The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1902-01-02
The COurtship Of
Hold and Jason D
BY HAYDEN CARRUTH.
Copyrighted by Daily Story Pub. Coz

TT WAS probably the biggest lie ex-
tant at Hawleyburg, the home of
many experienced and intrepid liars.
1t is doubtful if the Hawleyburgers
themselves believed it all, though of
great capacity in this line. But the
Widow Gilbert certainly did exist,
though now married in accordance
with the tale; she also had farm on
which was likely hollow where the
chief occurrence might have taken
place. Perhaps it was the simple truth
after all. Truth is stranger than fc-
tion-at Hawleyburg it was very much
more of stranger.
There were several versions of the
legend known; let us take that of "Oid
Dad" Highbottle, who maintained sa-
loon at Bofinger's grocery store.
when the Wilder Gilbert was a
running her farm" Old Dad would say,
as he munched dried apple and looked
at the newcomer with a fiabby eye,
''she used to have to keep a couple o.
hired men, that there boy o her'n not
being able to do much work beyond
hooking my watermelons and raising
the Old Harry generally. The wilder
was pretty likely-looking woman,
femme tell you-bloo eyes and a fetch
ing way. Abe Trotter and Jim Buck
was going to fight duel about her.
but they compromised on pizening each
otherses dog and sowing pusley seed
in each otherses garden. Used to think
in them days that the wilder put a sort
of a soft-appearing eye on yours trooly,
but l fit shy.
This summer the wilder had her
usual two hired men. One was Hold
Buckley and the other Jason Dobbs.
Wei, now, you know how it is with
hired men-always lazy as all get-out,
or more so. Bound to soldier on you
no matter what you do. The only way
TO get anything out of 'em is to work
right alongside of 'em and prod 'em
along. Leave one of em working alone
and he'll just naturally lay right down
and never wiggle wiggle till he sees
you coming. And these year men, Hold
and Jason, was just the old great
grandfathers of all lazy hired men. Go
to sleep right in their tracks. stand
ing up, with their hoes h'isted into the
air ready to hit weed They'd both
worked for me, and the only way |
ever could get anything out of either
of 'em was to use 'em for scarecrows;
and finally it even got so the crows
would roost on 'em-'and the fowls of
the air roasted on its branches as the
good book says about the ginger seed.
But what do you thlnk?-both of these
year shiftless galoots fell dead in love
with the wilder. And it had the queer
est effect on 'em. Hold braced up and
went to work like steam engine.
Work? Wy, he just sot up nights %
work. Worked in season and out O.
season, rain or shine. Done the work
of three men if he done a stroke.
Thought sure he'd catch the wilder
with his pesky industry, you see. But
it had just the opposite effect on that
there Jason. Seemed to just sort O.
petrify him. Couldn't seem to move
if he tried Managed to stir about a
little if the wilder was watching him,
but at other times fast elapsed. The
wilder had pertater patch down back
of the barn in little holler where she
kept Jason a-hoeing the main part of
the time. But all the hoeing he done
you could a-put in your eye. Didn't
work enough to keep his hoe bright.
just as soon as the widder's back was
turned Jason would get up on the fence
and set down and 90 to sleep. his feet
resting on the second rail and his e.
bows on his knees and his face in his
hands. Always, regular, al day long,
there Jason sot, snoring steady. | tell
you Satan never found no work for
them idle hands to do, cause he
wouldn't work at nothing. The rea-
son that Jason got on the fence was
that the ground down there in the
holler was sort o. wet and sudgy and he
was afeerd of rheumatic.
We'll, it made Hold mad to see his
self doing al the work and Jason all
the resting, even though he was sure
he wou.d catch the wilder by it, He
didn't IKE it cause TIE wilder wouldn't
discharge Jason, and he sot about