The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1898-12-28

swooped down the chimney of wattles,
sending a stream Of sparks across tie
floor.
"Faith, tits that. ">said Nike "but
it's like some other things-all the bet
ter for its age
eyes, yes, grandad," chorused the
Mulligans, young and old, crowding
around the fireplace. "Do tell us about
the blackthorn.
"Faith, couldn't say nay to all yez
gossoons on New Years eve, % replied
the old man as he caressed the shillalah
which had been in his possession nearly
so years. MANY q skull did yez touch
in friendly sport" he continued, run
ming his fingers over the stick caressing-
ly and surveying the wood with the eye
of connoisseur.
+ "'Twas cut from the straightest root
growing piece of blackthorn could find
60 years ago. 1t must be root growing,
boys, for if not, could not think twas
worth cutting. 4 mere branch, no mat
ter how straight and fair it might look,
would be apt to warp and twist in the
tug O. war. Whin I had it cut and the
branches Topped off, I put it up the
chimney to season. .Whin twas we'll
dried, I took it down and wrapped it in
brown paper, we'll soaked in hogs lard.
Thin buried it II warm earth, taking
it out every day to bind it across mo
knee till all the twists and turns were
out of it. After I had it straight, Irub-
bed it we'll with woolen cloth covered
with blacklead and grease, to give it a
polish. Twas all ready now for shin
dy, only for it being little too light
at wan ind. So bored a hole in it with
a redhot iron spindle, into which l
poured some melted lead for the pur
pose O. giving it the knockdown weight.
This lead, me childer," continued tie
old man in benignant fashion, "gave
the stick a widow and orphan making
quality, a child bereaving touch, as the
poet says, altogether very desirable, to
say nothing of the balance in the hand.
Now, if the stick should split whin yez
are making the hole, yez may put on
an iron ferrule and drive few nails
into it, Paving the nails stick out on
either side, both for arnamint and use.
The fortunes Of the Mulligans, me chill
der, have depinded more nor wanst on
the judicious use of a nail in stick,
and"-
but I thought you We're going to
tell US about grandma, broke IN IT.
year-old maiden with pansI eyes.
$50 / am, mavourneen, but yez must
let me tell it in me own way. Whin l
was of yer age, Mike" he resumed,
81 was az tidy lad as ye'd meet in a
month of Sundays-well set up about
the shoulders and as handsome a. a SOL
dier. Nanny girl would turn her head
to look at me thin days and passing.
And among thin that gave me bit o
blarnev now and thin was the Wildly
Sullivan. She was left widout chick
or child at the age of %. and snug,
purity woman she was, wild q warm
complexion and a wNrm heart. Win
I'd be working hard all day On the
farm, I'd stroll down to her liquor store
in the avenin. There was alwaysa a taste
O. punch to be had, and mebbc rashcr
O. bacon and a cup o tay whln the
avening would be wearing away. Twas
not in the taproom we sat at all, at all
but in the kitchen, where the turf fire
was burning bright and everything nate
and comfortable, wild the freight dane
ing on the tins on the wall.
"'Pat, she'd say to me southcring
like, It's time yez were thinking about
getting married.
"Well, says l, 'mebbe am looking
| ont for wife. And who should l come
to for advice but to yez, that knows all
about it!'
"'Oh, says she, blushing like rose,