The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-17
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speaking of popularity" remarked the
Sewing Machine Agent "a man can back
slide from being popular mighty sudden.
People are tickle, they don't keep think
ing the same thing about man when
that man amt doing to suit them Look
how quick the public soured on Old
Dewey just because his wife decided him
house? Jay Bird Jones used to be
the most thought of man in PecHerwood
beat They couldn't hold a Unfair, a
gander-pu1ling nor a shin-dig of any
kind without having Jay Bird present,
and officiating as head duck in the cere-
monies. But now it's mighty different.
Last week the reVenu| fellows raided Jay
Birds distillery over on Peckerwood and
he didn't git no notice, previous, of this
fell swoop. This here oblteratng of
gents private chemical apparatus, with
out warning, is mighty unusual in our
neck of the woods, and 1t shows that the
people are agin him.
His laboratory was hid under mound
OF sawdust at Jinks little one-lung saw
mill and the revenue men walked all
over it dozen times before they finally
tumbled to its location. They shore de-
stroyed it, root and branch, emptying out
the mash, cutting up a good copper still,
and spllling several barrels of singlngs,
while jay Bird hid under a nigh brush
pile groaned and cussed alternately. He
didn't have no notice of the coming of
these depitty United States Marshus-they
simply lit down on him like pan of
milk from a top shelf. and after they
had carved up his still they summoned
half the men In the beat as witnesses
agin Jay Bird Jones.
'Ginnully our leading chemists is
warned by friendly neighbor that the
revenue gang is in the neighborhood,
some time previous to the arrival of
these pestiverous insects, so that when
the OFFICERS appear on the scene our in
nocent pharmacists are apparently con-
Quoting temperance exercises fixing for
Sunday school convention, or some de-
luding play like that, and 1t stands to
reason that when the operator amt give
notice beforehand by the neighborhood
he'is some unpopular.
The pertikurler reason why Jay Bird
Jones lost his unanimous popularity was
nothing more or less than making a too
f1orid use OF his jaw. He was that sharp
set on domestic news nayborhood gos-
sip and toting tales that he didn't always
discriminate between bald fiction and un-
draped truth. He would stop blowing
any day to spread the news of any un-
usual event in the settlement; and of
course he enlarged on the same vivid
adding right smart chance to 1t of
his own making up. He busted up a
courtship that the whole neighborhood
had been nursing and encouraging for a
whole year between Walter Gains and Sue
Blanchard. He got two or the deacons
in the church SO that they wouldn't speak
to one another when they met in the
big road. He liked to have parted q
married couple with his ranidaboo mar
ratives of what folks said about 'em: !:
fact is, Jay Birds fictions got that whole
neck of the woods buzzing around like
bees swarming.
along last month when the revival was
sizzling hot out at Ramsour's chapel old
Jay Bird began to have symptoms OF
gitting religgun. When the preacher dealt
out the hymn that Jay Bird person would
onbuckle hisself in melody of hoofing It
about four notes ahead of the rest of the
congregation, and warble the shingles
Off en- the roof with noise like catching
rat In tin bath tub. Tho brethren
and gisterin considered Jay Bird a lettle
too redundant In his musical efforts, espo.
cially In view Of tho fact that whom hc
wrastisd with the quayering high notes,
every hound dog In two miles OF the meet
Ing house 5ined In, and assisted that feion
In his tussla with than harmonHs. AT
tinss when the whole congregation was