Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1902-11-28

smile all over her face. Her paw
was fun O. young catfish. and IL
there is one thing that creeps or
flies or swims or runs that cat
likes better than another it's cat
fish.
The old cat picked out couple
o the fish and passed 'em back to
her kitten on the log. and gobbled
the rest o the handful herself.
They tickIed her palate so that she
dabbed both paws down in the wa
ter and brung up a mess o. young
catfish in each one, and her and the
kitten got away with them and
smacked their lips.
Then 1 looked a little closer and
l seen the old catfish that had
rescued her family from the holhr
stump. She was Jqyin' by the log.
lookin' scared, and seen that most
OF her family O. young ones was
missin'
That cat says I, is swoopin'
that catfish's family on the face O.
the earth, so TO speak, says 1, as
sure as wasps astingin'l' says I.
The old catfish hadn't Jest pot.on
to what was goin' on yit, but when the
yaller cat on the log reached down and
scooped out another handful of the
cattish's family and divide up with her
kitten, that old catfish actually turned
white around the gills.
"She seen it all at last, and with ono
ail-wolloPin' slash of her tail she
jumped onto that log like n britchv
cow goin' over a barnyard fence. and
Je-e-e-willikens boraxl maybe she
didn't swat that yaller catl She swept
that yalier eat off o. that log as il she
hadn't been nothin' more than
feather
Then the catfish stepped back into
the water and waited to see. The val
Ter cat scrambled back on to the log
and her dander was up as high as it
could git. Oh, but she was mad.
She pranced up and down the log a
minute, and at it ag'i i'm she went, scoop-
IN out young catfish and scatterin' 'em
TO the winds so fast that I see there
wouldn't be one of 'em left 10 ten the
tale unless the old catfish got her sec
ond wind pretty quick and done some,
thin
And she got her second wind. and
riz up agin that yaller cat ag'in most
exllaratin' for to see. Seems to mo
for five minutes there wasn't notbin,
TO be seen on that log but a whfrnn.
streak o yaller sort o. mixed up with
a whirlin' streak o. black. and cat
eussm' Merciful man! / Jest had Ia
plug my fingers in my ears, couldn't
bear TO hear il sol
When the whirlin' and back-tail,
quit, the catfish was back in the water
There was catfish hide stretched here
ana there on the log most enough TO
make saddle, and enough yaller had
scattered about TO stun il with. Tbe
yaller cat was sort o ickin' herself
here and there, and the catfish was
glarin' at her.
Inc kittin' was standin' on the Ior,
with her back way up, and her tnil
swelied like rollin' pin. and she was
spittin' away at that catfish fierce as
wildcats. The last one o. the catfab's
family had been swept OF the face Oh
the earth
The catfish, seem that the old cats
kitten was still left. made up her mind
THAI she'd put an end TO the cats fam.
lily and sort O even things up. so sLe
sprung back on to that log. grabbe,i
the kitten, and swallowed il. whaln
and alive, right before its mothers
eyes.
"Jumpin' back into the water, tho
catfish turned and stuck her big head
out close by the log. and as the old ear
was tearin' her hair, as you might say.
or leastways what little she had left.
and was mournin' and moanin' for her
lost kitten, the fish opened her mouth
from ear to ear, so as the cat CONDO
hear her kitten cryin' way down in
the catfsh's depths. Sayl I could
hear that kitten cry myself. way over 4
on the bank where i was settin't
We'll, shat voice of her kitten was
more than the bereayed yalIer eat
could stand. She bounced square on
top OF the catfish and they both went
down together.
II didn't see nor hear nothin, more
of either of 'em for maybe three min
utes, and l made up my mind that the
cat mad gone TO join her kitten. when
see ripple on the water, and the
next minute the yaller cat come to the
top.
one swan ashore, and she had the
catfish in tow. The catfish was dead
and considerable elawed up.
The yaller cat drug it out on
shore. Then she ripped it open with
Ter claws, and out stepped the kitten
ng as as life and twice as natural. IT
vas dazed little fer spell, but soon
rot it's bearin's, and trotted away
With the old yaIler eat as if nothin' had
happened, and didn't see 'em no more.
There" concluded the man from
'ochuck, "them's the news I've brunv
'ver this time. Don't you believe i
cen 'em?"
baidy' the landlord, lit his cigar
'utt, put 1T in his mouth and said:
res 1 DO. But yoa wouldn't "a.
he stone frolic."
ms view OF the case seemed to af-
90 the Ss,, - - = !, "