The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-02-20

HIS BEAR-FIGHTING MULES.
A MIGHTY GOOD TEAM TO HAVE
ALONG UP THE LITTLE KETTLE.

Their Owner Tells a story of How
They Demonstrated Their Value
for Protective Purposes in a Bear
Infested Region of the HemIOck
DeIt-But, All the Same, 1t Was no
Sale.
From the New York Sun.
Kettle Creek.-"There amt nothin' Ike
mules to have along with yourself if
you're attacked by bar" said a man with
red whiskers and hickory overalls in his
felt and rubber boots, as he sat down by
the tavern stove. Anyhow, that's my
everlastin' mind on the subject, KNOWN
what l know about that team o mules o
mine out yonder. An knownln' what
know about mules in general know there
amt no doubt of it, for I found out long
age that mules hates bar. Leastways,
tannery mules does. AS a rule, there amt
no Twin thing tannery mule likes. Not
a durn thing. But, then ag'in, hain't
never discovered that tannery mule per-
tic'lerly hates any livin' thing, neither,
except bar Then. on tother hand.
bar hates anything with four legs that
IT can't eat Consequently, bar pertic'-
lerly hates a tannery mule. Why does
the tannery mule hate the bar and the
bar hate the tannery mule, to the fur
away end of distraction? l dunno No
body dunno what the grudge Is betwlxt 'em
nor what ever started it agoin', but its
there all the same. Tannery mules and
bar seems to have took an oath some time
nv al Av 49, f-At
way they knowed how, ana neither one
on 'em hain't never broke his oath yit. ~
See them mules o. mine out yonder In
the road? Them felIers that's pretendn'
to be asleep, with their ears a loppln' and
their noses pooty nigh the ground? They
don't look as if they was bar fighters. do
they? They don't, for a fact. l own up
to that But, say Has anybody got a
bar around here that he wants to match
ag in them mules for a pair o. dollars?
No? It's durn good thing for the bar.
then, that nobody hain't got him. That's
what! They're bar fighters, l want to tell
you! They're bar fighters, them mules is!
Coin up along Little Kittle, be you,
stranger? Big woods up there ylt. Tree
e-e-e-menJus big woods And bar?
Ihumpin jees-wax. Fun o. bar! Chuck
full and runnin' over! Ugliest cusses you
ever see, too. It's too bad you hain't got
a couple o. mules like them snorters O.
mine out yonder to take along with YOU
for protection ag'in them Little Kittle bar.
You needn't never be afeard- o. bar If
you had them mules along with you. ]
haint never grudgel myself the good SIS
l give out to git them mules and if 1t
wasn't that I'm dead sot on goin' clear
out into Injyanner to settle you wouldn't
never hear O. me ever thlnkin' o. even
loolsin' at $50 for 'em. They'd be worth a
good deal more than that to you, now,
if you're goin' up along Little Kittle.
where bar is so thick and sassy. Amt
buying mules, hey? That's onfortnit fer
you, Captain. Bar is terrible thick up
along Little Kittle. And ugly? JeeWhop-
PITY
"Leme see. Was 1t a year ago now, or
was 1t two years ago now, that the tan
merry boss had that Job for me up along
Little Kittle. Only year, by gravy! He
come to me, the tannery boss did, and
says:
'Jibson, says he-he always calls me
Jlbson, though my name Is Theophllus Jib-
son, and everybody else calls me Thoph
-'Jibson, says he, 4 want you to so up
along Little Kittle and measure some
bark for me- says he.
" You do hay? says /.
" Yes says he.
"'With my mules? says I.
"sNo, says he. You don't have to have
no mules to measure bark with says he.
mo? says l. Then don't go up along
Little Kittle! says 1.
Why? says he.
"'B'arsp says l.. That's why! And /
don't so unless I'm protected by the
muesv says I.
Then the tannery boss he thunk up
about some bark he wanted hauled in from
along Little Kittle, and he told me to
take the mules and fetch in the bark, too
end kin two birds with one stone as 1t
were. So l took the mules, and a durn
good thing 1t was, by heni
Ever been up along Little Kittle? No?
Then of course you don't know Panther
Yell Holler. That's a little the widest
place in the huh hemlock belt. You'll go
through it, Can't help yourself Lord?
the bar that lays in there! Never see the
like nowheres-neVerl And they say it's
worse this year than ever. Me and the
mules and the load o bark got into
Panther Yell along Little Kittle, and as
we was passin' through all Of a sudden
out stepped a big and ugly bar right in
front O. the mules. He riz and spread
for fight. He snapped and snarled and
showed his fangs so that I'd a list laid
down and give up the ghost without
waitin' to have 1t chawed and claWed out
O. me IL hadn't knowed that them mules
was protection ag'in it. didn't have no
gun, and / amt no bar fighter, anyway;
but I knowed didn't need no gun as long
the load, unlocked the mules so the bark
wouldn't git split durln' their prancin
with the bar, lit my pipe, and sot down
on a stump, to wait till the mules made
a wilder O that bars wife, so as we
could proceed on ag'in. The mules buck
led right on, but the bar was tough and
gams-the regular LITTLE Kittle kind-and
he danced and cavofted round em like a
roarin' cyclone given 'em dip here and
q rip there, while they kicked and bit and
slashed around like tannery mules had
ever done before.
"Them mules-say! ] wish to the great
Hockey Pokey Winky Wum It wasn't so
COLL durn fur out TO Injyanner! But / got
10 cit there, and IL takes money. / don't
see how I'm ever goin' 10 hold up my head
after sayin' I'll let them mules go fer So;
KFnIrkl r.