The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1899-10-28

| in your orchard
"Wul, took from tibet tibet he want
ed TO git In on the proposition; 80 l told
HIM TO take of his coat an sail in.
put him down in the lower end of tho
orchard with Hop Sing, so II he both
cred anybody ii wouldn't be nothin' but
Chinaman. / reckon" he added with
laugh, tibet he must have picked at
least one box if he worked right hard"
They had been slowly walking to-
ward the house where the orange pick
ers had gathered in the protecting
shade of an immense pepper tree to
await the count that would finally de-
eide who had won the prize that was
so much coveted.
| The pickers, following the usual GUS
tom when oranges are picked by tho
| box, had placed in each box as ii was
filled small card bearing their name.
Muggins gathered these tickets to-
gether, and placing them in his hat,
proceeded 10 assert them.
"Now, here" said he, as he took out
the first ticket and looked IL over, here
| is ticket what looks as though hen
with muddy feet had been walkin' over
hit"
"All the samee me-" answered Hop
| Sing with n cheerful smile.
"Yes. i reckon them hen tracks be-
long to you. Arthur Pearson Bray"
read Muggins, going on with the count.
"Wul, nowl" he exclaimed in mock sur
prise, $50 We did pick one whole box all
byyourself? Wul, / call tibet pretty good
for q tenderfoot!'
Muggins went on with his count, max
ing caustic comments now and then
which caused the pickers thus singled
out to squirm while the rest laughed.
Thar" said Muggins finally, as he
took the last slip out of the hat and
added IL to the tally he was keeping on
a pine board "Now we will arrive at
the interesting conclusion of this yerc
contestl"
Slowly and laboriously Muggins
counted the marks opposite Hop Sings
name. Three times he counted the
marks before he raised his head aud
stared at the grinning Chinaman.
"Twenty-sixl" he calculated.
"All lite" answered Hop Sing, cheer
fully
"Do you mean to say" demanded
Muggins, "thet you hev only picked 26
when you hold the record around yere.
which is hundred and three?'
"Belly SICK" replied the Chinaman,
drawing down the corners of his mouth.
"Feel belly bad. No pick oranges when
feelee bad
"Humph,' grunted Muggins, II sup
pose n Cbinaman can git sick like a
white man, but I'll be hanged if ever
heard of one before. Where are you
sick?"
Feel belly bad here" answered Hop
Sing, making general movement with
both hands that covered his entire per-
son.
"Humph," growled Muggins, hooking
critically at Hop Sing, who commenced
to shrink into his clothes like fright
ened turtle. "Your eyes look as though
you had the collie an your skin Is yal-
Ter, but they are always thet way; so
I'm hanged If / can see any way from
telling sick Chinaman from n well one.
Well, | suppose hit is all right, but hit
seems lntl even ~ SICK Snludlhdh jug ~
to pick more boxes than thet.
THAR" exclaimed Muggins, as he
finished the second count, tibet is
more like hitl One hundred an onel
/ reckon you have won, juan"
The Mexican grinned and glanced
sheepishly at Beth, who bit her ms
and looked defiantly at her father.
"Them's ALL" said Muggins at iast,
throwing down the hat, IAN Juan has
w.
II think" put in Bray, modestly,
"that you have overlooked my account"
"Wul, swear, so havel Everybody
hold their breath while L fgger up
what the tenderfoot has pickedl"
This would have been difficult mat
ter had any one tried 1t, for Muggins
counted and recounted the marks that
he had placed opposite Bray's name.
"It's-it's-" he began, but he could
get no further.
Its one hundred and twenty-five!"
cried Beth, triumphantly, glancing over
her fathers shoulder. "Mr. Bray has
won!"
"'Tain't no such thing!" roared Mug
gins. my eyes arc weak an I've been
countin' 'em over twicel You git my
glasses"
Beth brought the glasses, and her
father, putting them on, started re-
count. But IL only resulted in adding
one more box to the credit OF Bray.
"Hit's broke the recordl" gasped
Muggins, IAN hit wuz done by tender
foot, tool Tenderfoot, shakel I've al
ways known tibet you couldn't tell how
far frog could jump by loolSin' at him,
but never rated you higher than poll
| lywog an thar wuz where made mis-
take"
That night when Bray led Beth out
| for the first dance he was telling her
something that amused her greatly.
| Muggins for once in his life was mute,
and Hop Sing, from his seat in corner,
grinned cheerfully and jingled five good
American dollars hidden in some mys-
i to~tnna rornntao1o In HE clnthoo nut