The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1898-04-27
THE SCHEME WENT ASTRAy.

An Ensy Way TO Get Your Ten Acre K.o+
Dug Up.
A curious sight met nv gaze as I
turned into the road that leads to
COvina. In q ten mere lot there vera
about 100 men and women of all ages
and sizes working with feverish
haste tearing and uprooting the
ground.
The only party who did not an.
pear to be excited was an old man
seated on a howlder in the shade Of
a pepper tree, calmly smoking n
corncob pipe.
"Howdy, strangers" he exclaimed
es he removed his pipe. Yer rather
late, but hit amt been found yet, so
If yer wanter start in We kin"
What hasn't been found?"
"Them yaller boys, stranger.
Tbar's 500, 900 out thar in tibet yer
field"
How did it git theref"
Hit wuz planted thar by the old
Spanish fathers over 200 years ago,
an hits all in gao gold boys, an hit
goes ter the man who finds hit"
Nonsense! Don't you know that
there wasn't such a thing as a $50
goldpiece in those daysf"
The old man grinned ut me and
then said:
L see tibet yer on, stranger, but
don't give hit away. Yer see, tibet
ton acres belongs ter me, an 1 want.
or put spuds in hit, SO I jes' started
thet yer yarn ter git tho field dug
up. reckon tibet hit will all be dug
up by SHUTDOWN"
] smiled and rode on.
In the evening I passed the same
spot again. The excitement seemed
to have increased and conferred on
one spot in the middle Of the field.
A huge bonfire lighted up the scene,
and the dirt was flying in all direo-
tions.
AS I was watching the novel scene
! was hailed by the old man from q
spot near by. I walked over to him
and discovered that he was tied to a
tree.
For Gawd's sake, unite me,
st-angori" dc cried.
What is the matter7" 1 asked.
"Mattera" whined the old man.
1.-THE matter is tibet I'm an old fulel
After ye left this mornin / got to
worryin fer fear they wouldn't git
the place dug up before shutdown, so
/ went over an added another hun
dred thousan ter sorter cheer them
up.
WAL. darn my hide, while 1 wuz
a-hoppin Ground thar a-wavin my
arms an a-shoutin to them ter work
faster i lost q $40 goldpieoe, an one
OF them fules found hit, an hit set
the whole lot plump crazy, an / wuz
the craziest of 'em all a-tryip ter
make them believe tibet tibet yaller
boy wuz mine.
"Furst I tried argument, but they
wouldn't listen. Then / tried swear
in, but they wouldp't listen ter thes.
Then I tried foutin, but they hadn't
time ter fout, SO they tied me ter
this tree. Stranger, they've got a
hole over yonder thet's so feet deep
an goin deeper every minute an only
Ga1d Knows when they are goin ter
stop.
They've ruined .ae Geld, an
they've ruined me. cause tibet yaller
boy wuz all I had. But, stranger, I
ain'ttold ye the worst yet. Thought
tibet my ole woman needed a little
exercise, go I didn't let her in on the
scheme. an she's over yander ez
crazy ez the rest, a.clutchin an claw
in at the dirt like q wild hyena. An
when night came she went an sot
fire ter the house, so tibet they could
hev n light ter work by:
Stranger, I'm a ruined man, an
If the old woman gifts on ter the
scheme I'll be a dead onei Fer
Gawd'G sake, unite me, SO thet / kin
leave the countryI"
Hunted him, and he started down
the road on a clean jump, and for
aught l know he is running yet
st. Louis Post Dispatch.
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