The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1912-01-24
SAM AND
THE BULL
By M QUAD.
By M QUAD.
Copyright, 1911, by Associated Lit
erary Press.

mer's day. and as we sat on the steps
Of the village postoffice he told this
story:
My naybur, Jim Filkins, is havin'
heaps of trubble with his two boys
just now. One of 'em was over to
the railroad t'other day and wanted
to fight the bullgine, and t'other went
to town and got his eye almost put
out in fight. Reckon they'll grow
up to be cantankerous pair. had
son-Sam. the only child we ever
had-and he died some five vars ago.
In one way I'm sorry and in another
way glad 1t made me kinder lonely
to hev him go, but could figger up
that it was fur the best.
THAT boy had powerful good
heart in him as gineral thing. but
thar was days when the devil seemed
to hev possession Of him. 1t wasn't
no good to switch him. and when he
was outer sorts it wasn't no good to
argy with him. He was fifteen Vars
old when l cum home from the wah,
and his head was swelled up big huff
fur man of fo'ty. He finally got so
that he felt like rubin up agin me.
was Mt work in the garden one day
when he Gums home from the Corners
a-spittin' right and left. and bimeby
he Gums out to me and SEE:
Pop. mebbe 20 calls yo'self the
best man on this yere mounting
"Mebbe I do SEE as looks at
him outer my left eye.
"'But you amt, though, and l kin
prove it,
"'Then who is?'
"'He stands right here befo' yo',
and his cognomen ar Sam. Dad. I'm
goin' to whop yo'.'
Better git into the house, boy. and
hev yo'r mother gin yo' some bread
and butter and 'lasses on it.
But that boy had the wust kind Of
swell head" said the old man. "and he
was airnest in thinkin' he could whop
his pop. He gifts higher and higher.
and bimeby he sails fur me. knowed
what was cumin'. and before he could
wink twice Topped him on his back
and then whopped him till he hollered
fur mercy. He lived two Vars arter
that, but he didn't try that game on
me any mo-.
THE older he growed the more can
tankerous he got, and one day the ole
woman cum to me with tears In her
eyes and SEE:
"'Sam's a-gittin' wusser and wusser
all the time, and I'm almost hopin' the
I.awd will take him away
''THe Lawd couldn't manage him II
he did git him. sez l.
"Mebbe he could. Mebbe he's got
pen up thar in heaven to put Sam into
and keep him till he's bin made over
I'm goin' to dye my shawl black and
fix up a nournin' bonnet, fur that boy
of ours will be brung home dead befo
he's month older
well. 50 he W&s-so he was said
the old man. with Il touch OF pathos in
his voice He was down to the Corners
one day to blow and brag with the
crowd a-hangin' out thar in them days.
when man Gums ridin' on mewl to
say that Bill Clark's ball had broken
out of the field and was comm up the
road. That bull was bis un and had
hooked two bosses to death. AS the
man was givin' the alarm the bull
showed up down the road. He was
PAWN the airth and maxim the heav-
ems quake with his heller. and SIGH as
had bosses tied up was mighty spry
to turn EN- loose and git 'em away.
Nobody didn't propose to git in the
way of that bull and take chances
nobody but my son Sam. 1t was
chance fur him to show off. and he riz
up and yelled:
"'This is the day hev been Twin
fur. I'll go fo'th and take that bull by
the horns and flop him on his back
THE men tried to argy with Sam,
but he was sot. and. pullin' off his
coat and flingin' down his hat. he
walked out and begins to paw and bel
Ter same as the bull. The critter stops
to look at him. and fur mint or .wo
he must hev wondered what it was.
Then his eyes began to glare and his
tail to stand out. and the crowd hol-
Tered to Sam to git over the fence.
He never minded 'em. but with roar
and heller he run in on the bull, was
tossed twenty feet in the air, and when
the animal got through with him there
wasn't much left to bury. A man
cum up to break the news to us. !
wasn't home at the time. and he SEE
to the ole woman:
Mrs. Sneed. ar yo'r son Sam home
today?"
HE amt says she.
"'And do yo' know why he amt?
Not exactly. but l reckon it's kase
he's Sumwhar else
"'That's right. Mrs. Sneed-perfeck
" right and proper. Yo'r son Sam
amt home and amt comm home. kase
he's got bizness up thar in the land of
angels and golden streets. which will
detain him fur sum time"
1T was sad case. but me and the
ole woman hev allus reckoned that
Providence had hand in it. Sam