Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1902-01-02
The Luck of LMy's
Mountain.
By George Madden Martin.


l. yellow-haired, came s%crambling
backward down the ladder from the
roof-room, to land with a plump slap
of bare, sunburned feet upon the
puncheon floor of the cabin.
Nanny, tall, spare, her blue and
white check dress tapping about her
bare ankles, her hair slipping from
it's twist, was at that moment turn
ing the sizzling contents of a skillet
with quick-wristed dizziness into a
pan on the table, where the coffee
was already steaming.
Four-year-old Alfred, and Griffith,
aged six, standing by the table, fol-
lowed with keen anticipation each
movement that NANNY made.
"Don't we set to the table, Grit,
nor ALI, neither, don't We do it. Amt I
tole yer it air bad luck 'thout we uns
all set down together?"
And nanny stopped over the
hearthstone, and shielding her face
with one hand, drew forth by certain
well-directed dabs into the hot wood
dslltS d SCi1ClouS bdhIhS vi SolIt
pones. At the same time she adj
dressed herself to the shriveled, keen
eyed old woman who shared one side
OF the chimney corner with a spin
Mug wheel.
"Come on, granny, while the vic
tuals is tasty an hot. Here's Nanny,
come down 'thout the baby. Amt
she woke up yet?"
Nanny laughed one of those clear,
ready little laughs that need no OBJ
ject; and rubbing a brown ankle with
a browner foot she shook her head.
Then she glanced at a rude gun-rack.
1t was empty.
"Pap gomez" she asked.
"Since daylight" said nanny.
"Mighty tedious trip to tavern and
back for a little chap like Hence, but
once his pap said he might go, want
any holdin' him back. The butter an
eggs was sp'ilnin' to be TUX, anyway,
an the coffee is mighty lear to
gone"
Nancy buried her teeth in the hard
pone nanny dealt her from the
store that she vas keeping warm in
the folds of her homespun skirt. Aft
en- the sizzling slices of salt pork had
been handed around and the coffee
poured into the tin cups, Nancy
spoke:
81 done put my dress on wrong side,
I did, nanny, an never sensed it till
it war on"
There was an exclamation of in
credulity from nanny and open
mouth contemplation from Alfred and
Griffith. Granny lowered her knife
with it's portion of greasy pork and
peered forward, to hear further.
"Ef you amt the beatenes' chill fer
1uck!" said nanny.
But granny, with eyes puckered
shrewdly, shook her head. "You low
fer sure you never sensed it till il
war clear on?"
Ma ~ was positive. &" never
thought nothin' about it, I didn't,
granny, till there war the buttons in
side"
"'Cause if you did," cautioned gran.
ny, "the luck's sure soured agin you
an you must go back to bed an dress
over to undo it,"
"Nanny's JUS natchelly born tc
luck, granny" said nanny, raising
her soft, drawing voice. "She ain't
never put her hand to nothing in her
life that it didn't come right
Don't We know how baby got your
knittin' alla-snarl yesterday, an you
an me all tuckered out over it, an
Nanny she come in a-teeterin' a horse.
shoe she done found, and first touch
she unsnarled it?"
Granny stirred the sorghum long
sweetening into her coffee mournful
~, and observed:
Eyes, Nanny, she air born to luck
Now I done always been the kind nc
Inck come to. I war born on a Fri.
day, in the dark of the moon, and my
NANNY was that poly nobody sensed
I'd fasten nary piece of witches elm
about me, an natchelly I amt never
he'd no luck nor looked fer none"
Nanny nodded her head sympa'
thetirally, but her mind was witt
Nancy. when Nanny was not 9
mpnth old she laughed out. held il
war fer luck, and she amt had M
call to quit her laughin' yet. Ger
down, Nanny, an drive them beast
isles out. Seems like little o an
they'll be taken everything"
This referred to the long-earet
Altunds crowding the open doorway
Through which stretched, in far per