Evening journal., 1912-10-28
BY NJ QUAD

I kuONtu WDdl ~ GAUtlAs W ntn
she began TO Jaw I began to whistle.
but arter half an hour got mad I'd
a. gone out and slept in the woods
only II was gwine to be a dark and
sainy night She sulked and sulked
and when It cum time TO go TO bed
sot right yere and never minded the
time. She didn't offer TO make up. aud
so was sittin' yere when midnight
cum. She was asleep and so was
when thar cum a cry from outdoahs.
II was just like the boot OF woman
lost in the woods. and It was ringin
in my ears when the ole woman sits
up in bed and calls out:
"'Zeb White. what on airth was that.
and what ar yo' doing sittin' up thar
Ike a knot on a logT
~ didn't hear nuthin' more'n an
owl hootin'.' says !.
"Then why don't yo' go out and
keep him companyT
''I didn't say nuthin' to that. and pur-
ty soon she fell back and went to sleep
again. Mebbe fifteen minits had pass
ed when the cry come ag'in and sent
shiver over me and brought the ole
woman out Of bed
"'Befo' the Lawd. but what kin II
bef' she gasped.
A woman hootin for help. SCI l.
att can't be. No woman would be
hootin' around yere this time o. night
Then It may be an OWL
"'Then you may be fuler
Her. calm me fule riled me up.
and. though was purity sartn that it
was the scream OF a wildcat. deter
mined not TO Civ In.
"'Shoo. It's one o them Davis gals
lost in the woodsr
"'Then you don't know sugar from
sand. Listen TO thatl Does that sound
like the boot OF a womanT
"'Jest exactly. I'll bet my ole gun
agin a coonskin that it's a woman. I'll
open the doah so she kin see the light
and then call to her
"'Zeb White. I'm tellin' yo' it's a
wildcat and not a woman. n yo'
hadn't almost got to he a fule yo'd
know by the sound No woman ever
yeowled that way. no matter how
skeert she was. What 20 gwine TO
dog
"'opeu the doah, of co'se.'
"'Waal. If yo' open that doah sum
body's gwine to cit clawed and bit
and yo' take my word fur It.
THAT riled me sum mo-, and wal
bound to open that doah or bust
} could even h'ar the critter prowlin
! around. but | want gwine to let th'
ole woman bluff me down. riz NJ
and was listenin'. when she sez:
This yere cat is arter meat fun
shorep
THAT yere woman Is lookin' fun
our cabin, yo' mean, and yere goes tC
let her in
with that I crossed over and open
ed the back doah. and as | did so the
ole woman made n dive fur the bed
and kivered up her head. ] had JUS
swung the doah back and opened my
mouth to hoOt when sumthin' knocked
me clean across the cabin and uttered
M awful scream. It was sur,
enough wildcat and n mighty big on'
at that He fust jumped on the bee
and scratched at the clothes but as
got up he turned and tackled me.
was took so sudden that the critic
had all the advantage at fust. bu
bimeby ! got hold Of a stool and sorte
held my own. He kept me might
busy, but ] saw the ole woman sittin
up in bed arter a bit and heard he
say:
"'zeb White. II that's one o. then
Davis gals, then she's powerful
changed about since last Sunday, VIII,
don't yo' ask her to take her bonni
OF and stay all nighty
but hain't akin no help fror
you says I. though / figured that
couldn't last ten minits mo.
Never knOwed the Davis girl wa
so smart befo'.'
"'YOu hain't got all the peartnes
around yere'
Just how long that fout lasted
can't say. but I finally driv the critic
Outdoahs and got the doah shet. an
} then ! fell down and tainted ava
and didn't know uuthn' mo- fur a
hour. ] don't rightly remember ho'
many bites and scratches | got. but
. was laid up for six weeks and had
TUT time of It."
+, Mrs. White didn't have anythiu
! more to say. did she-anything NOR
about your taking the wildcats screar
for the boot OF woman" was asked
= "Ssrtinly she did, he replied. "'Bor
e the fust words ! heard arter l cum I
{ was:
t Say. Zeb White. yo'd better loo
out fur that Davis gal arter this! She
bit and clawed you till I've got I
make a poultice as big as barrel I
kiver the hurts
! And what did you say in reply"
/. "Huthin'-nuthin' tall. I'D jes
l blutfed myself and got the worst of 4
; and so shet up. Yes. shet up and Il
her grin and chuckle and poke fun q
me. Yes. knowed when I was licke,
and ! lay thar and cried and didn
hev uuthln' TO ssy-nuthin' 'tallw