The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-03-09

ICT Ii1lQ, LllOuSA he lCCulQu IdIuly UClp
it, SEEM as how his line O business took
him into continual temptation. He know
ed his best holt was poker, an just nat
urally he spent the most Of his time in
here, waitfn' till there'd be somepin'
dom, like the halt an the blind used to
wait round the pond IN Sloan for some
good Samaritan to come an stir up the
water as the Good Book tells about Well,
O course, there'd be times when he'd get
asked like anybody is that sets round
saloon q. good bit, an he warn't never
slow about sayin' yes. He were a. toll BILE
good customer that way, an I never
grudged him the four fingers he lister
pour out every time he drinked. I knowed
'twa'nt good for him to tackle so much
of it to onct, an told him so sometimes.
but he'd say 'twould be ongrateful Of
him not to show his appreciation when
the Lord RELY did provide, an he were
goin' to take all he dun pleased s. longs
twas paid for, so o. course, couldn't
say nothin' more. Only ulster tell him
that he We're ta1iin' more'n was good for
his constitution, an then he'd look kind o
grieveG an say t lie recl1oned maybe he
was but his wife was a. drivin' him to it.
AGGRAvATING. SORT.
Likely there were some truth in that,
too for Jim's wife were :, aggravatin'
SOTL o "Ouldll, lltll5 tlilIl di iSi SouS'
with a voice like a guinsa-hen. She
hadn't been like that fore she were mar
ried. but she 'peared to get kind O. dis
outraged along o. Jim ben' out O work
so much O. the time, havin' a prejudice
of her own in favor o. more cloes an
regular meals than she'd gently got l
reckon there warn't much doubt but that
she did make things a bit uncomfortable
for jun when he was to home. She were
{@~ 1,oS c}r
prejudice ag'in' draw poker like some has.
an Jim, pious as he was, wouldn't go to
church. 'Peared like he had more faith
than she had, though, for he were aIays
relyin' on the Lord to provide. an she
were arays tryin' to make him do it.
"Come a time in SO, just at the break
in up o. winter, that Jim's faith were
tested, though, for fair. Course. never
knowed nothin' about 1t 'ceptin' what
Jim told me after, for. I warn't there.
but the way he give me the story.
couldn't see that ne cd ha' been blamed
much If he'd lost confidence in bein' pro-
vided for He says he didn't, though.
even when things was at the worst. an
If he tells the truth. 1t cert'nly does look
if it were a case O. faith bein rewarded,
like the preachers say it is.
Everybody knows that the flood Of 's3
were the most riproarin'est flood that
~
didn't seem to be nothin' left O. the State
of Arkansas, this side O. Little Rock. but
a. wicked waste O. water. Feared like
Arkansas City itself were likely to secede,
an float down to the Delta, OF maybe
ONT into the Gulf an as for the country
above here. nobody seen notl1in' of it but
the tops O. the trees for some weeks
"'Peared Jim an his wife had gone up
the road a bit, to live in a house her
| i, a 1~ff hav q hOut
forty-fve mile FIN, here an about eight
mile I'm the railroad, but it were a
| house an there was a few chickens an
pigs an SIGH. an Miss Waters lowed
they cd be sure o somepin' t eat all the
time. an that were nlore'n she were &C
customed to. so she Just took Jim by the
neck an went up there.
"Jim didn't like it much. There were
game enough around. but he hadn't no
gun of his own, nor no neighbors to borry
anv from, an anyway the game he
thought most Of were entirely lackin'. for
he hadn't nobody to play 1t with, an he was
settlin' down into a sort O disappointed
quiet melancholy when the flood come
an give him plenty to think about for a
SPELL
"'Pears like the house were in a. sort
O. holer piece O ground with toPable
| high ground all round it, so when tha
valley to the north of 'em, it swooped
down sudden, an just washed the house
!, away in the night Jim an' his wife was
4! sound asleep an they never walked up
| til towards mornin', when there come a
| sort O. jolt, an a. jar. an the room kin o.
| c4nted up to one side, so's't Jim rolled
out o. bed on to the floor. an having
started a rollin', just rolled on till he
| landed in about two feet o water In the
| far corner o the room.
Gust naturallyit didn't take him Ions
| to get up, an nndin his wife was awake,
too, he spattered over to the door an
| locked out. It were a good deal of q sur
| prise to him. for when he looked he
| didn't see nothin but water an some tall
| trees an none O. the trees was at all
| familiar.
Course he didn't know then where
he was, but theW found out, after. t
they'd fioated down more'n three mile.
in the night, an the house had just
lodged in d big cottonwood tree t stood
by itself, night about three mile south
o. the railroad AS it happened. they
hadn't no neighbors at all in this new
pkce, an not havin' nobody TO inquire
FROM he had a good many gu.sses comm
about what had happened.
.''Twa'n't what hid happened that in
terested him, though, so much as what
was SO1ll 70 ibdppeil. Illey udQl MUCH
of anything to eat in the house, but there
was a couple o. young pullets that used
to roost on the kitchen chairs. an there
was a little corn meal that Miss Waters
scooped up FIN where it had got spilled,
| SO they made out for three or four days,
eatin' things raw, cause they hadn't no
fire, but then there come time when
there want nothin' but the furniture to
| eat an there want no way o. gettin'
| nowhere to get no more, SO things sure
! did look black.
SHE NAGGEL.
Miss Waters she were clean out O.
| patience. an nagged at Jim good deal
about it, like women WILL seemin' to
| think it were his doin's stead Of a act
O. Providence, which it sure were, but
Jim he just stood in the doorway hour
after hour, "a lookin' out, an not maxim
no answer. 'cepton' to say, once in a
while, The Lord will provide. He told
me when he were a. spinnin' the yarn,
that he never lost faith, but reckon
that were outrageous lie. There
want no doubt but Jim were pious all
| right but he would lie, sometimes.