Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1898-02-24


made the knives go slashin th'oo the
stalks. Each on 'em he'd feller follyin
him with couple O. fresh knives, an
up in one corner o the fiel' the squire's
hirelin's was a-buzzin the grindstone
sharpin blades. The corn seemed to fall
down, blade after blade like, an what
with the swish o. the knives an the
crack, crack 0 the stalks an the yellin
o. the Raccoon valley folks a-sickin on
the teacher an Jake Wingle an Hen Har-
mon it was most excitin. They took six
rows apiecet at time, an it weren t
long before Teacher Perry, who's most
as good corn cutter as he is a speller,
got shock ahead o. the others Then
he slashed his leg an lost three shocks
while it was bein tied up Jake Wingle
won the lead, an he'd "a kept it, too,
only he got one hand mixed up in the
leaves an took off two fingers. That
tn owed him ahint so fer thet when
time Wis called he was full eight shock
short o the teacher. who come in sec
ond
"You should a heard the cheerin
when young Harmon stuck his knife
inter pumpkin an walked up to where
the squire an Flory an Pet was standin.
Well, Hen, says the squire, smil-
in, (which un does you want?'
Thet kinder stumped Hen Harmon.
He looked at Flory, then at Pet, then at
Flory ag'in.
"sWhy, l hain't tho't O. thet, he
sails, sails he. Really, | hain't an idee. :
Then he kinder blushed leetle. I've
been settin up with both, he sails.
''This here was hitch 'et hedn't
been allowed fer Hen certainly he'd a
right to pick, but ez he couldn't make
up his mind jest which un he wanted it
looked ez though they'd be some delay.
But the squire, he's cute man-an
unusual cute man.
Girls, he sais, turnin to Pet an
Flory, Hen Harmon was won the right
to the best o. ye. Supposin you uns de-
eide which un's the best by huskin thet
corn
''Then the valley folks all cheered,
an the girls agreed, an tho the corn
was a leetle green, yet they set right
down, each at a shock, an begin what
be all odds was the grandest thing
ever look at. To tell the truth, they
wasn't much to see after all, nothin
but kind O. cloud o hyin husks, with
an occasional glimpse o. red calico in
the middle. They finished the first
shock even-dead even-an run to an
other, tored it down, jumped into the
middle an at it ag iii. At the sixth
shock Pet yelled fer new huskin pin,
fer she'd wored hers clear out The
sixth was finished even, an they was
half an hour left. The twins were kind
er winded, an the crowd was winded,
too, from yellin an sickin EN- on. The
tournyment was finished i'll silence, ex-
cept fer the rattle o. the husks. jest as
the squire yelled the end i the hour
Pet and Flory gifts up together, each
with her fifteenth shock. An when they
hearn the yells an knowed it was over.
an over even, they both jist dropped.
Ez luck woud hev it, Pet fell plump
into Hen Harmon S arms, an he gives a
whoop an picks her up an runs across
the fiel an throws her inter his buggy
an starts off fer the preachers. Flory
fell inter Teacher Perry's arms. an he
put her inter his blackboard an licked
up his horse.
An what became O. Jawhn Wingle's
son?'' asked the storekeeper, for the man
from Raceoon valley had paused for
want of breath.
Jake Wingle, you lneanS Why, he
went to the preacher with Ettie Bum
BILE, who'd been nursin his lame hand
durin the huskin tournyment. st
Louis Republic