The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1904-03-25

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"MEBBE THE WHALE swALLERED JOINER
What's the matter that what's good
huff fur Elder Hopkins an everybody
else round we're amt good huff fur
yo?'
Put | amt a-believin the story
How's a man gwine to live right on
arter he's bin swallered by whaley
"'That's none of our bizness, size
says.
But I'm maxim it my bizness.' says
|. What don't seem likely to me
amt gwine to believe in
But yo' might keep shet about ii
an not raise fuss. Who air yo'. Zeb
White, that yo' disputes the iBible:'
THAT started the row." said the old
man, IAN we had some purity hot words.
said didn't believe the story, an she
said she didn't keer whether did or
not. an we was sassin away when we
heard cry up on the hillside. 1t was
sunthin like the cry of child, an the
old woman gifts up an listens an says:
"'Zeb. thar's leetle child wanderin
about in the bresh. Jest boot two or
three boots to draw it this way
The cry come ag'in, an then | know
ed what 1t was. 1t wasn't no lost
child. but a prowlin wildcat. hadn't
heard Oh fur two vars but was dog
suah of the game. I'd hev told the old
woman, hut she got mad bekase
wouldn't boot an called me names.
When the third cry comes, she says to
me:
Zeb White. that must be Joe Ba-
ker's leeile boy Jim. an he's wandered.
two miles away from home. If yo'ye
Got a heart il yo'r busum. yoll 80 Co
the mounting an Erd him an bring him
lGown in yor ari.ss
|. IL amt Euntn fur lost boys says
rs fills ~ pipe.
Then am. I'll go up thar myself
Better rot
But | VIII Befo' the Lawd, but
don't know WHAT'S come over yo'. Zeb
i'ust yo' go an deny that the whale
swallered joiner. an then yo' won't
move hand or foot to save an inherent
child from perishin. Mebbe 20 air git
tin ready to turn Mormon an run away
from me?'
~ amt takin wild varmints fur lost
boys. says as the scream come ag'in
Its no Wild varmint. It's the
voice of leetle Joe Baker. an he must
be skeert almost to death of the dark
ness. Yo' sot right yere like an old
mewl. an III 90 up an find him. I'm
thankin the I.awd 70 haln't got no
children of yo'r own
with that she grabs up a stick an
starts up the hill While knowed that
Il wildcat was roamin round, didn't
think the old woman would come to
any hurt. | hoped the cat would yell
out an skeer her, an so 1t was ten min.
its befo' follered on. She went push.
in through the bresh an calm to Joey.
an now an then the cat cried out In an
swer. | was doin heap of laughin to
myself when the old woman calls back
to me:
"'Come on. Zeb! I've dun found the
child!
"'Then bring him along says l.
~ cant He's Up tree Zeb, did
| - SNVl H'ul VI iVS' IVY SHAuDin "
trceT
Not skassly. but mebbe they do it.
IAN his eyes are shinin like two
Goals of fire ! never knowed that lost
chi ,renS eyes looked that way at
night
Il knowed the cat had clumb a tree
Pm was lookln down al the old woman.
an lad jest opened my mouth to cry
out warnn when the cat Kissed an
growled an ratified the bark with her
claws. That was huff The old wom-
an gin O yell an started to run. but at
the fust move she fell over a log |
reckon that cat must hev bin mighty
mad bout sunthin. fur she screamed
out an jumped to the ground an in two
jumps was on the old woman's back an
usin her teeth an claws like SIM /
grabbed up club an mixed In. but at
the fust blow the club broke. an the
eat turned on me- Lemme tell yo' sun
thin bout wildcats. II yo' was to be
pitched into a hole on top of fo'teen
buzzsa WIS. II wouldn't be as bad as
vim a row with one full grown Wild
can She would gin me a bite an then
gin the old woman a clawin. en- thar
was no gettln away from her. We had to
fight fur our lives. an ! never did sich
dghtin in all my days. We'dA&ev both
bin done up except that dashed the cat
ag'in tree an stunned her. an while
she lay thar we fled to the house an
locked the doah. We hadn't skassly
got in befo' the critter was screeehln
round. an. not bein able to git az us.
she Went round to the shed an bit an
clawed my old rlewl til he was L0
good all winter.
Ne was a drefful sigh 20 see when
o. ~. satS Tn $1,000. 10 -. s-s~- ..-'-