Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1900-07-26
"MRBBE THE WHALE swA11KRRp JOINER"


What's the matter that what's good
huff fur Elder Hopkins an everybody
else round we're amt good nun fur
yo'y
but 1 amt a-believin the story.
How's a man gwine to live right on
arter he's bin swallered by q whaleT
THAT'S none Of our bizness,' she
says.
but I'm maxim 1t my bizness,' says
I. What don't seem likely to me 1
amt gwine to believe in
but yo' might keep shet about it
an not raise fuss. Who air yo', Zeb
White, that yo' disputes the Bible?
THAT started the row." said the old
man, IAN we had some purity hot words.
l said didn't believe the story, an she
said she didn't keer whether 1 did or
not, an we was sassin away when we
heard cry up on the hillside. 1t was
sunthin like the cry Of child, an the
old woman gifts up an listens an says:
".Zeb, thar's a leetle child wanderin
about in the bresh. Jest boot two or
three boots to draw 1t this way
1.-THE cry come ag'in, an then know
ed what it was. 1t wasn't no lost
child, but prowlin wildcat. I hadn't
heard one fur two vars, but was dog
suah of the game. I'd hev told the old
woman, but she got mad bekase 1
wouldn't boot an called me names.
When the third cry comes, she says to
me:
""Zeb White, that must be Joe Ba-
ker's leetle boy Jim. an he's wandered
two miles away from home. If yo've
got heart in yo'r busum, YOU go up
the mounting an find him an bring him
down In yo'r arms
az amt huntin fur lost boys says I
as fills my pipe.
""Then I am. I'll go up thar myself
"'Better not
"'But will Befo' the Lawd, but I
don't know what's come over 20, Zeb.
Fust yO' go an deny that the whale
swallered joiner. an then 20 won't
move hand or foot to save an inherent
child from perishin. Mebbe yo' air git
tin ready to turn Mormon an run away
from meY
81 amt takin wild varmints fur lost
boys says as the scream come ag'in.
Its no wild yarmint. It's the
voice Of leetle Joe Baker, an he must
be skeert almost to death Of the dark
ress. Yo' sot right yere like an old
mewl, an I'll go up an find him. I'm
thankin the Lawd yo' hain't got no
children of yo'r own
with that she grabs up q stick an
starts up the hill. While knowed that
a wildcat was roamin round, didn't
think the old woman would come to
any hurt. hoped the cat would yell
out an skeer her. an so 1t was ten min
its befo' follered on. She went push
In through the bresh an calm to Joey,
an now an then the cat cried out in an
swer. was dom heap Of laughin to
myself when the old woman calls back
to me:
"'Come on, Zeb! I've dunsfound the
childr
"Then bring him along, says I.
az can't. He's up tree. Zeb, did
yo' ever hear Of a lost boy climbin a
treer
"'Not skassly, but mebbei they do it.
IAN his eyes are shinin like two
Goals Of fire. l never .knowed that lost
children's eyes looked that way at
night
II knowed the catehad clumb a tree
IN was lookin down at the old woman,
an had jest opened my mouth to cry
out a warnin when the cat Kissed an
growled an ratified the bark with her
claws. That was 'nuff. The old wom-
an gin yell an started to run, but at
the fust move she fell over q log. I
reckon that cat must hev bin mighty
mad bout sunthin, fur she screamed
out an jumped to the ground an In two
jumps was on the old womaRs back an
usin her teeth an claws like sin. /
grabbed up a club an mixed in, but at
the fust blow the club broke, an the
cat turned on me. Lemme tell yo' sun
thin bout wildcats. If yo' was to be
pitched into a hole on top Of fo'teen
buzzsaws, 1t wouldn't be as bad as
hevin row with one full grown Wild
cat She would GIN me afbite an then
gin the old womany a ,clawin, an thar
was no gettin awaysfromjher- We had to
fight fur our lives anjISnever did SIGH
fightin in all my days. Wed hev both
bin done up except'that I dashed the cat
ag'in tree an stunned. her. an.
she lay thar we sied to ttheihouse an
locked the doah. We hadn't skassly
got in befo' the icritter was tscreechin
round, an, not bein able tot git at us.
she went round to the shed| an ibit an
clawed my oldsmewl till he was no
good all winter.
I'VE was a idrefful\ sight 'totsee when
We got into fhe housa--ma an the old