Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-12-17
At the Big House
The Toad, the Grasshopper and the
Rooster.
copyrighted by the Bobss- Merrill Comps


Copyrighted by the Bobbs- Merrill Company
Aun\ Nancy lived in a little cabin on the
| edge OF the woods. not far from the big
house. The children were not long in find
| ing her whereabouts and in making the ac-
| quaintaice Of her granddaughter. Classy, an
| overgrown girl of seventeen, who was just
| beginning to have what Aunt Nancy called
| fool notions about dress and beaux. and
also that of her dog. Bouncer. a lean. hum
CRY and disreputable hound by whom she
set much store account of his pedigree
and 'p'fnts." Just what his valuable points
were no one but Nancy had ever been able
to discover, though many a neighbor whose
evening meal had been snatched in twink
ling beneath his very eyes could bear wit
ness to points which were considered dis
tinctly undesirable
The little cabin was scrupulously clean
within and held many things which the
children had never seen before-the gay
patchwork quilts on the beds. the strings
of red peppers hanging from the rafters,
the curious old salt gourd. polished and dark
as mahogany from years of service The
path and doOryard were swept clean, ard
at one side was little garden in which
fiourished homely old-fashioned flowers,
marigold. zinnias, larkspurs, princess feath-
er, cockscomb and holly hooks. hardy and
gay, needing no coaxing to cheer these hum
BILE folk with their coarse, bright beauty.
Next to Bouncer in Aunt Nancy's affections
were her precious .'poSies:" Classy had to
content herself with third place. The little
people fell into the habit of paying frequent
visits to this coy spot, always finding IL
warm welcome from Aunt Nancy and often
getting the treat of a story besides. The
first time they visited her she celebrated
the occasion by relating certain doings OF
the toad, the grasshopper and the rooster.
Il reckon dar want no mo liveiier cree
turs in de OF times, she began, dan wat
dem thee wuz. Mis- Hoppah-grass. WIGHT
some I'm em called her Mis- Pop-eyes.' long
er her bulgy eyes. she wuz gre't darnser.
darnse roun' in de grass all day long, an
dar wuz some talk er havin' er up befo de
meetin' longer her trifin' ways. Toad-frog
he spen' all his time gwine huntin' after
bugs an sech, an de way he git roun' over
de groun' wuz a caution ter snakes. He
ain stop ter walk; jes' natcfully lift up
FUN one place an went ker-swish, thu de
air an lit on de mex place. l let you know
he wuz a soople man in dem days, dat he
wuZ. He wuZ a curisome sort creetur,
anyways. Jes' lax de toad-frogs desc days,
he had two little bags er white juice right
back NV his eyes, an eff anything got after
i'm er tried ter ketch i'm he jes spurted
dat juice right out on EN- an dey wuz glad
ter let him lone. You KANT suade no dog
ter tackle toad; he ain wanter git dat
p'isin sprinkelt on i'm. Toad-fros he wuz
p'tickler bout his dress. too: git i'm
suit er clo'es evy now an den, jes' lax de
toad-frogs does now. Fus dey mence split
tin up de back an den dey know hits time
ter pull off de OF cloes. WIGHT dey skins
EN- down over der legs jes lax Mars Ned
do his III trousers. an dey pulls an hauls.
usn' der moufs ter hep pull, an wen de OF
cloes is off dey rolls 'em up in bunnel an
jes' natchully swollers EN-, dat dey does
| done seed EN- wild my own eyes
''Chcken-roostah he wuZ rnonst' GUS fine
puffawmer wild his voice; he ain do much
but practuss hit an he wuz dat proud he
KANT wait fer de daylight but git ND early
70 day singin
'Cock-a-d Observation-Disclosures
l kin sing mo- loud dan you:
Cock -a-deedle- doOdie-dee,
Git up an lissen folks ter me-.
Il ain halter tell you dat folks want
likin i'm any too well. 'kase he alluz 'mence
his singin' jes' bout de time EN- dey
wants ter turn over an have nu'rr lii
snooge. Sidesen dat. dey think he's a kim
wv a OF hypermocrit. 'kase he sa inter- long
wild Mis- Hen an de chilens, tendin' lax
on'ies thing he do wuz ter light in, wen
Mis- Hen gin a cackle ter say she done foun'
bug er wu'm, an snatch hit way fun
'er TO she kin say Jack Robumsum.
After w'i!es dey git tu'rr ereeturs down
on EN-, long er all der singin' an darnsn'
an no-kyount. shifless ways, an Wen dey
see dat dey think mebbe hit time ter turn
over new leaf an whu'l in an arm der
Twin So dey git toge'rr an have a confab
an mex up der minis dat dey gwine run a
farm in cahoots. Roostah he wuz 'p'inted
strong claws jes fifteen fer ter scratch up
de groun' wid Toad-frog he ter be de
hoe-han'. an Mis- Hoppah-grass she wuz
ter stay home an do de cookin an look
after de house
"Dey vide de 'vidjun er de wu'k dis-a-way
fer so long time. an dey git on mighty well
rub off yit, but presny Mis- Hoppa h-grass
she git kind er tired an lazy. fer she ain
nuver do a lick er work befo in all her
bawn days. She drap de skillit an fall
back in cheer an putt her footses on a
stool an tie her haid up in hank cher an
say she feelin' SO ailified dat she know she
in fer spell er sickness, buc dey neenter
SEN fer de doctor. 'kase she sho' she gwine
die. anyhows, an she wanter teck her own
time to hit an not be hurried inter de mex
WORT by all dat truck he mex folks swollen
She mOught z well die easy. she say. She
talk bout de doctor plumb scannelouS, 'kase
she ain want him ter come dar an let out
de news dat de on'ies thing wat all her wuz
lazinesS.
Den she elm up de bald an laid dar
groanin' an kyar'yin on. an de men-folks
stan roun' an look at 'er a VILE sort err
epless, an den dey SEES: Well l reckon
dar ain muffin we-all kin do an dey
g'long off ter wuk. Roostah he wuz plowin'
in fur fel' an Toad-frog he wuz hoein'
near de house so dey gree dat he better
git dinner. Dat huccome he halter do de
hoein' an de cookin' an tidy up de house,
let lone waitin on Mis- Hoppah-grass; she
fin Sumpin' fer i'm ter do eV'y five minnits
endurin' err de day.
Dey KEEP hit up pathway ontwel he wuz
won ter a fraZzle, an he say he 'bleeged
ter have sump'n err ru'rr ter churr him up
an drive de tire away. Bout dat time he
canned cross de rim NV a OF neal-sifter an
dat putt notion in his min. He tucken
de rim an stretch a piece err sheepskin over
hit an den he got him piece err fence-rair
an whittle hit down an fasten hit on de
rim. Pres'n'y he fin oil -hawn an he
wu'k dat up inter pegs. an den he git him
some catgut strings an stretch 'em cross
de sitter. Den he screw 'em up wild de cow
hawn pegs 'twel he git EN- in chune an las
he swipe one han 'crost de strings an SUI,
she 'mence ter talk, an 'twuz a sho'-'nuff
banter! OQ6'r dem reg lpr OF nlipkettv.
plunketty niger banjers whar got mo- git
up-an git to EN-, wen 1t come to de marter
::j4Ik -!