The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-12-13

It was A hot July day-so hot, that the ragged old mulberry and the decrepid china tree, failed utterly in their appoint ed task of mitigating the fierce heat that fairly enwrapped Old Nose Andersohs 5 cabin.
 Nose himself sat in the little blot of shade flung down by the China tree' ana 0azed sadly across the scorched and withered patches of his one-mule crop. No rain had fallen on it for two months and still the skies were as brass.
 The old negro was facing three great calamfties. of which the threatned total failure of his crop was. just now, to him, the least. Greater in importance, was the fact that the merchant who advanced him the necessary supplies with which he was to make his crop, had that morning sent Aunt Maria, Moses's old wife, empty handed away, or, as he expressed it, "Wtd out Ter dust Ter meal" on the ground that he couldn't put in any more money when he was likely to get none at all out"
 The negro keeps no books. He regulates his expenditures by what he can get from the person who advances to him. His wants are measured by what he thinks he can get From January until August, he feels, rich or poor, as he feels able to get much or little in advance on his future crop. Whether the crop will pay for what he gets, worries him not in the least.
 Nose therefore, being confronted with the dire pauperism of nothing at ak was in the depths of despondency. Especially was this so since the anual "big meetin' at Shiloh Church was at hand, on which occasion it behooved one of Moses's age and standing to apear in proper guise. And tAs required money.
 Second only to this, in point of magni-
 | c. Aasmaa NNTk look for him at sunrise, he had found the venerable mule which drew his blow, dead, in the stagnant little prairie pool from which he was accustomed to drink. Whether the beast had succumbed to too hearty diet of green cornstalks, or in a fit of despondency had rashly taken his own life could not be decided. At all events he was dead, and his lean grey careus lay almost buried in mud and water. In view of all these things, it was clear necessary for Nose to organize him. self into a ways and means committee.
 It was now the close of the noon hour. Borne on the shimmering waves of heat across the prairie swales, come the harsh sound of a sweep beaten over at the dis tant Allen quarter. Mechanically Nose got up from his seat and moved away toward his little tumble down stable. AS he passed the doorway of the house, the ample form of Aunt Maria appeared framed therein.
 What you guy do?" she asked.
 'De mule dade, 'en you can't blow.
 ''Ef you'd dun lak I said, en' moggidge dat mule, you'd CT dun had sump'n fur i'm. Now de buzzards Fl git i'm fur nut tin.
 Still grumbling to herself she turned away into the house, but Nose stopped. He had an idea. He could mortgage the mule anyhow. dead though he was. He knew @ man who loaned money on stock" He had once even borrowed s from him, on a COW. The COW had died before the mortgage fell due, and to the best of his knowledge, the man had never even seen her. He had made a good crop that year, and the money had been promptly repaid. Mo- the buzzards should not have his mule. He would bury him in the water hole and then go and give CT moggedge on into ter Mir. Angler"
 The doubtful morality of such a pro ceeding gave him as little embarrass- ment as It's iilegality If he had reason ed about 1t at all, his reasoning would have been about in this wise. When his