncle Reuben
met for the first time since Reuben had
gone into the war as a body servant,
and remembered how Uncle Reuben
had fed his impoverished old master
through the courses of the best dinner
his place could lay without ever giving
the master an idea that he was receiv-
ing charity. I had never forgotten the
tenderness of Reuben's attentions to the
man who had once owned him, body
and soul
''Yuh member him, an I wan tub
ak yuh advice bout uh mattah consarnin
i'm. It's this way, sub. Yuh see, Majah
Baxtah, he's uh gemman. He ain nevah
use tub wuk NV no kin, an he fin it
mighty hahd tub git long hyah in New
Yawk whah evabody wuk faw what he
git. Co'se down home he don bothah
bout nothin. He DIES set on he front
po'ch wiv he frien's an drink julips.
He look out ovah thu, big feel, an he say:
"Thah' 8 ma niggah, an than 8 ma bosses,
an thah s ma lan's. Gemman, thu craps
is gwine tub be pow'ful fine. Take uh
drink - An they take uh drink, and this
majah is happy. That's all he know
bout maxim uh Twin. He DIES go tub
town an sign thu papers an git thu
money FUN thu crap Co'se he don't
know nothin bout how thu crap come
tub be made. He ain raised that way.
''Yuh member I tole yuh bout how
he get broke up at home an come tub
New Yawk tub staht all ovah ag'in. I
recl1in he thought he'd fin uh cotton
crap on evan street in New Yawk, kase
he ain wor'yin much bout nothin tell
he aim got no money tall. Then's wen
I see i'm fust, yuh member.
"He knows some gemmen hyah, an
nv co'se they do whit they kin tub give
i'm uh staht, but thu majah he dom
know bout how tub take chances in
bus ness, an SO reckon he ain doin DIES
ez well ez he ought, least I ,hearn tell
he aim, an DIES want ak yuh bout it.
I want yuh tub look at this faw me. -
Uncle Reuben went down into some
mysterious recess behind his apron and
drew out small book carefully wrap
ped about with a long string. Taking a
precautionary look about the room, he
laid it down in front of me. 1t was a
handbook, and it showed a balance in
favor of Reuben Baxter of Tennessee Of
q fraction over $4,000.
''That's whit I save outen thu bust
ness hyah, yuh know. Thu gemmen
whut does me thu honah Nv comm hyah
faw uh canvasback pays me putty well,
an Use been layin way some nv it all
thu time, thinkin some day I might be
needin sumpin eff wan tub go home.
Putty nigh 'nough than tub buy uh
plantation, ain they?"
"You might get a fairly good place
with that, Uncle Reuben.
can eff I had twic't ez much could
git twic't ez good uh place, couldn't II"
eyes, perhaps more than twice as
good .
"Yuh knows anythin bout these
stocks they sell down Wall street way?
Gemmen talk lot bout 'em one day, an
mex day sell 'em faw twic't ez much?"
"They are dangerous things to med
die with, Uncle Reuben. Sometimes
you pay price for them one Clay and
the next they are worth nothing at all. !"
Yessuh, I reckon SO, but eff bought
tina much wo'th one day and they
want with nothin thu next, nobody
would know nothin bout it 'cept you
an me, would they?'
emo"
"Then mus tell yuh. Yuh know I
kahn nevah go back home tub thu Bax-
tabs tell I've fixed it bout tina time I
TUX Mistah Tom Baxtah's boss in thu
wah an got him killed. Itole you bout
that Well, I wuz thinlzin tina eff I had
twic't tina much money might go
back home wiv my head mp"
r kv{oH maven osi0u Nth pSu~lo no.,.