The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1900-04-19
! Down East Traders Art J
He Began with Gift Coon and
Ended With sl25 Horse.


~ want to introduce you to one of
our townsmen," said Dover man to a
New Yorker, who was visiting Maine.
On the drivers pssch Of Q three-seated
blackboard, drawn up at the opposite
corner, was . tall, wiry, shrewdfaced
man, who might have passed for GO
years old, but who, the Dover man said,
was 70. The two went across the
square, and the man on the box was
presented to the New Yorker as Mr..
Elihu Sanford. The New York man
noted in him the keen, cold eye, the cal
culating expression, the sardonic grin
that in down-east villager indi-
Gates the practiced horse trader. Mr..
Sanford was waiting for passengers to
take to the camp meeting grounds at
Foxcroft. Until they gathered he had
leisure to talk.
"Mr. Sanford is known in this com
munity, in which he has passed his
days, as a citizen of good financial
standing and man of his word" said
the Dover man to his New York friend.
"If he agrees to carry you anywhere.
he'll deliver you on time If it's in the
power of horsefesh to take you there.
But unless you believe in the doctrine,
1T is more blessed to give than to re-
ceive,' should advise you not to enter
into any negotiations with him involv-
ing mutual transfer of horses"
Sanford grinned at the compliment.
"Oh, l cant trade any more; I'm gittin'
too old" he said. Then smiling shrewd-
ly, all to himself. he pointed to the of
horse in his team. "D'ye see that horse?
He's 1,10O pound, sound as a dollar and
worth s125 any day I've a mind to sell
him. What dye suppose he cost? Igot
him for a coon and $12.5O. And the
coon was present to me-"
"That was not bad DEAL" the New
Yorker said, becoming interested.
-"How did you bring it round?"
'Weh, the barber at the corner had
the coon;> twas caught in the woods
below the village, and he kept it at his
shop as q curiosity like. He got tired
Of the trouble after awhile, and said
he'd give the critter away to anyone
who'd take 1t. If nobody wanted It he'd
turn it loose or kill 1t.
"'I'll take it, says I, and lugged the
critter home. In week I'd traded 1t
for a watch, silver watch Of no great
account, but 1t looked we'll, and, il you
wound it often enough it ticked along
just as if it was a-keepin' some sort of
time. Next comes along young fellow
from Bowerbank. He has this horse,
and he thinks he knows how to trade.
Well, to make long story short,
talked this watch up to him, and l
showed him bad p'ints about his horse
till he was half scared to own the crit
ter, fearin' 'twould do some mischief or
die on his hands. He jumped at the
chance when offered to give him the
watch and $3.50 for the horse, and he
was afeared I'd call after him to take
back the trade. No, can't trade any;
I'm gittin' too old for the smart young
chaps they have nowadays. But now
and then keep 'em from cheatin' me
too bad in dicker, and manage to
live" And Sanford winked and grinned
again all to himself.
''Mr. Sanford" said the Dover man,
show was it about those people that
you drove so fast to Sebec lake when
you used to run your stage there from
Dover? That city crowd that thought
you couldn't handle the reins like their
Boston drivers?"
"Oh, that was long time ago, when
we drove to Stedman's Landin' seven
mile. Twas q mean stretch of road
after you past the Four Corners. Two
xufx
just dirt enough between rocks to
make mud holes after rain. That day
you speak of 1 had five passengers to
the lake, two men and three women.
They We're all from Bost on, and they'd
hired the whole coach for their own
use. Everything passed off all right
till we got by the Four Corners, and
then everything began to go wrong
with the crowd in the coach. When
we got to climbin' the hills the passen-
gers began to grumble about my goin'
so slow. They were sure we couldn't
get to the lanLin' in time to catch the
boat, and first one and then another
of 'em would stick his head out of the
window and call to me to hurry up
There was one woman in the party that
was worse than all the rest. She had
on one of those high bonnets that
women wore in those days, with lot
of flowers and fxin's on it, and every
five minutes that bonnet would be
stickin' out of the window and I'd hear
somethin' like this: 9
"'Driver, we're goin' too slow.
never saw anything like It. II we had
one of our Boston drivers here we'd &c
faster!'
'Now T knew that we were goin' a,
fast as anybody could drive uphill ovel
that road. and I knew that the boat
would wait at the landin' till I go'
there, but twas wastin' my breath t.
talk to them folks. That woman will
the bonnet kept up her talk about oul
slow Down East ways and her Bostor
drivers. says nothin', but minded my
horses. She stuck her head out OF tn,
window. and she says in: a
Really, driver, you must go faster!
81 says to myself: You poor fool
you don't know nothin' and never will
You're not worth noticin'.' say
nothin' to her or the others, but KEEP
the horses to right gait, KNOWN w
were safe to catch the boat. Once NOR,
that bonnet with the flowers and feath
ers came ont of the window.
"'Driver! she screamed. If yo'
don't go faster shall get out ant
walk
'Therewa one man in the party tha