Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1900-03-28

center of the road.
Dave, do you really think we are so
degraded as that?"
The burly fellow shrugged his shout.
ders.
1--WE are as good, reckon, as the gen.
eral run of our own sort" was his an
swer. and he smiled SO broadly that o
brown tobacco quid showed between
his big yellow teeth, "but, as the fellow
said: Dang the Sort reckon the
Almighty made us out O. scraps when
He was too tired to watch what He
was doin'. reckon we are some bet
tern cornfield niger, but we'd jest
be blind to our own imperfections eff
we didn't admit that thar is folks as
much higher'n us as we are higher'n
tadpoles."
"That is a dangerous philosophy,
David" protested Ronald, deeply stung
by his brothers words. eff you ever ex-
pect to rise in the world, you must re-
member-keep the idea always before
you-that man is what he makes him
self"
"Shucks, thar hain't word o. that
So" grunted David. "Col. Hasbrooke is
our big man, an he hain't what he
made hisse'f. His father owned 600
slaves, an land enough to start re-
public on, an government bonds, an
storehouses in Atlanta, an what not.
No, the colonel is sample o. what his
daddy done fur i'm; you can bet yore
sweet life on that! An as fur that mat
ter, men you is jest what Jade Fan
shaw has made out'n us. I tell you,
blood has got u lots to do with it. Col.
Hasbrooke's father fit in the Mexican
war, an the colonel stuck hisse'f up to
be shot at in defense O. his niggers in
the civil war, but Jade Fanshaw's daddy
before i'm was sent up fur house
breakin, an instead O. shoulderin' his
musket to drive the yelpin' Yanks out
o. the south Jade hid in the mountains
up in Tennessee, an turned BUSH
whacker, an lived on what he could
rob from helpless women an Children.
I hope nobody round heer won't find
all that out. We've got black eye
enough, as it is"
II always try to forget that" sighed
Ronald.
"Ah, my honey!" calculated the un-
couth philosopher, in triumphant
tone, "but Col. Hasbrooke don't try to
forget nothin' his daddy did. Not on
yore tin type! I've heerd he has his
pas uniform in big glass case, an q
picture of i'm on q boss in full tilt after
the enemy. They say the old Teller
fit like tiger cub with one yeer shot
of as clean as baby's belly, an D
piece of cannon-ball as big as saucer
in his shoulder; they say jest as he
was expirin' Teller bent over i'm an
his last kick landed in his bread-basket,
an doubled i'm up like razor. All,
come off, you needn't argue with me,
Ronl"
The listener to this frowned, as he
swung his basket to and fro, but he
did not want to be misunderstood by
his brother.
what I means David, is that II \
young man really has it in him, and will
study hard enough, he can climb to
the highest rung Of the ladder of sue
cess"
Dave laughed loudly for fully min
ute, then he said:
"Your ladder would have to be stout
enough to hold up all creation, fur the
minute you begun to mount all four
of them overweights at our house would
start after you, an they'd stick to you,
eft they saw you on the climb-they
would eff they fell an smashed the'rsels
into jelly. HUH I'd "a run for
president myself long ago, but L don't
like the idea O. them three in low.
neck an short sleeves helpin' men my
wife shake hands in the white house
with the whole shootin'-match o. big
| Ikes."
Ronald gave up the discussion. His
brothers coarse allusion to his mother
and sisters failed to appeal to his sense
of humor. He was thinking of Evelyn
Hasbrooke's patrician features and 1.-THE
form-of her exquisite refinement and
delicate sympathy. By this time the
two brothers had almost reached their
home; they could see the sagging root
Of their fathers house. Half mile fur
ther on in the gathering dusk doomed
the white walls and lighted windows OF
Carnleigh. At this point the dull
steady beat of horses hoofs fell on
their ears.
"Its the Hasbrooke gang" an.
nounced David.
Ronald's heart sank like plummet.
He had hoped to reach home before
the party overlook him. He reproached
himself for the feeling, but he shrank
from being seen by Evelyn and her
friends In company with one as ill
clothed as his brother. David stepped
to the side of the road and stood open
mouthed, to see the trap and horses
pass, but Ronald, without looking back,
simply kept on his way. He had made
up his mind that he should not doff his
hat, as he knew David would, like the
peasant he was. He heard woman's
voice singing plantation melody, ac-
companied by mellow bass. He de-
cided that the woman's voice had q
harsh quality which could not have be-
longed to Evelyn's, although he had
never heard her sing. The vehicle was
Just behind him. He heard his broth
er shouting out shrill warning, and
was turning to see what had occasioned
1t. when the horses brushed by him, the
front wheel of the trap striking the
hand which held the basket, dashing il
to the ground and scattering its con-
tents over the sand. He heard Evelyn
scream out in terror from her seat be-
side Capt. Wrinkle, who was driving, and
saw her desperately pulling on his
arm,
The vehicle drew up q few yards
away, and it looked as if the driver was
going to offer some apology, but see
Ing that Ronald was still on his feet,
Wrinkle vigorously applied the whip to
the horses and drove on rapidly. David
ran up and began to pick up the fallen
articles.
by Joe, you had close shave" he
grunted. II lowed once you was
dead goner.'
He had put all the things back into