Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1903-08-08
ABNHfR} DANIEL
Bv WILL N. HARDEN, Author :%t..srs." st
Copyright 1902 by Harper Bros All rights reserved
"Wel," said Alan. "you delivered tn

yes. ADner was looking StrdlSut
ahead Of him. "They was fer Colonel
Seth Barclay. l driv' up to the side
gate, after I'd helloed in front till
was hoarse, an who do you reckon
come trippin' out O. the dinin' room?
1t was her. Eff you hain't never. ketched
'er off'n her guard round the house.
you've missed treat. burned eft l
don't like 'er better without a hat on
than with all the fluffy aamdoodle that
gals put on when they 60 out. She was
as neat as a new pin. an seemed pow
erful glad to see me. That made me
bless the Widder Snowden fer sendin'
me thar. She said the cook was OF
som'er's. an that old niger Ned, the
stableman. was in the garden patch
behind the house, so she was thar by
'erse'f. She actually looked like she
wanted to tote in the hams 'erse'f
ruther'n bother me. but you bet my old
bones hoped off'n this seat quicker'n
you could say Jack Robinson with yore
mouth open.
IL was afeerd my team wouldn't
stand. fer fellers was a-scootin' by on
bicycles. but tuck the hams to the
back porch an put 'em on shelf out'n
re'ch O. the dogs. Then went back to
my wagon. She follered me to the
fence. an | noticed that some'n' was
wrong with 'er. She looked 80 funny
an droopy about the mouth, an kept
a-talkin' like she was afeerd I'd fly off.
She axed all about Adele an how she
was a-makin' out down In Atlanta. an
said she'd heerd that Sis was mighty
popular with the young men. an from
that she axed about my craps an the
meetin' goin' OH at Big Bethel. Finally
she got right white about the mouth
an said kinder shaky that she was
afeerd you was mad about some'n' her
pad said about you, an never seed
woman as nigh cryin' as she was with
out doin' Of it.
81 told 'er was at the fust Of it, but
I'd noticed how worried you've looked
heer Of late. an so told 'er I'd been
afeerd some'n' had come betwixt you
two. Then she put her head down on
the top rail O. the fence an belt it thar
fer q good minute. After awhile she
looked up an told me all about 1t an
ended by akin me eff thought she was
o blame IN the matter. told 'er no,
Sut her old skunk Of a daddy had acted
sech fool that ! couldn't hold in. I
reckon | told 'er jest about what I
thought O. i'm. an the more | raked
up agin i'm the better she seemed
pleased. tried to pin 'er down to what
she'd be willin' to do in pinch ef 'er
pa continued to hold out agin you, but
she was too sharp to commit 'erse'f. It
lest looked like she wanted to make up
with you an didn't want no row
nuther."
The horses stopped to drink at q
clear stream of water which ran across
the road Oh s bed Of brown pebbles.
The brides were too tight to allow
them to lower their heads, so Alan
went out Oh the heavy tongue between
the pair and unfastened the reins.
When he had regained his seut, be told
the old man in detail all tfat had hap
pened at the dance ut the hotel ending
with the advice he had received from
Rayburn Miller.
"I don't know about that" Abner
said. Maybe Miller could call halt
like that an 60 on like nothin' had hap
R0l11n
couldn't: but it's fool advice. You
mought miss it. an regret it to yore
dyin' day"
Alan locked at him in some surprise.
he had hardly expected just that stand
on the part of q confirmed old bachelor
like his uncle. The old mans glance
swept dreamily over the green fields
on either side Of the road across which
the red rays of the setting sun were
streaming. Then he took deep breath
and lowered the reins till they rested
Oh tile backs of the horses.
my boy" he began, Ppm a good
mind to tell you some'n' that l hain't
mentioned fer mighty nigh forty yeer.
l don't believe anything out my IN
trust in that town gal an you would
make me bring it up. Huh! Ray MIL
Ter says you kin pass 'er over jest as
ef you'd never seed 'er, does he? An
60 OIL an pick an choose agin. Huh!
I wasn't as old as you are by five yeer
when the one I'm talkin' about passed
away, jest a week after me an herd
come to a understandin'. I've seed
women, women, women, sence | seed
'er corpse that day amongst all that
pile O. wild flowers that old an young
fetched from the woods whar ne an
'er used to walk, but eff l live to be as
old as that thar hill I'll never forget
my feelin'. l kin see 'er right now as
plain as l did then. an sometimes my
heart aches as bad. reckon you
know now why. l never got married
Folks has pokea lots O. fun at me,
an tuck it as it was intended. but
lots O. times what they said made me
suffer simply awful. They've picked
out this un an that un, from spring
chickins to hags O all ages, shapes an
sizes, but the very thought O givin'
anybody her place made me sick. Thar
never was but one fer me. may be a
fool. but l believe I was intended fer
her Shucks! Sech skip abOuts as
Miller may talk sech bosh as that. but
| it's beca'se the Lord never give 'em the
| glory O. the other thing
at larnt me the truth about the aft
er life. know thars time to come,
| an q blessed one, ur the Lord never
would "a give ME that taste Of it.
She's somers out O. harms way. an
when me n her meet III not have q