The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1912-11-12
Mountaineer ales
BY M. QUAD
Copyright. 1912, by Associated Lit
erary Press

man was to blame for that. She used
to be in the habit of sulkin' around
without any cause for it as fur as l
could see, and II allus ended In a row
Of some kind.
zone afternoon cum home from town
to find my ole woman In the sulks. She
used to get that way now and then.
and l knowed what to expect. When
she began to jaw began to whistle,
but arter half an hour l got mad. I'd
"a gone out and slept In the woods,
only II was gwine to be a dark and
rainy night. She sulked and sulked,
and when 1t cum time to go to bed
sot right we're and never minded the
time. She didn't offer TO make up. and
so was sittin' yere when midnight
cum. She was asleep and so was l
when thar cum cry from outdoahs.
1t 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 knot on logT
81 didn't hear nuthin' more'n an
owl hootin',' says !.
"Then why don't yo' go out and
keep him company
~ didn't say nuthin' to that, and pur-
~ soon she fell back and went to sleep
again. Mebbe fifteen minits had pass
| AL MI ha In, M
shiver over me and brought the ole
woman out OF bed.
"'Befo' the Lawd. but what kin 1t
be?' she gasped.
"a woman hootin' for help SEE /.
| at can't be. No woman would be
hootin' around we're this time o. night
"'Then IL may be an OWL
"'Then you may be a fuller
"Her calm me fule riled me up,
and. thou h was purity sartin that it
was the scream OF wildcat. l deter
mined not to Civ In.
"'Shool It's one o. them Davis gals
lost in the woods
"'Then you don't know sugar from
sandl Listen to that. Does that sound
like the boot of woman
"Jest exactly. I'll bet my ole gun
agin a coonskin that it's woman. I'll
open the doah so she kin see the light
and then call to her.
"'Zeb White. I'm tellin' 20 it's a
wildcat and not woman. II yo'
hadn't almost got to be fule yo'd
know by the sound No woman ever
yeowled that way, no matter how
skeert she was. What yo' gwine to
doy
"'Open the doah, Of co'se'
"Waal, II yo' open that doah sum-
body's gwine 10 git clawed and bit.
and yo' take my word fur IT.
THAT riled me sum mo-, and was
bound to open that doah or bust
could even h'ar the critter prowlin'
around, but | want gwine to let the
ole woman blum me down. | riz up
and was listenin', when she seq:
"'This yere cat is arter meat fur
shorer
THAT yere woman is lookin' fur
our cabin, 20 mean, and we're goes to
let her in
with that l crossed over and open
ed the back doah, and as l did so the
ole woman made a dive fur the bed
and kivered up her head. | had just
swung the doah back and opened my
mouth to boot when sumthin knocked
me clean across the cabin and uttered
an awful scream. IL was sure
enough wildcat, and mighty big one
at that. He fust jumped on the bed
and scratched at the clothes, but as
got up he turned and tackled me.
was took so sudden that the critter
had all the advantage at fust. but
bimeby got hold of stool and sorter
held my own. He kept me mighty
busy. but saw the ole woman sittin'
up in bed arter a bit and heard her
say;
"'Zeb White. if that's one O. them
Davis gals. then she's powerfully
changed about since last Sunday! Why
don't yo' ask her to take her bonnit
or and stay all nlghtT
"'But l hain't akin no help from
you says |, though | figured that
couldn't last ten minits mo.
Never knowed the Davis girl was
so smart befo''
"'You hain't got all the peartness
around yere.'
"Just how long that fout lasted |
can't say. but | finally driv the critter
outdoahs and got the doah shet, and
then I fell down and tainted away
md didn't know nuthin' mo- fur an
hour. l don't rightly remember how
many bites and scratches l got. but
was laid up for six weeks and had a
TUT time OF H."
Mrs. White didn't have anything
more TO say. did she-anything more
about your taking the wildcats scream
for the boot OF a womanT" was asked.
"Sartinly she iidr' he replied. Bout
the fust words heard arter I cum to
was:
"-Say. Zeb White. yod better look
out fur that Davis gai arter thisi She's
bit and clawed you till I've got to
make a poultice as big as a barrel to
kiver the hurts"
-And what did You say in replyT'
"Nuthin'-nuthin' tall I'd lest
blufed myself and got the worst Of H.
and 50 shet up. Yes. shet mp and let
her grin and chuckle and poke fun at
me. Yes. knowed when ! was licked.
and lay thar and cried and didr1
bev uuthin' 70 say-nuthin' taIll-
Er-.