Mower County transcript., 1904-08-10
CHAPTER Nv.


c~1ILLYER went out into the star
Il lit night and made his way
Hi down to the BUSINESS portion of
~ the town. He was about to
pass the barroom run by Luke Hill
house, when, hearing the clicking of
billiard balls and the rapping Of cues.
he looked in at the screened door. Two
countrymen, without their coats and
under broad slouched hats, were play
ing at the green table, over which hung
a glass lamp under tin shade con-
~+-"cted from a new dishpan with
hole cut in the bottom, and three or
four half drunken negroes were en-
gagged in betting small amounts on
fortune wheel against the wall. See
ing the merchant, Hillhouse, fat, red
faced man with a dyed and waxed
mustache, came round to him from
behind the counter.
"Lookin' fer George, I'll bet" he
said in friendly, half confidential
tone. Hes jest gone, squire" Hill
yer had years before been a justice Of
the peace. Il went with i'm clean to
the door Of the warehouse an seed
that he went in"
'"Then he was'-
"The wust l ever seed, squire. Oh,
he could walk all right an knowed
what he was about. but he's regular
rippin' terror. He come in here, l
reckon, about an hour ago an tuck a
couple O. drinks an then set down
over thar at the little table. I lowed
he was asleep, he was so quiet, an I
reckon everybody else did, fer Eascom
Truitt from over in the mountains
come in an begun to talk about CID
man Buckley's sentence. He hadn't
said a word that was wrong. but
George heard it an riz suddenly an
come up to him. 'Yo're a-sayin' that
to insult me- he said, right in Truitt's
face. AS big as Truitt is you could
"a knocked i'm down with a feather,
but he told George as straight as he
could that he never knowed he was
thar an didn't mean no harm nohow;
but, sir, George hauled away am hit
i'm in the jaw. It popped like the re-
port of pistol, an Truitt mighty nigh
went down. We parted 'em without
any trouble. In fact, Truitt thinks the
world an all of i'm. George did i'm
favor a long time back, an instead O.
gittin' mad about it Truitt is worryin'
over offendin' the boy. He would have
apologized to i'm, but we all persuad
ed i'm to wait till George was at his
se'f."
The merchant took long, trembling
breath.
II wish, Hillhouse," he said, 'that
you wouldn't let i'm have any more
liquor If you kin git around it,
"Git around itT' laughed the bar
keeper. IF you'll show me mixer O.
drinks in this county that would re-
fuse that feller when he's off I'd like
to see i'm. 1t would cost i'm his life.
He's one man, squire, that ortn't to
fetch a drap, an between you an me
I don't think anything but this scrape
Of his daddy's would have started i'm.
George Buckley Is the high strung sort
that makes either the finest citizens VI
the scum O creation"
II reckon yo're right" agreed Hillyer,
and, turning, he went down to the
warehouse, which was in the next
block below. He found the front door
ajar and saw a light burning in his
clerks room in the rear. Entering
and softly treading over the rough
floor, which was strewn with chaf and
grain and the metal ties of cotton
bales, Hillyer stood in the doorway of
| the young mans room. In a cloud of
cigar smoke George Buckley sat near
little table, without his coat, his col
lar off and his powerful neck showing
through his open shirt. He glared up
at his employer and then rose to his
feet and looked straight at him. T.
George" the old man began in a
voice that quivered through excessive
embarrassment, Il was troubled SO
much about you that I couldn't sleep,
so I got up an come down. l seed
yore light am couldn't keep from COM
in. in" - .@.~
II don't see that you need bother
about me-" was Buckley's surprising
retort. 'I'm no blood kin Of yours,
Mr.. Hilyer.' ~s. l., MI ~.
George, I'm as good a friend to you
as I know how to be, an jest want
you to know that, an ef thar's any
way under the sun that I kin help you
III do IT, . s==.--- +.
s,sfr = To he Continued -->sE T. t5f