The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1904-01-21

4
GETTING MY MEALS AND LoDaIN
hog and hominy furnished him in the cab
ms"
81 and Shorty smaeked their lips appre-
ciativeiy.
"a grand old turkey-cock marshaled q
long line OF his followers through stub
blefield in front of me with the precision
OF a Captain drilling company. At a
cluck from the gsbbler they would break
column or wheel into long perfectly
straight line, stretching halfway across
the field, and every time they turned the
sun would dazzle on their bright feathers
like on the soldiers polished metal
You remember them turkeys We struck
at Stigmore's Cove, SIP interrupted
Shorty, with tender Renaissance.
Don't I?' answered his partner. "And
the milk and butter in the spring-houses.' -
The guineas at the nearest house were
the first to notice the approach Of a
stranger, and set up storm of harsh
clacks. The men and women, hard at
work in the fields, grading, raking and
few minutes, as / rode by them toward
the mill, waving saiutation as / passed.
How we'll remember that old mill, with
the great wheel turning slowly in the
rushing, sparkling water. It seemed like
the people, SO deliberate, clumsy and rude,
but so strong and persistent. The stone
door-siils were worn by the footsteps of
generations. Tallies OF red keel on the
walls represented grain brought in by ia
theirs, grandfathers, great-grandfathers.
From the door came the clack OF the
wooden cog-wheels, the soft rush Of the
mill-stones, and the sweet breath of the
grain torn and crushed into breadstuff.
The miller appeared, short, broad-shoul-
dered, with big, round German face, his
heavy black whiskers and linsey clothes
covered with fOur-dust.
20, no. said he, putting out his big
hand. You've come at last, hat you?
You're the new school teacher and
preacher. We hat peen looking vor you
yor two weeks. Come out here aud sit
down.
I'VE went out to where puncheon was
supported between two trees as a bench
for the men to sit and gossip about crops
while waiting for their grists. 1t was
black with age, and cut and carved by the
jack-knives of generations. Men too old
to work in the fields came walking slowly
up from their houses to see the newcomer.
They assisted their steps and leaned on
long stats, with ram's-horn heads. They
were the elders to whom / was to be
physical weakness did not extend to their
wills or their opinions, and that / should
have to tread a narrower, straighter path
than was ever marked out by any Con-
ference or Presbytery, in serving them. /
did not object at all. No man can lay
down a religious law too rigid for me-"
''Mebbe if you'd belonged to Pap's Sun
Il IL, IL ~ 80, uI<I - 4 IL
he bethought himself that he had better
remain silent.
But those old fellows didn't make you
go into the rebel army, / know" broke in
Shorty. How did that come about?"
Twill, you're always SO impatient"
admonished Maria. Don't interrupt. Let
him tell the story his own way. I'm aw-
fully interested in it, just as he IS telling
it. Go on, please, Don't mind Will. He
is always looking at the end of the book
to see how the story comes out"
do, please, go on telling the story just
as you have" begged Annabel "Your de-
scriptions are just like those in books, and
/ just love descriptions of peoples and
places"
well, you would have been a great
deal more interested il you could have seen
living there precisely as their forefathers
Black Forest of Germany. 1t was 80 or
40 miles, over awful roads, to the nearest
little town, and few OF them ever went
there during the whole course Of their
lives. The most of them had never been
out Of the little cove, and did not want to
go out. They hadn't any money, and
didn't want any. In many OF the families
YOU could find some of the queer old Ger
man coins their forefathers had brought
with them, and which were kept as relics.
Once a year or thereabouts some of the
more enterprising men would take over
the mountains drove OF cattle, or
horse-load OF raccoon skins and other furs,
and bring back what powder and lead,
needles, combs, raxors and knives, paper
and other things the settlement needed,
and that was about the extent of
their commerce with the outer world.
They raised oil the fax and wool needed
for their clothing, and their women spun,
wove and made it mp. They tanned their
own leather, and made it into
boots, shoes and harness.: potter
in the settlement followed the trade his
grandfather had in Germany, and pro-
duced jugs, crooks, jars, dishes and cups
OF the old German pattern. The carpen-s
tiers sawed ont boards with Old-fashioned
whipsaws, and made tables, chairs, bed
steads, dressers, cnpboardx and bfher fur
niture They never used nail. but fas-
tened everything together strongly and
securely with wooden pins, which they
used very skilfully. The only nails in the
settlement we're those the blacksmith ham,
mered out OF the carefully fhered-up
~ 8,s,,s, As>f