Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1902-05-22
SOWERBY'SCOUKI'INU

ten minutes, during which WASH hancock
had industriously sliced nearly all the bark
from a four-foot stove length of hickory.
| Mart Parsons once or twice ALLOWED that
it was erbout time he was er hookin' up fer
| home" but the stove was glowing red
| through it's inch thickness of iron, and he
| knew that the wind was against him on the
Hacketville road. The storekeeper was I'M
wrapping a grateful of lamp chimneys and
ranging them on the shelf when the creak
of wagon wheels on the crusted snow was
heard outside and cold Man" Sowerby en-
| tered the store.
cold Man" Sowerby was long and lean,
with long, serious face, brush of white
hair and twinkling eyes Hancock greeted
him almost with effusion, Frightening per-
ceptibly as Mr.. Sowerby drew off his clumsy
yellow leather gloves, with the red wool
wrist attachments, kicked off his arctics
and pushed his fur cap lightly to the back
| of his head
"Have seegar on me, Uncle Jake" he
said, cordially, as the old gentleman
fumbled in his pocket and drew out corn
cob pipe. II guess you can stand one. Rufe
hates to have em smoked around the store,
but he dassent say so. You asst him an he'll
tell you they smell good. Give us three
with the red collars on, Rufe. If anythin
happens I'll tell the coroner you hain't to
| blame
'Tm seasoned" remarked cold Man"
Sowerby, biting off the end Of a cigar and
striking a match 81 toI you how come |
got seasoned, didn't II"
"You started to-" said Hancock, ''but
Mis- Sowerby headed you off. never seen
you shet up so meek. You said that was
in refrunce to your lickin' her pap"
"Old Man" Sowerby chuckled. $50 it
was, he said. "Pll tell you about it, seem
she hain't around now. Tt was when [ was
sparkin' her. Her pa had the reputation
of being one of the toughest old nuts in the
deestrick. An Sarah wus the only gal he
had. Mis- Walker died when she wus jest
a little runt, so jeff, the old man, allowed
he'd keep her home indefinite. Some of the
young bucks kind of objected, but Jeff had
a mighty effectual way Of discouragin' 'em.
LATE Blevins allowed at he'd make Sarah
visit one night, an come back with his face
all raveled out. Jim Allen, him that KEEP
the grocery at Hacketville, undertook the
same thing, with the same result"
mighty good lookin' woman now, Uncle
Jake, said Wash, politely.
''She hain't as young as she was, an
neither am l." said Sowerby 'I wus a
tol'able husky boy then and [ hadn't seen
the man | was a'skeered ter tackle So
one evenin' | spruced up in my best clo'es
an put some scented lie on my hair an
hoped in my singefooter an lit out for
the Walker residence.
Seemed like I was in luck, for Sarah
wus in an Jeff wus out. l wasn't nachally
bashful an | made the most of my time.
/ don't know how late it was when we
walked down to the gate together, but it
was tol'able late. The first thing we knew
we heard horse comm down the road an
my horse began to whinny. Sarah started
for the house, but she hadn't got there an
| hadn't got my horse united before old
jeff come ridin' up.
"'Who is this?' he says.
It's me- [ says, handlin' the hick'ry
clubs | cut on the way down kind O keer-
less. Il thought I'd come down an see how
you was. Some of the boys said you was
sick an I allowed it'd be neighborly to
CALL
"'Why, howdy, Jake' he says, just's
tickled as he could be seemed like. 4 had
to go down to Beder's to see them hogs of
| his an l couldn't get away. Tie up your
boss again an come in. 1t amt so late
but what you can stay awhile longer
! II wuz leetle sort O. suspicious, but |
/ follered him into the house an he got out
some 48-hour-old corn whisky an couple
| o. pipes an twist O. terbacker as longs
your arm. had to take a sociable smoke
with him. / reckon he knew I'd never
smoked before. / took half dozen whiffs
an my head began to swell. 1t got bigger
an bigger-as big as bucket-as big as a
barrel-as big as barn-an' everything else
grew in proportion. / could see old jeff
loomin' through the smoke with smile a
yard wide, an his voice sounded far away
like Then | broke out into a cold sweat
an my hair began to bristle an my innards
to crawl an | drooled like two-months-old
baby Finally l couldn't stand it no longer,
an | got up an said l b'lieved I'd mosey
along hime.
ST hoped the old rip would have give me
chance outside, but he never let on he
seen there wus anythin' wrong an stood
| at the door with a light. Before / got half
way to the gate Jeff commences to whoop
an laff an holler, an then blamed if he
didn't loose his dog on me. At first | con-
Guided | wanted to die, an bein' eaten raw
was as good death as any, but | changed
my mind as l kicked against my hick'ry
clubs, an as the dog come up | hit him
| DolC. linen l. CTdWIeu on OIu hOany an rOQo
off until l got out O. sight O. the house.
Then | got down an held close communion
with nature for a spell.
''I met Of jeff four days after in town an
I walked up to him an | says, says l: Jeff
Walker, you're an Internal, no-account
emery old limb an can whip you
"That was all he wanted. We come to-
gether right there, an | want to say he wus
about all care to handle. When did get
him down he held on like bull pup Final
| ly pushed him off an pounded him until
he hollered ''Nuff!' l reckon it was week
after that met him at a housewarmin' at
Perry Spencer's. Sarah wus along but she
seemed to be tryin' to keep away from me-
Finerly | got her cornered an / asst her
| what wus the matter an what she wus mad
| about.
"'What did you lick pa for?' she says.
because it wus strictly ness'ry,'
| says. IF I've got to lick your pap seven