River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1901-05-09

straight we didn't like to set in it.
Then there wuz the dish :ioset, with
it's cracked. nicked dishes on the
shelves. There wuzn't a thing there
fit to set company table. All this
flashed through any mind in less time
than ] hey took to tell it. Suddenly
a big resolution grabbed hold Of me.
lifted up my head, an looked her
straight in the face, which ] couldn't
hev done afore. l know there wuz a
streak of fire in my eyes, but it
wuzn't meant fur the parsons wife,
who is pleasant-spoken, nice woman.
SISTER Taylor" says I, Il amt jest
fixed fur the society yet Wait a
while, an 1 shall be very glad to hev
We all come"
Now, as I told you atore. I he'd lived
with Elnathan Jacobs fur 25 year,
an in all that time l hedn't once fair
~ made up my mind. 1t wuz his mind
that wuz alters made up, so to speak
But now ! wuz that riz up, l deter
mined that things he'd got to be diff
ferent. That parlor wuz goin' to hev
a new carpet, an new furniture, an
lace curtains, like what | he'd seen at
society. There wuz goin' to be a
new set of dishes, too, an whatever
wuz needed to make table look nice
As fur the eatables, l want afraid
a mite Ny riz biscuits air the talk
of the hull country thrashin' time,
though mebbe / hadn't ort to men
ton it, l Jest state it as a fact
Elnathan wuz a good provider in the
eatin' line, cause his own stummick
wuz very dear to him. Jellies an
preserves / alters he'd in plenty.
knowed if / he'd the dishes, l could
set as good a table fur the society
as they'd find anywheres.
| rode my high horse of determine
ton home, though | purity nigh tum-
bled off in wonderin' how | wuz goin'
to carry out all my fine plans. But
| grit my teeth an stamped my foot
an said to myself: "Sary Ann Jacobs.
you've got to do it, or die You've
passed your word to the parsons
wife. an ATalviny's frettin' her soul
out, an that's got to be stopped"
Jim's our boy-we've only got the
two children-an' he's good to his
mother. He's Is year old, an his pas
kept him at work, an give him
mighty little money. You'll git all
the more in the end" he telled him,
as if that wuz much comfort to
lively lad. SO jim couldn't help me
much, but it wuz a comfort to talk
it over with him, an he wuz right
in fur dom all he could.
"See here, ma" he says. az wuz
over to Mis- Haines this mornin' 3"
(NIis' Haines is our neighbor, half a
mile cross lots), IAN her hired girl
has gone off an left her. She's weak
ly, You know, an she says to me,
Jim, if I could only git your mother
to bake my bread, l b'lieve I could
manage you've got too much to
do now, ma, but it would be a chance
to arm somethin'."
I'm do it," l said in such a tone
that Jim looked round to see if some
thin or nuther hedn't cracked. You
Git up the old mare" l went on. can
III go right over. Malviny kin git
supper"
Mis- Haines wuz orful glad to hear
that | would make her bread. Fur,
as | said afore, my bread is known
all over Hawkins county. Calm facts
is not boastin'. In maxim the bar
gain, | wuz keerful.
Now, Mis- Haines," 1 says, 81 want
YOU to furnish the flour. I'll make
the bread an biscuit jest as you want
them, but it will be out of your flour,
not mine"
She looked a leetle surprised, hut
she agreed to it, an to the price
aNed her. You see, I want goin' to
hev any partnership mixed up in this
dicker. If we he'd furnished the iiour.
Elnathan would hev wanted his pay,
an my share would hev bin slim.
Wen, it worked fust-rate. I made
Mis- Haines' bread all winter, an by
spring he'd quite a good many dollars
hid away in an old chany pitcher on
the northeast corner of my top pantry
shelf Elnathan would ak once in n
while if Mis- Haines kept me paid up
fur my work. but all the answer he
got WIZ that we he'd fixed that be-
tween us.
| knowed that bread-makin' alone
wouldn't arm enough money to get
half what | needed. Before this, /
he'd tried time an time agin to coax
Elnathan to buy good stock to i'm
prove our poultry, Our old hens were
small an runty, a poor looking lot
But he never would Gpend cent fur
anythin' better, although he paid $50
fur Just one pig. He sed hen wuz
hen, an you couldn't make nothin'
else out of her. He didn't seem to
see the same reason would apply to
a pig or COW. lie said eggs sold
fur the same whether they wuz small
ones or big ones, an one kind Of hen
laid jest as well as another. VIM
men folks wuz alters easy imposed
uron. Fowls wuz Dragged up to sell
high, when they wuzn't worth any
more than common stock. If the
hens wuz small, set more eggs, an
fry more of EN- at time.