The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1898-07-06

AZ MS LOOKS there must De. with - ha-t-
mystery. His Deyil. indeed, n the " y.a
he's got fer him ter do Maybe you ~
some o the material. Mr.. Hosmer. an
are the only human he's ever wah'e" -
my recollection. I wouldnt go. -. %
But the fact that he had unDen' AZ
me. Of all mankind. was sufficient 70 u 70
eide me, even had he been personally ~
pellent TO me. which he was NOT Ina
sides the tattered skirt, ne wore lied
Of ancient cut, belted with a on no
snake-skin. and a soiled sunbonne,, m
front turned back TO leave his VisiOt ,ossd
impeded. His emaciated form, Sace
In many places his dark, leatheIs r5,,o
and scant. grizzled whiskers, P, ,st5
from this woman's garb made q Inare,
scarecrow OF him; yet II was inner
crow that In some indescribabie ih""i'i
commanded my respect. and
Il easily overlook the Sherman anu
then he hurried me TO his cabin anu AZ
piled healing ointment 10 my n-,,e
scalp wound That done, he mapc S' NJ
sassafras tea. which Is coolins.. tea "a
blood. and placed upon an in pro'lseu Ia
bic some very well-cooked cold oorn-pone
and stewed catfish. lie ndu ~ IT,
aside the sacque and sunbonhfl' w
coarse chemise displayed still more opcn-
~ the feebleness Of his frame, bul TO-,
the deep, eager haunting eyes on, ,,.7,,,
easily fancy him an animated sk'leloni
That was the beginning OF our stIdnEeIy
assorted friendship. 10 never louhu ~
preston IN words. Tor MS tlpo'I, ~
taciturnity remained unchanseu' VIZ
often In the hOmely cabin. pare HOW ~
every requirement Of civilization. TINS
and crockery had long gwen way t"
gourds and bedding 10 pie OF IA" COZ
ton, into which he burrOwed IKE a H9iS,
We would sin there by the hour. / WIN
nv pipe he with his eyes fixed on
small blaze in the rude hearth. TOT me
weed had not been grown tnat couiu a.
ford him sOlace I believe ms thoughts
never wavered from his GRIEF or ms
1 would
day unbosom himself | knew ~hen the
moment arrived. though he had not ut
tered a word | smoked out my pipe. iaid
Il down on the cypress; 9lock Inet uiu
duty as seat and asked quletly'
How was it,?
"IIe manifested no surprise at the
question H. merely tucked his SKIRT IN
der his crcakng knee joints ana began
ut commenced I'm the beeinnin OF the
war, when Morgan. the biggest bigbug
of our settlement. got mad with me be-
cause / didn't vote Yer his son Ter oe
Captain Of our compny n rendered oih-
ers from yotin'. You see, knOwed MOT
gan WE'LL him n has seed, breed. N GIN
Grafton. 4 cruel master would be a bad
Captain. m a man that oppressed the
pore whites want likely ter have any
consideration FER the privates under nm.
Besides. the MOrCans had pirate blood IN
'enl. II WAS their great great-uucle MOT
gan that used ter rake the seas fer plum
der m come ter the Flurdy coast ter
hide il. So his son had ter go as third
lieutenant in another comp n.y. n ne
never forgive me fer II. ! knowed ne
wouldn't one of my kin had jest died
m left me this clearin'. the only one
n fifty miles m ! moved my wife n
child on b.. buffore ! went In the army.
The land d make plenty o corn n col
ton. there was hoOdels o game In the
woods: IL wOuldn's matter et they didn't
see nobody tel / come home, fer my wife
could do mans work n. womans. too,
m they was as well OF as most pore
whites endurin Of the war
"'Well. ] was one o. the lucky ones:
come out without a scratch N found my
family all right with no hole or deot
fer me ter step into. let EN- finish their
little crap. M went ter work clearin
a bigger piece fer next year don
reckon there was airy pore white family
I'm Flurdy better fixed fer Twin than we
was. n none happier. I'm shore.
" one day | went down ter the river
ter git out cypress knee fer a wei
bucket. m met old Morgan as he was
iandin from a sailboat. don't know
which was the most astonished' me or
him. .,.oa
"'"This is my own place said.
MY family lived here all through the
war"
80 How many in the settlement?
didn't know there was anybody but WIG
I'm the settlement" said 7. The
highest neighbor is fifty mile off m the
Post Office sixty it,
THAT seemed like good news to him.
He said he believed he'd stay awhle, II
take "a pecp at the country. | couldn
do less than invite him ter the mouse;
though I'd "a heap ruther nave takehtl
In Il man-eatn gator. one dark hiEhl
he takcned Jimmy of hre-huntin me
boy was born hunter m could gulie
Yer ter the best game. day or night;
but ] liked 10 so little that / concldn'u
ter set mp tel they come back. J HdEettu
tel ] made my wife iidget n then some
thin had ter be done Git a mother on
easy. m YOU mought as well try ter quiet
a sacred catamount.
Wen fetch Jimmy home she SAID.
81 told her one was enough ter go OUT
in the night but shed got reused n
nOthin' al stop her. She wouldn't 20 my
way: the way We mOught. in reason, eN-
pect ter find him her instlnck WAS shor-
or than that. You go the way you
know III 90 the way ! feel she sara.
81 seed she had her knife n pistol
n warned her ter look out fer varmiis
Then / struck out n s'arched all the
likely places without seem a hght OF
hearin' a sound BY that time J was
plumb wild: hal Jest sense enough ter
hunt no my wife m make shore she
was safe anyhow ! run on. calm. cali
in Everything DOB the woods mOught ei
ben dead ~ rotten fer all the answer
/ got: AN the sound / heerd. Then. all
81 oncef foil up agin her knOckin'
her down. 1housh she breathed' she
was codd m stiff. ] knowed tnen thar
my boy was gou.. so ! taktned ms mo
Their home in the breakin dawn u put
her ter bed seed fire through the
chinks. m run olt back ter see what u
was II was Tho old house. that wcd
lest that night moved outer. settlin' inter
Goals / hadn't time then ter wonder
how it ketched but hurried 70 my WIZ.
who was very low. When I'd got her
warmed through with corn whisky inside
n hot quilts outside. ! kneeled down oy
the bed like kne-Iin ter COO, n bess'a
her tell me wheie ter ind Jimmy. When
she found voice DO was only ter screen,
m from that she fell into a fever know
in nothin' fer Che longest. jest bunore
she died sho come 10 her senses n told
me.
d" Mr.. Hosmer Morgan had come hero
lest ike the old pirate Morgan h1d
sneaked into Aprtachicola Bay ages ago
with his blOod-sfHiued booty. All through
the war. while ne n my sort was nsh,-
In fer his niggers he had store COTTON
n housed 10 on his place, nobody sus-
picionn' him because he was a bigDu2.
The very dav there come news or me
surrender ne ut out fer Savannah. n
sold his cotton ON % big price. ne hauu
moren delivered DO when evidence cropP-
ed out through his own niggers. tnelr
oaths beln' then MS good as white
mans Of his havIn' stole tull nan OF II
from his neirhh0rs n he disappeared
OF course. / fOucd an TINS OUT attsrWa,u
BuffOre he left the state ne buried lhe
monev-it was A. the blood. remember
m pitched on these shores where ne
supposed nobody had settled yet findin
MS here m the only family In many
miles. the devils own ided' Nhich - -,
/ say a pirates. p0pped IN MS hedu'
ne stayed on ter kerry II out.
Instead OF frc-huntin.' he takened
Jimmy ter helm him fetch the box or
money from the boat n dig the hole fer