The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-03-17
.Haint Won a Hunter?a

properly introduced"
l was sitting on the sway-backed
fence, in front of my Aunt Betsy's
sway-backed house, being a visitor
there for the first time since boyhood.
My questioner was a native who
happened to be pc ng. He had a
bushy and iron-gray beard, that was
also tangled; he wore the wreck of
broad straw hat that was weather
beaten, and a large piece was gone
from one side of the brim, as if an
eager and hungry COW had bitten it
out for fodder His jeans trousers
were held up by one yarn suspender
that was fastened to the garment in
front with wooden peg. His coat
was loose, soiled and butternut af-
fair, ripped about the armpits md
frayed at the cuffs. Yet he was a
pleasant enough looking person, as to
countenance, and was only in his
everyday working clothes. l learned
afterward that he was justice of the
peace there, and l have never been
able to understand how his official
work could have been so hard on his
habiliments.
eyes, sir; I'm Hunter" 1 replied.
Gee! You amt little Tug Hunter,
ar your"
"Well, I'm not so little, seeing that
l weigh about a hundred and ninety
pounds, but l am Joseph Hunter, who
used to be called Tug in these parts
fifteen or twenty years ago"
Il saw that you had the favor Of
the Hunters an seem you settin'
heah on yo' aunt's fence l lowed you
was a Hunter, an maybe Tug, that
went way off yander, while ago Doan
seem so long ago, nuther. But then
when the shadders takes to fallin
toads the east, back yander doan seem
SO long as it does to a young man"
Speaking of the East. / see you
have Travelled some" / said, having
observed little Masonic pin that he
wore on his hickory-shirt front.
Eyes, ben some distance that way"
he replied with touch of pride. An
/ reckin you've seen a monst'ous sight
o. the world sence you went away?"
Been pretty nigh all over it."
you doan say!"
Eyes"
81 reckin you must run across a
mighty sight o. Kaintuckians. So
many's gone away from here An they
ar ginnally cuttin' a pooty big swath,
amt they?'
Eyes, but then there are a great
many people in the world cutting a
big swath besides Kentuckians."
We'll, yes, l lowed thar waz, but
eff l wuz you l wouldn't say a heap
on that subtle while l wuZ around
heah. Kaintuckians is monst'o usly
sot on Kaintucky, you know"
Eyes, know all about it. | was
very much that way myself until had
I tie, and my ideas have changed some
what"
"Lemme tell you. | wuz pooty nigf
TO years in the on-civil war, on tn,
Union side; sence that I've raised {
good many pooty far hawses and go
broke. Gittin old, too. Hawse bizniss
them days, sometimes tuck me to New
| IOIh al CulGdSO, an Oul W est, an
one place er nuther, an that set me t
philosophical. | tuck notice that
heap er Kaintuckians wuz mo, Kahn
tuck when they wuz way off yandeI
than they wuz at home They called
for cawn-bread. mighty loud, in tn,
Willard House at Washinton. bu
they tuck hot biskits, ever time a
home, when they wuz on the table
Whut's mo- I've hearn of model Kahn
tuckians 'mongst big men. out in New
York, an heah and thar. that WI.
noted fur the liquor they could drink
an the poker they could play, an
when you come to figger EN- dowI
they warnt bawn Kaintuckians, at all
but come heah from sommers else, an
pooty soon got to out-Kaintuck tn,
Kaintuckians
'Howsmever, lemme tell you som,
mo. Thar is such a thing as Kahn
lucky characteristics, of the kind 20,
hear about an read about. But al
through, thar's jest as much difrunc
twixt the Kaintucky gentleman an tn
Kaintucky squirt as thar is twixt tn
| Irish gentleman an the Irish tarrier