Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1900-12-18


while yo' played the fiddle. 1 also
want to talk TO yo' bout Noer and his
ark
I've got 4 sore thumb and can't
fiddle. and. as fur Noer. he will keep
till some other time. Nuthin rushin
| bout Noer.'
with that she turns on me and
looks me squar in the face, and arter
Il mint she says:
"'Zcb White. don't yo' go to foolin
with NOcr and his ark or sunthin pow
crful bad will come out of it. Dan
Skinner may feel peekish, or he may
be dyin. but what we wants TO know IS
how all them critters found their way
into the ark. How did it happen that
the hens didn't eat up the later bugs
while they was walkin tOgetherF
Dunno
"'Why didn't the foxes eat all the
hensT
Dunno
why didn't the bars eat the pies?'
Dunno
"'Of co'sc yo' don't and that's why
l want yo' to squat right down yere
with me and try ana figgcr it out. I
shau't never he satisfied to die till I
find out how the elephants and hosses
and cattle managed to git into that ark
without treadin on the sarpints and
bugs
Il seen that her jaw was sot fur a
row." continued Zeb. but | had sold
that whisky and must git it out that
night. and so / told her I'd go along
over to SINNERS and put in the next
two nights with her on NOer. She
looked at me aG'in, but didn't say
nuthin till / was on the doahStcp. Then
she p'inted her finger ut me and said:
Go right along. Zcb White, but if
the Lawd don't dun git yo' into n
heap of trubble over it then 1 don't
know cheStnutS from punkinS,'
Il hurried off without sayin anything
back and half an hour later was bring
in up the kegs. 1t was dOd rotted biz
ness. had to slide down a rope hitch
on 10 a key and then climb up and
pull the key artcr me. Ought to had
a niger to help me, but thar wasn't
one around TO trust. I'll got up 70
kegs all right and was comm up to
pull the fifth one UP when Sunthin
happened. Jest as I was nearin the
top of the hole l heard Erowl and
n 'whoof and big bar made Il stroke
mt my head with his paw. l was that
durn skeercd that l jest let go and
drapped TO the bottom of the shaft and
got a jar that made my bones ache fur
n week.
What they calls the situashun was
this: l was down in n hole and Il bar
was waitin fur me to come up and do
biznesS with him. 70 kin see that the
pesky varmint had all the advantage.
He could smash my skull with one
blow of his paw as my head come
within reach. l yelled and hollered at
him. thinkin 10 skeer him away. but he
looked over the edge of the hole N me
and Crowled and shifted and seemed
minded TO fall on top of me. 1t wasn't
five minits befo' / wished l was home
talkin bout Noer. but wishin was no
good. l kept quiet fur two or three
hours and then started to climb up.
The bar was thar. He was thar at
midnight and sunrise. and I'm tcllin
yo' that he was thar 1T noon and at 70
o'clock in the AFTERNOON. The shaft
was as dry as bone. and l was thirsty
'nuff 10 drink swamp water. The
way things was fixed that bar could
keep me down thar till l persisted.
and when he appeared rs If he was
like to do il | felt that | hadn't used
my old woman right and wanted TO
ask her to furgive me. Bout 70 O'Clock.
while l was keepin mighty quiet.
bears a rifle shot above. and directly
arterward a human face looks down