The daily morning Alaskan., 1903-03-05
THE CUSTODIAN


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. I 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 a cob pipe.
Good morning, uncle"
"MOrnin', sab"
Are you the only person about the
placer
"spec am, sab, an I'ze been de only
pusson bout de place 10 fo'ty yeas"
offered the old man cigar, which
he declined, preferrlng his pipe. Throw
ing myself on the grass, waited for
him to talk. AS he did not, made
remark by way Of n starter.
II suppose this was once a busy
place"
Reckon It was a busy place, sab. It
belonged to Cunnel Peyton. He was
Cunnel Peyton befo' de wah, though
he didn't nebber command nothin' den,
an Glneral Peyton while 1t was a-goln'
on. He owned a hundred tousand mig.
gers"
"You mean thousand"
eyes, bout dat. Dey all llbed In de
cabins long hyer."
what has become Of the cablnsI"
81 burn 'em all up 10 lrewood.
Missy Dorothy Peyton was bout TWEEN
" yeas old when de wah kun on. Dat
war de time when dis place war fine.
All de Peyton family, five chlllun,
war grOwed up, fou' boys an one girl.
De flower ob de flock war Missy Dol
~. De cunnel an de boys went away
TO de wah, leavln' Missy Peyton an
Missy Dolly. Dere war three Pickerln'
boys on 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', dc 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 Pickerln' war
brought home to de Pickerln' house
ober dab an died. Missy Dolly nussed
him. Dat war de fus' yea ob de wah,
an one day, two yeas aftah Marse
Tom Pickerin' kun m0rchln' up with
he troops, loollln' 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 fayorite 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. Dis leabe Missy Dolly all
lone. But, as luck wud hab II, Marse
Donald. de las oh de Peyton brudders,
TUX sick an KUN home on leabe.
Twas lucky, To- Tom Plckerin' war
blowed up in de mine at Petersburg.
an Missy Dolly was lef' sort OBJ Wild
der nudder time.
Donald Pickerln hung long an
died in de spring Oh '65, ut de season
when de roses air boomin' an bout de
time when de Confederacy stopped
bloomln'. Oh ali de fine people alive
fouI yeas befo' on de two plantations
only Missy Dolly an Alan Pickerin'
was lef. Soon s de south'n men Glib up
de fob Marse Alan KUN back an I'm
Missy Dolly llbin' all lone hyer on Gis
plantation. Mos OBJ de niggers had done
gone Dey warn't none Oh EN- lef
'cept me an my family hycr in dis cab
IN. Marse Alan war dc only one oh
Miss Dolly's lovers lef, an after awhile
he done 'suaded her TO marry him. Dey
didn't max no fuss bout de weddin
10 dere warn't nobody TO kun TO 1t
'eept de ghosts.
'Dey tried mighty hard to stay on dc
plantation. but 'twarn't no use 10 Mis-
sy Dolly to try to lib whar she had been
so happy befo' de wah, an now not
chen 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 II 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 10 her delicate 'stution. She
had some chillun. One Oh 'em kun
down hyer onct, but he war a 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 Plckerln' mar
ried nudder wife an had mo chillun,
an when he died dis place got all mixed
I'D 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. keep watch ober de ole home
It's mighty lonesome sometimes, an
when CANT stan II no longer jes
shet my eyes an see de place swarmin
N.F.a