The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1899-11-26
'PODGERS LANDING
Or
A Midwinter Outing in Arkansas.


river. the eye rested upon successive heav-
Us wooded ridges to where the distant
Ozark mountains were outlined against the
Dsae SKY In the rear. dense pine forest
stretched up the nil from our garden. We
Eazen at each other with broad smiles. l
reached Out across the small table and We
warmly shook hands got up. walked
around to my wffe'x chair ard kissed har.
!" zen sally brought In. or rather OUT. de-
heioas yellow cornbread, crisp hacon.
poacnea fresh eggs and a pitcher Of creamy
Hiilk Eliza s reputation was established and
We were supremacy happy. Both of our
servants were very black, bat with less
pronounced characteristics as 10 lips ana
nose than most OF their race. The mother
seemed nearly sixty. and had received her
early training In plantation kitchen be-
. fore the war The daughter vas about
twenty. OF good figure, .axge mouth and
perfect teeth which were almost constantly
Iii sight from her inclination 10 uproarioas
aaghier on every possible occasion.
Our lives seemed cast I'm pleasant places.
and SO It proved While our neighbors.
both back and white. could not be society
Tor Us IN the ordinary sense, they were
\ intensely and unendingiy 6iverting. The
weather was simply perfect ard SO warm
fhai our outdoor life was seldom interrupts
Cd. 1 had purchased two well broken SIN
g.e-faot horses and a beat, and our days
! we're spent la exploring the mountains or
on the river. Our Own lines and my gun
kept our table well supplied with FISH.
grouse. quail and duck. The summer sped
Into autumn and my health steadily Inn
proved Elizas talents developed under my
wifes qualified supervision. and Sally had
no; broken over half Cur er6ckeFy. OR
unfortunate maid vas constant joy to M
| through her uncomfortable caehination
and her perfectly absurd ability to do and
say tne wrong thing al the right time.
/ hadn't had the biies since my arrival. ard
had laughed moro than In any preceding
five years Of my life. Mrs. Perry al first
/ worried fretted and fumed over Saly's
/ shor. c3mings. but when she saw the benefit
inurins 10 me she even came 10 smile at a
/ pile Of smashed crockery and replaced IL
from Fodgers' store with a qualify which
! frequent tumbies only Clipped.
| "Kunnei Podgers'' and Gaping Jerry"
/ remarked our friends, and We soon found
that they two largely governed public
/ opinion I'm cur neighborhood. I was not
/ long in discovering that Col. Podgers
/ could not have spent all his previous life
| In the South. from hts marked nasal tones
and the frequent use of "cakeriate.
guess and wel!-deiined New England
| proclivitiea. His appearance was that OF
/ the typical Uncle Sam. while he tried 10
! assume the manners and speech OF
Kentucky colonel of the old school. Tie
/ combination was most ludicrous. How
ever the "kunnel' was wlthoGs suspicion
! that his disguise could be penetrated.
| "Capting Jerry" had bestowed the rank
/ OF ''kunnel' upon me AT first meeting. and
most of the inhanitants had adopted the
/ title But Col. Podgers seemed tn think
that there was not room I'm that vicinity
/ for two persons Of such exalted rank, and
he had no idea Of ahdicating In nay favor.
! He was evidently quite willing that
should be ON the staff or "a field officer,
/ and accordingly always introduced me
! irnpreSs!veiy as "Majah Perry, OF Flee
noy" with the emphasis on the ''majah.
! One day at the store. business being
/ slack Cal podgers suddenly said to me:
4 Ma iah. mat you of no kin To the Pefrys
/ Of Perryviiie Green county. kaintueky?'
( Il believe. colonel. my father came from
/ Kentucky. but it was before was born.
! and I have no knowledge of the Perrys
you refer to-" My ignorance Of any rel
/ atives Ia Kentucky seemed Ia please the
colonel. Putting one hand into the breast
! Of his coat and waving appropriate ses-
lures with the other, he refoined. II had
/ the honah. sab, tn be n friend of ledge
I Perry Of Perryvile. sab. l reckon he
/ were q Southern gentleman. sab ! may
+ say sab that | knowed right smart OF
the best families Of Kalntucky." Then
I he r Podgcrs and colonel this and gen
eral that had figured most prominently.
Meeting Gaping Jerry" soon after
Z ward said TO him Captain, how Is
/ this You toid me that Col. Poagcrs was
! 4 Yankee. while he says he is from Ken
/ lucky" The astute Mr.. Carter hesitated
] a few moments before saying. THE kun
| rel air mighty smart. maJah. hut when
| The 'moonshine' gifts ahola Of his thinking
| box he~uns Jest naturally a darn fool,
an HIS tong goes "a runnin like boss
race Long bout ten Sere ago. IL were
| legislator eiectin' time. an the kunnet
/ went Il speechefyin ever 10 Jim Dodgers
/ Corner. we~uns dTuv him over. an jim
4 dodgers trottea out biz Jug % moon
! shine arter she talkin'. The kunnel an
I ws~uns and Jim Dodgers were a-sitiin on
I the back porch, an the kunnei talked
an Jim Dodgers talked. an all hands
j were a-smokfn, an every .eetle while all
/ hands iickered. That air moonshine
/ were fine an no mistake. Lang todes
/ DARK the kunne' and we-uns started hum
( The, heszes knowed the read an Jest ma
/ taally sun aioug. The kunnet he were
/ a-talkin' an a-hraggin' haat hein'
poor hay MP thar in vairmout state. an
! his dad a settsn' n new wife. an hs~uns
mutually list lit out AFTER awhile he-uns
gig n Vaughn an hoss an went a~ped-
! din tinware an Kitchen things an sich
/ down through old kaintnck. Wal. aTter
a while the wah cum. and he-tins went
( a-sutlerfn artsr The Ia1ks. an made a
{ vssh. smart pile long with selisn the SO
1ers rum an timed peehes and SIGH, an
a. huvfn' things or the quiet that the So
Sers foun' In houses an no man folks
aroun ar only Jest wimmen." | subse
aaentlv learned from friend. who
served during the war That about Az
gust 81 sutier named fosgcrs had
been .rgnarued cut of camp down iH Ter
,asxsee for being sn COLLISION With some
bounty jumpers IN iootlng houses along
| the lire ~ march
CHAPTER II.
The weeks sped happily away until late