Bluefield evening leader. [volume] (Bluefield, W. Va.) 1906-1911, 1910-08-06
DAILY SHORT STORIES
GOOD
MR.. COODENOUCH
By M QUAD
ccpyright. ts1o. by Associated LIT.
erary Press.
b.


When Silas went courting the widow
he very soon found out that he was
handicapped. She had a good educa-
ton. and he had none.
"Mornin', widder!'
Widow. II you please" she would
answer
"Yes. l meant widder. Horses and
cows and sheep and pigs all wellY'
T Very we'll. thank you Won't you
SIT DOWN.
IL guess So"
"widder. don't believe there's 20
Ing to be any circus In Brownsville
this year."
"NoY'
And shouldn't wonder II hog
cholera broke out"
! mop"
"And I've got three hens a.settin'
and expect as many as twenty chicks"
"YesY"
"And-and they say I'm courtin'
you
do they? Well. didn't know IT,"
Neither did l. but l s'pose it's so.
wen. I've got TO be movin' along.
/ Nitu Il We seen you. Wl0Qer.
widow, Mr.. Goodenough"
Yes? ! allus git 'em mixed"
When this sort OF courtship had
been going on for several months Silas
determined on desperate deed. He
rehearsed 1t for n week and then tied
his team to the widows hitching post
and walked around by the kitchen path
to find her feeding the chickens. He
just gave her time to nod and then
started I'm with:
"Widder Spicer. I've been lovin' you
for years and years, and I want you
Tor wife. I'll be good to you. You
needn't make soft soap nor rag car
pets. and II they hold a camp meetin'
anywhere within three miles of us
we'll drive over and stay three days"
Il couldn't think OF 1t. Mr.. Good
enough" was the reply.
Don't care for me. eh?'
j Not enough to marry you
4 Il thought mebbe you did. bnt II you
don't | might as well move on. Them
geese o. yours are lookin' remarkably
well for this time o. year."
Yves"
well. so long. Oh. say, wilder.
buster of n year for grasshoppers.
Hope they won't eat US up here.'
Silas Goodenough didn't drive home
10 commit suicide. He didn't even
think OF IL. He simply thought the
Widow Spicer n bit odd that she didn't
jump at his offer. and after three days
he was all over 1t. Then came a
neiGhbor who said
"Silas. 1 hear that you popped the
question to the Widow Spicer and got
thrown DOWN.
why. yes. I asked her If she'd have
me-.
And she said no."
That's about 1t. Mebbe she didn't
mean 1t. but took 1t that way"
Il guess you took 1t right enough
She turned you down because Jim
Wheeler is counting her. She's i'm love
with him. but l don't think be cares
much about her II she bad more
property he'd marry her. but as it is
l think he's only fooling"
so you think the wilder cares for
him" asked Silas after moments
|. thought.
Il All the women folks say So"
And shed be disappointed IL he
didn't marry herr"
Naturally
"Then Jim orter do Il. Yes. he
orter. The widder's mighty nice wo.
man,. and II would be too bad to make
a fool OF her must see II can't DO
somettin' for her"
The neighbor Iaughed and left him.
and Silas began TO think II ne wasn't
good. mt counting he was very fair 40
thinking. II linn Wheeler was holding
on because the Widow Spicer WASN'T
a catch financially. why. something
must he done. 1t took him Just n
fortnight To figure out what that some
thing was TO be. and be brought 1t
home I'm bis wagon after drive OF
thirty miles. At the back end OF the
Widows farm was rocky detI and a
spring and n rivulet. When Silas Good
enough had made three midnight trips
to that dell. carrying jug OF crude
oil each time. the people for mile
around began shifting the air. When
ne mad made three more they bega
hunting for coal oil. they found II
IL was floating from that spring and
oozing up through the rocks around
IL There was excitement Mt once
The widow had scarcely received the
FIRST offer for her farm when Jim
Wheeler proposed marriage and was
'cceptcd. Then he had something TO
Hay about the succeeding offers. And
after marriage be had all to say.
Men came and looked and investigat.
cd and either shook their heads OF
made cnsb offers. and Silas saw to II
that ME supply Of oil was kept up. The
day after the Spicer farm had been
sold for $4,000 the same neighbor
who had interviewed Silss before
came saunterng over TO say:
We'll Sllas. Jim's got The widow
and $4,000 In cash"
"tsind TO hear &C." repned the re-
jectcd.