Middletown transcript., 1910-04-23
6BiII Smiley and g
~ The WidoWG

WOTuS C6uuOt uO JuSbtO0 W pun
Bill, or paint the expression OF
his face as he sat there
completely dumbfounded at this
staring piece Of i'll. After q
while he stepped out Of the
buggy, and getting on his hands
and knees looked over into the
water. Yes, there they we're,
at the bottom, with a crowd of
little fishes rubbing their noses
against them, and Bill wished to
goodness that his noze was as
close for one second. His beauti-
full teeth that had cost him so
much, and the show coming on
and no time to get another set
and the widow and young Sack
rider. Well, he must try and get
them somehow-and no time to
lose for some one might come
along and ask him what he was
fooling around there for. He
had no notion of spelling his good
clothes by wading In with them
on, and besides, if he did that, he
could not go to the widows that
night, so he took a look up and
down the road to see that
no one was in sight, and
quickly undressed himself, laying
his clothes in the buggy to keep
them clean. Then he ran around
to the bank and waded into the
almost icy cold water; but his
teeth did not chatter in his head,
he only wished they could.
Quietly he waded along SO as not
to stir up the mud, and when he
got to the right spot he dropped
under water and came up with
the teeth in his hand, and replac-
ed them in his mouth.
But bark What noise is that?
A wagon! and little dog bark
ing with all his might, and his
horse is starting. Whoa Whoa
| said Bill, as he splashed and
foundered out through mud and
water. Confound the horse.
Whoa! Whoa Stop, you brute,
stop! But stop he would not, but
went off at a spanking pace with
the unfortunate bachelor after
him and the little dog yelping
after the bachelor. Bill was GER.
tainly in capital running costume,
but though he strained every
nerve he could not touch the
buggy or touch the lines that
were dragging on the ground.
After while his plug hat shook
off the seat and the hind wheel
went over it making it as fat as
pancake. Bill snatched it as
he ran, after jamming his fist iu.
to it, stuck it, all dusty and
dimpled, on his head. And now
he saw the widows house on the
hill, and what, oh what would he
do Then his coat fell out and he
slipped it on, and then making
a desperate squirt he clutched the
back of the seat and scrambled
in, and pulling the buffalo robe
over his legs, stuffed the other
things beneath. Now, the horse
happened to be one that he got
from Squire Moore, and he got it
from the widow, and he took it in
to his head to stop at her gate,
which Bill had no power to pre-
vent, as he had not possession of
the reins; besides he was too
busy buttoning his coat up to
the chin to think Of doing much
else. The widow heard the rat
tie of the wheels and looked out,
and seeing that it was Mr.. Smi-
ley, and that he did not offer to
get out, she went to the gate to-
see what he wanted, and there
she stood chatting, with her
white arms on the top of the gate,
and her smiling face turned right
towards, him, while the cold
chills ran down his shirtless back
to his bare feet beneath the buff
falo robe, and the water from
his hat had combined to make
some nice little streams of mud
that came trickling down his
face.
She asked him to come in. No,
he was in hurry, he said. Still
he did not offer to go. He did
not like to ask her to pick up his
reins for him because he did not
know what excuse to make for
not doing it himself. Then he
looked down the road behind him
and saw a whitefaced horse com.
ing, and at once surmising that
it was that Gus Sackrider coming
he resolved ito or die, and hur-
riedly told his errant. The widow
would be delighted to go, Of
course she would. But wouldn't
he come in. No, he was in a
hurry, he said; had to go on to
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