The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-07-20
STORY OF COCK-EYE,
THE BLIND HOSS
AND THE ON MAI

w onder If that Addle- noise williams
was any kin to Old Cock-eye Williams
what lived over on Peckerwood?" OBJ
served the Bailiff from Gum Springs
beat THE description sorter sizes
him up as some of the kinnery, but
there is nearly as many of them Will
l1amses in the country as there are
blackberries. Mahaley Jourdan has
done annexed Cock-eye, anyhow so it
don't make any difference, either way.
Ihat gal had set her cap for him for
years before she ever had a chance to
gather him in. She had wore out much
shoe leather in the effort to latch on
to something that wore breeches, but
up to date them efforts had been a
1fost. Cock-eye was as shy as a mus
quito, so that every time Mahaley
thought she had a dead cinch on him
he Invariably proved a alibi. :
This particular Williams that | am
telling you about was called Cock-eye.
both on account of game optic, and
also to locate him among a whole male
nigh school of other Williamses that
infested that neighborhood. BY profess
sion and practice he was a bachelor.
his occupation was that of keeping a
little rats-nest of store, where he had
by stinting himself and sleeping un-
der the counter. accumulated a right
smart chance of plunks. But closet
Jeems Rivers! That Williams party
would skin a flea for it's hide and tall
low.
THE fourth Sunday in April. last,
Cocks passed the Jourdan place, tot
ing rope looking for a missing cow
Miss Mahaley seen him from a back
window, and also noted that he was
wearing new straw hat that had been
marked down at the Jew store from
S2.0S to 80 cents Cock-eye's route
took him across the old sawmill field
close by the well that the CASTOR
Brothers dug for the old mill when they
was cutting timber there about five
years ago, and when he got even with
that hole in the ground the wind lifted
tnat 50 cent straw pile off'n his head
and blowed 1T right spang into that
We'll. Seeing that the we'll was dry at
the bottom, Cock-eye tied rop apound
stump and fished for the hat a while.
put finding 1t was no go, he Skinned
down that rope 35 feet after that yaI1-
able lid
Miss Mahaley was a close observer
or these proceedings from the back
window of Jourdan's and in view
or all the surrounding circumstances
she seen her duty, and she done II
Grabbing her bonnet, she made a bee
lihe ior an old blind horse with bell
ON his neck that was grazing in tbe
edge of the field. and unbuckIins thai
Dell she approached with slow, meas
ured steps. and ding-a-l -ling-ing on that
pell every few steps towards the edge
OF that WELL Occasionally she'd rive
the clapper a sort of a side whang like
the moss was fightin flies and II
sure imitated natur all right Cock-eye
could feel the goose bumps rising all
over him. Dang that old blind boss,
said he-'he's coming this Wav sure
ana ne amt got no more sense than to
fall in here-Whoa, Ball.
But the ears of Cock-eye told him
quite plainly that the old brute hadn't
MINDED him the least bit, but he was
se.',ns nearer, and besides he hadn't
got ms second wind enough to let him
swarm back up that rope. .G-er-reat
dias CutusP said he. that old crow bait
VIII be top of me before I can saw
Whoa! 1As soa'
real cute and sly Mahaley edges IN
" tnar We'll, working blood -curdline
var ~alninss with the bell, and with her
loot she pushes about ten pounds of
aIrt into it, oh. Lordr baIled Cock
ege' 1aillng on his knees at the bottom
!, III gone coon skin now for sure.
~" lay me down to sleep, whoa you
| oIasted hi-e-ner! I pray the Lord INV
soui to-whoa, Ball. Oh Lord, have
mercy on me-whoa, Ball--dam you.
MISS Mahaley was afraid for Cock y
ese reason to prolong the agony, so
she peered over the edge of the we'll
Ist drawing up the rope, so as to
neep MN out of temptation, and pro-
posed TO him that if he'd come across
anu marry her, as he had ought to have
ue uone long ago, she would not tell the
lohe on hini-but If otherwise she would
80 over to old Miss Parker's that very
al'elnoon-which would be equivalent
49, o puoiisning 1t in all the county pa
pers. Cock-eye tried to hack ouf but
MISS Mahaley was adamant, and finally
ne yleloed, and many a time since then
whenever Cock-eye gets about three
fingers OF coffin varnish under his shirt
| nave heard him say that 1t was
,nishty unfortunate that the old hoss
i,t Ien INTO the WELL and mashed
MIN into thousand fritters."