The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1913-06-19

cramp In his legs and sinking down
with his head under water and being
drownded. He said afterward he'd OF
done the last with pleasure if they was
any way of suing that crowd fur MUIR
der. So along about 10 O'Clock he sings
out:
81 give In, gosh dern ye. give in.
Let me out and I'll sign your pesky
pledge!'
CHAPTER III.
Stronger Than Hank.
|@7ROTHER CARTWRIGHT was
uUI fur getting a ladder and letting
HID him climb out right away.
IT, But Elmira. she says:
Don't you do it. Brother Cartwright;
don't you do it. You don't know Hank
Walters like does. II he oncet gets
out o. there before he's signed that
pledge be won't never sign it,
50 they fixed it up that Brother Cart
wright was to write out pledge on
the inside leaf Of the Bible and tie the
Bible on to string and lead pencil
on to another string and let the strings
down to Hank. and he was to make
his mark, fur be, couldn't write, and
they was to be pulled up agin. Hank
be says all right, and they done 1t.
But Jest as Hank was making his mark
on the leaf Of the book that preacher
done what has always thought was
q mean trick. he was lying on the
door with his head and shoulders into
| that hole as fur as he could, holding a
lantern way down into it, 80 ~ Hank
could see. And jest as Hank made
that mark be spoke some words over
him, and then he says:
NOW, Henry Walters, have Dap-
tiled you, and you are member Of
the church"
You'd "a thought Hank would of
broke out cussing agin at being took
unexpected that away, fur he hadn't
really agreed to nothing but signing
the pledge. but nary cuss. He jest
says: Now. you get that ladder"
They got it, and he clumb up into the
kitchen, dripping and shivering.
You went and baptized me in that
water?" he asts the preacher. The
preacher says he has.
Then" says Hank, you done a
low-down trick on me. You knowed
has made my brags l never jined no
church nor never would jine. You
knowed was proud of that. You
knowed that it was my glory to tell Of
it and that set heap Of store by it
in every way. And now you've went
and took 1t away from me! You never
fought it out fair and square. neither.
man playing to outlast man. like you
done with this here pledge. but you
sneaked it in on me when wasn't
looking"
They was a lot Of men in that crowd
that thought the preacher had went too
far and sympathized with Hank. The
way he done about that hurt Brother
Cartwright in our town. and they was
a split in the church. because some said
it wasn't regular and wasn't binding.
He lost his Job after awhile and be-
come an evangelist.
But Hank, he always thought he had
been baptized regular. And he never
was the same afterward. He had made
his lifelong brags. and his pride was
broke in that there one pertic'lar spot.
And be sorrered and grieved over It a
good deal and got grouchier and
grouchier and meaner and meaner.
and lickered oftener. If anything.
Signing the pledge couldn't hold Hank.
He was worse in every way after that
night in the cistern and took to lam
ming me harder and harder.
Well. all the lammings Hank laid on
never done me any good. 1t seemed
like was jest natcherally cut out to
have no success in life. and no amount
of whaling could change it. though
Hank he was faithful. Before was
twelve years old the hull town had
seen it, and they wasn't nothing else
expected of me except not to be any
good.
That had its handy sides to 1t too.
They was lots Of kids there that had
to 20 to school. but Hank. be never
would of let me done TINT if had asst
him, and never asted, And they was
lots Of kids considerably bothered all
the time with their parents and rea-
tions. They made 'em 60 to Sunday
school and wash up regular all over on
Saturday nights, and put on shoes and
stockings part Of the time. even in the
summer, and some Of 'em had to asst to
20 in swimming, and the hull thing
was continuous trouble and privation
to 'em. But they wasn't nothing. pre-
dicted of me, and | done like 1t was
predicted Everybody lowed from the
start that Hank would of made trash
;, outn me. even If l hadn't showed all
the signs of being trash anyhow. And
/ If they was devilment anywhere about
that town they all says, "Danny. ne
done It," And like as not has. So !
! gets to be what you might call an out
cast All the kids whose folks amt
trash, their mothers tells 'em not to
| rim with me- no more Which they