Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1903-10-09
Copyright. 1902. by
HARPER q BROS,
Who Publish the Work
In Book Form. All
Rights Reserved

as neat us q new plu, I'LL seemed DOW
erful glad to see me. That made me
bless the Wilder Snowden fer sendin'
me thar. She said the cook was off
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
ruthern 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
reich O. the dogs. Then went back to
my wagon. She follered me to the
fence, an l noticed that some'n' was
wrong with 'er. She looked SO 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' on at Big Bethel. Finally
she got right white about the mouth
nm 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 dom of it.
II told 'er was at the fust of it, but
ia1
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 helt it thar
fer good minute. After awhile she
looked up an told me all about 1t an
ended by akin me eff thought she waa
| to blame in the matter. I told 'er no,
but her old skunk Of daddy had acted
sech fool that l couldn't hold in.
reckon told 'er jest about what I
! thought O. i'm, an the more 1 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 eff 'er
pa continued to hold out agin you, but
she was too sharp to commit 'erse'f. 1t
jest looked like she wanted to make up
with you an didn't want no row
nuther."
The horses stopped to drink at a
clear stream of water which ran across
the road on bed of brown pebbles.
The brides were too tight to allow
them to lower their heads, SO Alan
went out on the heavy tongue between
the pair and unfastened the reins.
When he had regained his seat, he told
the old man in detail all that had hap
pened at the dance at the hotel, ending
with the advice he had received from
Rayburn Miller.
II don't know about that" Abner
said. Maybe Miller could call halt
like that an go on like nothn' had hap
pened. don't say he could nur
couldn't; but it's fool advice. You
dyin' day"
Alan looked at him in some surprise.
He had hardly expected Just that stand
on the part of 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
on the backs Of the horses.
/ "My boy" he began, "Im a good
mind to tell you some'n' that haln't
mentioned fer mighty nigh forty yeer.
don't believe anything but 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
eff you'd never seed 'er does he? An
go on an pick an choose agin. Huh!
l wasn't as old as you are by five yeer
when the one I'm talkin' about passed
away, jest week after me an herd
come to understandin'. I've seed
women, women, women, sence I seed
'er corpse that day amongst all that
pile O. wild flowers that old an young
fetched from the woods whar me an
'er used to walk, but eff live to be as
old as that thar hill I'll never forget
my feelin'. kin see 'er right now as
plain as did then, an sometimes my
heart aches as bad. I reckon you
know now why I never got married.
Folks has poked lots o. fun at me-
an tuck it as it was intended, but a
lots O. times what they said made me
suffer simply awful. They've picked
out this un an that un. from spring
CHICKENS 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 believe ! 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.
ut larnt me the truth about the aft
er life. know thar's time to come,
an blessed one. ur the Lord never
would "a give me that taste of it.
She's som'er's out O. harms way, an
when me m her meet I'll not have a
| wrinkle an I'll be able to walk as spry
an hopeful as did when she was
heer. Thar ort to be punishment re-
served fer hard headed fools that sep
arate lovin' young folks beca'se one
ur tother hain't jest so many dollars
tied in rag. Don't you listen to Mil
Ter. l don't say you ort to plunge right
in an make the old man mad. but don't
give up. Eff she's what think she is,
| an she sees you amt a-goin' to run
after no fresh face, she'll stick to you
like the bark on tree. The wait won't
hurt nuther one Of you either. My
L f,,st 4, &s,,s