Evening journal., 1902-08-16
BiIlParSOn'SC
Published Now and Then.
The Rambling story-teller

-~-ssesse~-s-s-s-s-s-s-
The Rambling Story-teler
4 One day when the goods-box philoso-
Pliers We're in session, the spirit of the
4 gathering came over me, and | sat and
listened to a tale which | am moved to
repeat. 1t took long in the telling, but
1 for once l determined to hear it
Through to its. conclusion, and l sue
ceeded
Tom. Williams. who had been a con-
stable for two terms. and who had
held several lucrative offices of a like
nature, looked up from the goods-box.
whose edges he was decorating with a
sharp knife. and remarked that is a
darn fine hoss that feller is a-drivin'." f"
Nobody said a word for a few min
utes, and the whiting went on, until
there was promise of another box be-
coming necessary, when he again re-
marked, that hoss looks somethin'
like colt l bought off of Tommy Jar
rel, who used to live over ON the ether
side of Ben Johnson's m1ll-pond."
AT this announcement the philoso-
piers settled down ais though prepared
for their days work, and so they were,
for Toms stories were all absorbing.
and as endless as eternity.
'Somethin happened to me on ac-
l count of that hoss, that / shall never
forget to my dyin' day, and / think
about it many and many time" ne
p went on.
BILL Saunders come to me one day.
and says he, Tom, don't yea want to
huy god hosp / was a-standin in
front of Jefferson's store eatin' a apple
at the time and he come up from down
3 the street, where he had been a-sellin'
some eggs. He was a great feller for
5 chickens, and never had less than a
couple of hundred runnin' rsund.
don't knowwhere he took the idee from,
for the old man wouldn't have no
poultry on his farm, and allus declared
that they ct their heads off several
times durin' the year.
. 81 allus thought he was right, cause
lyou can't raise corn and wheat and a
lot Of poultry on the same farm, and
they amt nothin' in it.
well. as l was a sayin', Bill come
up to where | was standin a-eatin'
apple, and he had his basket in one
? hand, and was a-chewin' away at a
piece of tobacker. and says he: Tom,
don't you want to buy a good hosp
We'll. | never was much for a keep
in a lot Of hosses to stand in the stable
to feed and to do nuthin'. | amt like
Ike Robinson. who just keeps EN- to
look at. >and loves 'em morn he does
his wife and children. so I says rather
indifferent like, dunno. Well says
/ he. Tommy Jarrel has got a nice four
/, lyear-Old that he wants to sell. and
heard he would let him so cheap as
he wanted the money.
Il said l guessed l didn't need no
hoss. cause 1 didn't want to appear
f anxious, so l waited for about week
no. it wasn't, it was on a Wednesday
that I went and Bill told me that the
5 Thursday before. The reason that
q remember the day so we'll is because
p they was a big rain the night before,
4 and people was settin out tomato
t plants that mOrnin, and the road was
e full of water.
1T allus seemed a poor time to me to
e be settin' plants, cause when you
get 'em out the sun is likley to be
purity hot on 'em all day, and they wilt
). right down and in a day they are dead.
= When ! was boy my pap used to al
{ lus set his'n cut just before sundown,
and if it was too dry he would water
: EN-. and they most allus lived.
80 I remember it was a Wednesday
that l drove out THAR. l drove that
! sorrel hoss | got from Dave Pettijohn.
: He wasn't much of a traveller, but he
: stuck right to it, hard road or sandy
! road, up hill or down, it was all the
q same to him. When he was in practice
he could go along with the best of 'em,
IL nI1f I nnrn1 70 oil
a wanted was to get thur.
when / got to Toms | got out and
hitched my hoss and threw the reins
g over the dashboard. and went up tC
n the house. but they wasn't nobody there
but the dog. and he let out on me. II
e was one of them mean yaller dogs thai
o amt worth nuthin' but to chase rab-
A bits with. / wouldn't have one fol
e nuthin' cause they hunt in season and
# out of it. / saw dog the uther day
a a-chasin' a young rabbit, and l 'spose
f he killed it. though it is against th'
law. If l had my way I'd stop it if
had to. shoot all the dogs in the coun-
y try.
D But his barkin' fetched Tom, who
= was back of the barn a-hOein' potatoes
[ what you doin? says 1. 'Hoein' 20
.e tatoes.' he says sWell,' says 1. 1T
p purity late in the season to be a-doin
2 that He said he kncwed it was, bu
II the crab-grass had got into them, an,
'e they wasn't any keepin it out 1t il
P allus that way with q piece of groun'
that has been used for a truck patel
year after year. ] should a-put it II
corn. and put my potatoes somere
else and I told him so.
a "Well. l don't want to tire you fel
- lers. cause / amt a man of man.
- words. Anyway you can't be in
y hurry when you are goin' to buy
is hoss. 30 We talked about the crop
~ and the weather till purity nigh sun
is down. and Tom kept a-edgin' over to
wards the stable where the hosses was
Well. we talked about the other ami
mr. mails and looked at their teeth an