Williston graphic. (Williston, Williams County, N.D.) 1895-1919, 1903-06-25

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find out who it was that was walkin'
off with his mutton, and put stop
| to it.
! "'Actin' on his idee he drove what
sheep was left into an old cabin he
had in the woods, about mile from
his clearin', and shut 'en up. Then he
went home and told his poor old ia
| Their, who was sufferin' tremendous
with the rheumytiz that day, what he
had done with the sheep.
"' ''That's good idee," says Abner.
IF they won't be safe now," says he,
"you mowt jest as well turn 'em loose
and let 'em run from Dan to Beershe-
BY" says he.
""And more than that" says Caleb,
''I'm gointer to set the bar trap right
in front O. the cabin door," says he.
Poor old Abner he WINGED with q
twang O the rheumytiz, and when he
got over it he says to Caleb:
"That's another good idee," says
he. "Only don't set the trap in front
o. the door. Set it under the window.
If the thief comes he'll be sure you've
got the door locked and he'll 60 to the
winder to climb in," says Abner. "Set
the trap under the winder," says he.
"'Caleb said he would, and along in
the afternoon he started with the
trap for the cabin. On the way there
he got another idee. He wouldn't set
the bar trap at the cabin. He'd rig
up dead fall door that'd come down
with a bang and ketch on the bottom
the minute the thief opened the real
door to the cabin and stepped inside
"'Then he'd nail the winder down
and as the dead fall door couldn't be
opened from the inside, he'd have the
thief snug in the cabin and his leg
wouldn't be all smashed by . trap.
Caleb rugged up setch door.
"'Ihe work took so long that Caleb
didn't git back home till way after
dark, and his sufferin' old father had
gone to ned, so Caleb didn' disturb him
to tell him about it.
"'Next mornin' bright and early,
Caleb went over to the cabin to see if
anybody had been circumvented in try
in to walk off with sheep or two O.
hisn, and sure enough the dead-fall
door was down.
"'"Ha, hal" says Caleb. Give got
the sheep-stealin' citizen, have II"
He yanked the ketch of the door
open and riz the deadfall. Josiah, who
do you s'pose walked out o the cabin?
Caleb's poor old father!
"'Now, most fathers, after being
treated like that, would lave been so
tremendous mad that they'd have
made the fur fly around there, and no
mistake, but sutferin' old Abner wasn't
mad. He was jest hurt.
Ellis poor old heart was panged. He
looked in sorrow at Caleb, and he
says:
"' "Caleb," says he, "I'd never "a
thunk it of you. An only son, tool"
he says. "And trappin' for his poor old
father as sheep thief! IF you didn't
want me around no longer, Caleb" he
says, ''I'd "a gone fur, fur away, if
you'd only give me hint. But, no mat
ter. You needn't git no warrant. I'll
go give myself up. You've cooked the
CSAuCANC az III uOS al A4SAVS ~Au NY
gray hairs'll go down in sorrow to the
county seat and rest in the jail"
"'Caleb he jest bellered and bellered,
to think that Abner should imagine
for minute that he s'pected him O.
bein' sheep thief.
'"'Tain't so much what you've
done to me, Caleb" says poor old Alb
ner, ''but what'll jimmy say?. Will
jimmy be likely to take up with the son
of sufferin' father that you've gone
and made out to be a sheep thief? She
won't do it, Caleb! In amin at your
poor old father I'm afeerd that you've
put the ball under your own foreshoul-
der, Caleb" he says.
"'This made Caleb feel worse and
worse to see what a terrible thing he
had gone and done, and he begged of
his sufferin' parent to tell him what he
could do to undo it.
"'"Well," says Abner, the tears run
min down his cheeks, II can't never feel
the same lords you as I USE to, Caleb"
says he, "but SEEM as you're con-
science-struck, won't disgrace you by
exposin' what you've done, provided
you give me 500 in cash and pay my
stagin' to Sprout Hill, over in Jersey,
where I've wanted to spend my closin'
days for long time back" says Alb
ner.
"'And Caleb, sorrowin', done it.. And
he never sot no more traps for sheep
thieves. And the funny part of it was
| that he never lost no more sheep nor
chickens, which he said was more than
he deserved, after treatin' his poor old
father the way he did, when he had
got up and gone way over to the cab
in in the night, sufferin' as he was
with the rheumatic, to watch ag'in
the comm O. thieves and chase 'em
away, not wantin' 'em to git in the jaws
o the big bar trap that he thought
was sot under the winder.
"'Caleb and jimmy got married, but
see what narrow escape Caleb had
from losin' her, jest by trappin' for
sheep thieves!
"'Of course says I, there hahn no