The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1902-02-06
SAhhY AIMS
LETTER
by NORMAN H. pITMHN.
1AFLFklAfNFklR1I7I1fLH lLtlQHlDhlHfIHJ
Copyright, 1901, by Authors syndicate.J

looked over the thin package brought
by the mail carrier to the mountain
farmhouse which answered as post
Office.
She'll be the peertest gal in the
cove aginst she gifts it," said old
E.unt Polly, laughing.
AFTER waitin' nigh onto three year
fer it, | reclIin she will. Let's see;
hits marked Cincinnati. l wished !
could see what's on the inside of it,"
Bud Hunts been monty fergitful
of her, hit pears like to me-" said
Aunt Polly. "Bein' scholar enough
to read an write, hit seems like he
would hev wrote her fore now, iist
to let her know what he wuz about"
WAL, / think" said the postmis-
tress, she's been ez wishful eZ a
young cat, comm round every mail
day an askin' eff thar warn't no let
ters fer her folks. She hain't been
in now fer more'n two weeks"
WAL, l say; she must be TUX sick
or somethin'."
'She's been a-loolin' powerful puny
ever since corn wuz laid by. She
must a worked too hard; We know
she's about to run into kinsump-
ton"
"She used to look big and chuffy
enough fore Bud went out'n the set.
Element"
"Yaas, an after he went, too, fer
the fust year. They say ez how he
Civ her his promise he'd write jist ez
soon ez he could git a good job;
then they'd git married"
''She lowed hit wouldn't take SIGH
an uncommon likely Teller ez him
more'n week to git a well-payin'
job"
''Her pappy died with that kim
sumption jist soon after she wuz
bornded," said the postmistress, re-
fiectively; "an' whenever he died they
said ez how some'n his people'd hev
it, too"
do We mind" broke in Aunt Polly,
show Sally Ann TUX on at the time
of her pappy's buryin'? They wuz
maxim the coffin before our house,
an she come in an axed me eff they
wuz goin' to put her pappy in that
old box. That's jist what she called
it, old box an p'inted over whar
they wuZ workin'. | tole her that
they alIuz put dead corpses into
boxes, ez they called collins, an then
put led on 'em fore they put 'em
in the ground an kvered 'em up.
'Kiver up my pappy?' says she;
'they's afeared to kiver him up: he'll
git up an shoot a hole through 'em
eff they tech him."
''She knowed what buryin' meant
by the time her five sisters wuz TUX
10 the buryin' ground"
81 recllin she did. WAL, I must be
gittin' home"
Can't we stay all night?"
mo; I'll hev to be a-goin'. You-uns
come up and see us; don't fergit."
group of men were gathered at |
the small store in the lower end of |
the cove just as the evening shadows
were beginning to thicken in the
mountains. Some were seated on the |
rude platform in front, while others |
mounted on horseback had refined I'D |
to hear the news of the day; for the |
country store and the post office take |
the place of a newspaper in the |
mountain districts.
"They tell me-" said old Squire Bar
low, as he threw a huge quid of to-
bacco on the floor, 'they tell me that |
Sally Ann LarlIin got that letter from
Bud Hunt to-day, an that she growed |
nigh onto an inch since it come"
"Whar is Bud now?" said an angu
lar young farmer.
Bud, he's some'rs about Singcin-
natl, | recllin; that's what Polly said.
an she wuz at the office when the let
ter come. He's run onto plumb
good job thar with some kind of a
railroad consarn, an he's a-gittin' 40
n month"
Beats stalk breedin' all holler.
don't it, gittin' into one of them big
towns?"
"Yes, or maxim corn an wheat.
too"
Tain't everyone kin git such lob
in the city," said the squire; 'when
j wuz thar about war time they
lowed ez thar warn't nary place like
the mountains fer Pete Barlow"
WAL, hit pears to me-" said the
storekeeper, "that eff We an Bud
Hunt could both git jobs thar, that
mos all the rest of us could"
This raised the lau3l on the squire
who responded by expectorating in
keg of horseshoes that stood atone
end of the porch. Just then a pale
young fellow, whose white skin was
a sharp contrast to his curly black
hair hailed the group, and was lust
about to ride past when the squire
IN order to regain his standing as
leader, called out: "Can't We Dull nm
an be frien'ly fer a minute, Jim?
1e needn't think Sally Ann wants to
see We now, Hain't we heared about
her letter."
"Yes, I did," said the young man.
quietly, as he rode up; 81 didn't low
shed care much to see me-"
81 should guess not" responded
the squire, quite happy again, and
restored to his former position by
the laughter of the Ioafers. 81
should guess not; wy, they say ez