Rock Island Argus., 1903-01-28
DAILY SHORT STORY
The Custodian.
lOriginal.1


house had caved in, the window panes
were broken. the fences down. Behind
the house was a solitary hut. The only
thing left of the former splendor of the
place was the trees. A desire came over
me to know something of this noble
ruin. 1 walked up to the house and,
seeing no one. went back to the hut,
where 1 found a venerable negro sit
ting ON a box before his cabin door,
smoking u cob pipe.
Good morning, uncle"
''Mornin', sah."
"Are you the only person about the
placer"
"Spec am, sab, an I'ze been de only
pusson bout de place fo' fo'ty yeas"
/ offered the old man a cigar. which
he declined, preferring his pipe. Throw
ing myself on the grass, 1 waited for
him to talk. As he did not, 1 made n
remark by way of a starter.
81 suppose this was once a busy
place"
Reckon it was busy place, sab. 1t
belonged to Cunnel Peyton. He was
Cunnel Peyton befo' de wah. though
he didn't nebber command nothin' den,
L
on. He owned a hundred t'ousand mig
gers"
"You mean a thousand"
'Yes, bout dat. Dey all libed in de
cabins long hyer."
What has become of the cabins?"
al burn 'em all up fo' firewood.
Missy Dorothy Peyton was bout twen-
ty yeas old when de wah KUN on. Dat
war de time when dis place war fine.
All de Peyton family, five chillun.
war growed up. fou' boys an one girl.
De flower ob de flock war Missy Dol
ly. De cunnel an de boys went away
to de wah, leavin' Missy Peyton an
Missy Dolly. Dere war three Pickerin'
boys on a plantation ober dar, an dey
war all three in love with Missy Dolly.
Dey all went to de wah, an when dey
lef' Missy Dolly war gagged to George
Pickerin', de oldest.
"Well, de fus' Peyton killed war
Howell Peyton, at Manassas. Mex
KUN de cunnel, at Sharpsburg. Roger
tux de camp fever, KUN home an died
dere in de house. He had no mo- n
died befo' George Pickerin' war
brought home to de Pickerin' house
ober dab an died. Missy Dolly nussed
him. Dat war de fus' yea oh de wah.
an one day, two yeas aftah Marse
Tom PiGkerin' KUN marchin' up with
he troops. lookin' so harnsome an so
lax he brudder George dat when he
went away Missy Dolly done promised
to marry him.
after de time when de messenger
rode up to tell dat de cunnel had been
shot Missy Peyton done pine away,
specially dat her favorite son, Howell,
war taken, an when de news OBJ de
battle of Gettysburg kun, an dat
Marse Roger had been shotted daid,
Missy jes' done glib up an died in de
summer. Dts leabe Missy Dolly all
lone. But. as luck wud hab it, Marse
Donald, de las oh de Peyton brudders,
TUX sick an KUN home on leabe.
Twas lucky, fo' Tom Pickerin' war
blowed up in de mine at Petersburg
an Missy Dolly was lef' sort oh wild
der nudder time.
Donald Pickerin' hung long an
died in de spring oh '65. at de season
when de roses air bloomin' an bout de
time when de Confederacy stopped
bloomin' oh all de fine people alive
fou' yeas befo' on de two plantations
only Missy Dolly an Alan Pickerin'
was lef' Soon IS de south'n men glib up
de job Marse Alan kun back an fin
Missy Dolly libin' all lone hyer on dis
plantation. Mos ob de niggers had done
gone Dey warn't none oh 'em lef'
'cept me an my fambly hyer in dis cab
in Marse Alan war de only one oh
Miss DolIy's lovers lef', an after awhile
20, hi
didn't max no fuss bout de weddin,
fo' dere warn't nobody to KUN to it
'cept de ghosts.
"Dey tried mighty hard to stay on de
plantation. but 'twarn't no use fo' Mis-
sy Dolly to try to lib whar she had been
so happy befo' de wah, an now not
eben de niggers war lef'. So one day
she says, Uncle Peter. me an my hus-
BAN a-goin' to lib in New Yo'k, an we
want you to stay hyer an TEX care oh
de plantation De mex day dey lef',
an It seemed IS if de ole place had
drawed it's las breaf an gone to sleep,
lax putty nigh all de family in de bury
in groun' ober ON de hillside dar.
missy Dolly didn't lib berry long;
spec dere war too much noise an fuss
in de city fo' her delicate 'stution. She
had some chillun. One OBJ 'em KUN
down hyer Onct, but he war city pus-
son an didn't carry no weapons an
didn't look lax de fine gentlemen with
long ha'r what used to ride bout on dis
plantation. Marse Alan Pickerin' mar
ried nudder wife an had mo- chillun,
an when he died dis place got all mixed
up in de law, so nobody can't do nothin'
at all bout it.
my ole oman died a yea ago, an
my chillun air all wuken in udder
places. i keep watch ober de ole home.
It's mighty lonesome sometimes, an
when 1 CANT stan it no longer l jes'
shet my eyes an see de place swarmin'
with niggers. an Cunnel Peyton boss
In, oil NIics.r- Dnx-fnIn tn Kin