Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1904-01-08
HIS WONDERFUL RIFLE.
Traded Il OF Because Il Strained II
self.

self.
That's good team you've got there,
ST." the store clerk ventured.
well, rather" and Silas looked with
fond admiration at the pair Of old pei
ters he was driving.
Buy 'em or swap for 'em?" the calico
measurer inquired.
Traded fer um-traded a gun fer
um."
"A gun? Must have been pretty good
gun to bring in team like that, ST.
WAS 1t good gun? Well, rather"
SiIas assented. 1T was good gun
when first got II, but 1t got strained
In shootin' once, and I he'd to git rid
Of 1t. It was the prettiest silver
mounted, gold-lined old Kentuck' you
ever saw. Regular intellectual gun;
cud shoot anything with 1t. Jest tell
1t what you wanted to hit, pint IT up,
and blaze away, and down I'D cum
your game. Used to shoot wild cats
and catamounts In the dark with 1t.
My old woman cud shoot 1t as good as
any ona Whenever she wanted ter Kill
chicken for Sunday dinner she'd
pint out the one she wanted, lay the
gun on tn door step. and then drive
the chickens around that side Of the
house, and the old gun I'D pick him
every time"
But I should think you could have
made more money by keeping such a
gun instead of trading it off for horses.
Si?' the clerk suggested.
That's jest the pint thet I'm a-com-
in to; it warn't such a good gun when
I made tn trade. It was like this:
I'd been out haulin' some wood one
day, and when I drov' up to the house
long toward sundown my old woman
came a-runnin' out to the wagon, and
says:
".Si, there was a drove Of deer went
| by here bout half an hour ago. and
| they ain't more'n three miles away
now
IT got off the load of wood and
went fer the rifle. I put In a three
mile charge Of powder, and then 1
stood In tn doorway and looked, and
shur'nuf there was five deer Jest COM
in to the top Of knoll about three
miles away. I jest spoke couple OF
words to the old gun, and then rested
her against the door jam, and says to
my old woman:
"'You watch, while I shoot
THE mint I pulled the trigger the
old woman sings out:
you've got him all right, ST. and
shur'nuf there was the biggest, fattest
buck in the lot rollin' over on his side
stone dead. But it spilled the gun
strained ITSELF so that 1t couldn't ever
shoot agin. You cud put in as big a
charge Of powder as yer wanted to-,
but It couldn't throw bullet across
tn road. 1t was strained and spilled.
So l traded it off fer this team-and
got a good thing, too
ITS a good-lookin' team all right
ST. but can they pull?-thet's the real
question" some one suggested.
Silas spat contemptuously on the
1
wagon wheel.
kin they pull? Well rather! Why,
last week 1 was down in Cerro Gordy
county haulin' sand, and in one OF the
coal mines down there they had an
elevator stuck in tn shaft. The boss
miner offered to bet me $40 tibet my
team couldn't pull it up. took him.
| I lest hitched tn rope on behind the
nags, and took up the lines and spoke
ter them, but before they'd pulled fer
three minits the mine boss offered me
twenty dollar bill If I'd stop um.
Yes, sir, they was simply ruinin' tibet
shaft. You see, tn infernel elevator
was everlastin'ly wedged and when the
old hosses found thet they couldn't
bulge It by itself, they jest began haul
in up the shaft and all-pullin the
shaft right out Of tn ground. Befor
could get um stopped they he'd shor-
tened tibet shaft % feet by actual
measur'. The fellers workin' in the fur
ends was pulled up toward the top a
couple Of rods or So" And Silas again
expectorated upon the wagon wheel.