Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1900-07-26

"MEBBE TIE WHALE swALLERED JOINER"
What's the matter that what's good
huff fur Elder Hopkins an everybody
else round we're amt good 'nuff fur
yo'T
"'But l amt a-believin the story.
arter he's bin swallered by whaler
"'That's none of our bizness,' she
says.
"'But I'm maxim 1t my bizness,' says
l. What don't seem likely to me l
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 did or
not, an we was sassin away when we
heard a cry up on the hillside. 1t was
sunthin like the cry Of child, an the
old woman gifts up an listens an says:
"'Zeb, thars a leetle child wanderin
about in the bresh. Jest boot two or
| thiNC hOoto " uAd" ~ tLio way
"The cry come ag'in, an then know
ed what it was. 1t wasn't no lost
child, but a 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 I
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, yo'll go up
the mounting an find him an bring him
down In yo'r arms
"I amt huntin fur lost boys says
as fills my pipe.
"Then am. I'll go up thar myself
! "'Better not
"'But WILL Befo' the Lawd, but I
don't know what's come over yo', Zeb.
Fust yo' go an deny that the whale
swallered joiner, an then yo' 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
"T amt takin wild varmints fur lost
boys says / as the scream come ag'in.
"1t's no wild varmint. It's the
voice Of leetle Joe Baker, an he must
be skeert almost to death of the dark
rass. 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 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. l hoped the cat would yell
out an skeer her, an SOFT 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 doin a heap Of laughin to
myself when the old woman calls back
to me:
"'Come on, Zeb! I've dun found the
childv
"'Then bring him, along says I.
81 can't. He's up tree. Zeb, did
20 ever hear Of "a lost boy climbin a
| treeY
"'Not skassly, tbut mebbe they do it.
"'An his eyes are shinin like two
Goals Of fire. never knowed that lost
children's eyes looked that way at
| night
Il knowed the cat had clumb a tree
an was lookin down at the old woman,
an had jest opened my mouth to cry
| out warnin when the cat Kissed an
growled an ratified the bark with her
claws. That was huff. The old wom-
an gin a yell an started to run, but at
the fust move she fell over a 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 woman's 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 q hole on top Of fo'teen
buzzsaws, 1t wouldn't be as bad as
hevin a row with one full grown Wild
cat. She would gin me a bite an then
gin the old woman a clawin, an thar
was no gettin away from her. We had to
fight fur our lives, an u never did sich
fightin in all my days. We'd hev both
bin done up except thatI dashed the cat
ag'in tree an stunned her, an while
she lay thar we fed to the house an
locked the doah. We hadn't skassly
got in befo' the critter was screechin
round, an, not bein able to- git at us,
she went round to the she'd an bit an
clawed my old mewl till The was no
good all winter.
I'VE was a drefful sighttto see when
we got into the housa-sna IAN the old