Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1902-10-16
CLEVER AT TRADING
A SOUTH CARoLlNlAN's YARN ABOUT
A HORSE DEAL.

Process, Was Won Back ana May
Even Live to supply Excitement In
Another Transaction.
"You don't have any fun swappin' and
aellin' horses up here" remarked South
Carolinian the other day In an uptown
horse exchange.
1--WE don't, eh7" was the response.
"Why, you folks down there never sell a
mare for $3,000-like the one that was
handed over Just now. And $1,000 is
cheap here"
'It's not the money that makes the
sport" answered the other. ibid you
ever know man to buy a plug for 81. 90
Well, did. And did you ever know the
man to sell the same plug for $5.75? No?
Nearly 80 profit! Think Of it! When
folks get to chargin' these fancy prices
as you do here then all the funs out Of
1t. Give me my old market town for real
good sport in the horse tradin' business.
LET me tell you about a deal | made
last year. I wouldn't have missed that
! deal for all your thousand dollar FLIES
/ No, sir! l had sorrel mare: big, lum.
bering old thing. Shed been good horse
in her day, but that was some eighteen
years ago. and when last fall came round
/ she'd been fallin' away for two or thSee
seasons, till she was badly off. / reckon
she was bout the worst horse in the
county, but somehow she'd been about the
farm so long that ! hated to swap her off
However, seem she was likely to die any
day. my wife and l concluded it was best,
and, as was always rather much on a
swap, l didn't have any doubt but what
'twould turn out .. X.
You know we farmers have to ride
long way to get to market town down
south. Well. I wanted to take the old
mare to town for swappin'. but I knew
/ 'twould half finish her up to walk there,
seem it was some twenty miles of. She
hadn't been out OF the stable for a long
bit. and, to tell the truth, she was hardly
able to get her forefeet over the log at
the bottom Of the stall door. Such bein'
30. ! reckoned I'd lead her to town pretty
slow a day ahead OF time. so she'd look
kind Of fresh when time came to swap.
"The night before market dsy--it was
Saturday we went to town generally-I
got on another horse and rode in. leadin'
the old marc by the halter. We didn't
get out of a walk, but she was clean
winded when we reached the edge of
town. / gave her a lot Of oats out of a
bag I'd brought to bolster her up. Then
l tied her and the other nag to a tree,
and the three Of us slept till mornn', aft
er which we started into town just as
though we'd come straight from home.
Now. the very first man I met was
fellow from my neighborhood. We said
how dye do to each other, and he looked
at the nags.
"'Gee" he said. 4 didn't know that
old thing could travel to town and keep
Eoin' 80 good
! "'Get off! snid l. She's as good as
she was ten years ago..
HE seemed nightly surprised. We
rode to the main street and stopped at the
grocery store, and pretty soon horse
swappin' began. One fellow said he'd
take my mare for an old COW he had Mt
home; another lowed he'd give a COW and
bird dog together for her; another said
he'd 60 one better and make it two bird
dogs. Everybody seemed to want my
mare. but said couldn't part with her.
"She's worth at least S12,' I'said to
'enl, and she would be worth fifteen, but
age takes down prices on horses
Toward evenn', though, took up an
offer. A fellow named Smith-a cheeky
youngster that thought nobody could
teach him things about swappin' Plugs
said he'd give me a COW. a big sow and
eight little pigs for the mare. It's n co.
said and he took off the sorrel, leadin'
her by the halter.
swell. the younester took the mare
home. When he got there-I heard after
ward-she was pretty near gone up. l
reckon he said nice things about me. But
he couldn't so back on the swap. Half
the farmers in the county had heard Of
the bargain, so he just had to cough up
that COW and the big SOW and the eight
little pigs. He was 40 mad that he didn't
bring 'em over to my place himself. but
sent man with 'en. 1t was the man
that told me how mad Smith was. He
said Smith was ravin' all over-mad
enough to chew up tenpenny nails and
not feel 'em. He didn't say. though. that
the cow-a fine lookin' beast-was goin'
to die in two hours. and he didn't say the
SOW and the pigs were goin to die. either.
1T wasn't long after the man left that
the COW fell on the ground and rolled over
and moaned Then she died. Before the
day WAS gone the SOW was dead, too. and
all of the piEs-except one. BY the way.
never did understand why that last pig
didn't 90 out. He must have had a cast
Iron stomach"
What was the matter with all of
them?" asked an old habitue of the ex-
change.
"Now, didn't tell you how you folks
up here didn't know anything about horse
swappn'?" answered the South Caro-
linian. "Whnt WAS the matter with EN-?
Why, Smith had poisoned the whole
bunch-to get even. ! knew it when l
saw 'em dyin'. AS soon as they were
dead l sent to the Doctors, two miles
away. and told him to come over and
make an autopsy. He found enough rat
poison in that COW and them pigs to have
killed Jumbo. Then l got him to swear
bed found the poison and sign up paper
10 that effect. A few months later l went
to law. Smith was in court. He hadn't
eot over his madness yet, and the looks
he gave me would have froze you fellows.
because you amt used TO the dscomforts
Of genuine, orthodox horse swappin'.
"And the outcome Of it all was that the
jury made Smith give me SO damages
and the old mare into the bargain. She's
Twin vet, and don't know but I'll swap
her off again."-New York Times.
Living Rooms.