The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1914-06-11

the present lack OF which you speak"
Valiant put out his hand with
little gesture OF depreciation. but the
other disregarded It. "Confound 1t.
sab. It was to be expected Of Va
liant Your ancestors wrote their
names In capital letters over this
country. They we're an up and down
lot. but good or bad land. as Southall
says. I reckon"-he nodded toward the
great portrait above the couch-"they
weren't all little woolly lambs) they
did big things In tlg way"
Valiant leaned forward eagerly, a
question on mis- los. But at the mo-
ment diversion occurred in the
shape OF Uncle jefferson. who re-en-
tered, bearing tray on which set sun
dry jugs and clinking glasses. glow
ing with white and green and gold
You old humbug." said the doctor
don't you know the majors that poi.
soned with mint-juleps already that he
can't get up before eight in the morn
ing?"
We'll. suh," Uttered Uncle Jeffer.
son, "Ah done foun' er mint-baid down
below de kitchens dis mawnin' Yo'-
all gemmun' bout de bigges' expuhts
In dis yeah county. en- All reck'n
Mars Valiant sho' 'sist on yo' sam
plin' ct"
Sab" said the major feelingly.
turning to his host, I'm proud to
drink your health in the typical bev-
erage OF virginial" He touched
glasses with Valiant and glared at the
doctor. who was slipping his own
thoughtfully. Poems have been writ
ten on the julep. sab"
They make good epitaphs. too" OBJ
served the doctor.
Il noticed your glass isn't going
begging" the major retorted. "Unc'
jefferson, that's as good mint as grew
In the gyarden OF Eden. See that
those lazy niggers of yours don't grub
the patch out by mistake"
''Yas. sah," said Uncle Jefferson. as
he retired with the tray. "Ah gwine-
ter put er fence eroun' dat ar bald TO
sundown."
The question that had sprung to
Valiant's lips now found utterance. Il
saw you look at the portrait there"
he said to the major. which OF my
ancestors is it?"
The other got up and stood before
the mantel-piece in Napoleonic atti-
tude. That" he said. liking his eye
, glasses. ''is your great-grandfather
Devil-John Valiant"
"Devil-John!" echoed his host "Yes.
I've heard the name"
The doctor guffawed. "He earned
1t, reckon. | never realized what a
sinister expression that missing optic
gives the old rufflan. There was a
skirmish during the war on the hill
side yonder and bullet cut II out
When we were boys we used to call
him old one-Eye.'"
1T interests me enormously" John
Valiant spoke explosively.
The stories of Devil.John would fill
mighty big book" said the major.
by all accounts he ought to have
lived in the middle ages" Crossing
the library, he looked into the dining
room. II thought remembered. The
portrait over the console there Ia his
wife. your great-grandmother. They
say he bet that when he brought his
bride home, she should walk into Da-
mory Court between rows OF candle
sticks worth twenty-thousand dollars
He made the wager good. too, for
when she came up those steps out
there, there was row of ten candles
burning on either side of the doorway,
each held by young slave worth a
thousand dollars Ia the market.
Some say he grew jealous of his
wifei9 beauty. There were any num-
ber OF stories told OF his cruelties to
her that aren't worth repeating. She
died early poor lady It and your
grandfather was the only issue. Devil
John himself lived to be past seventy,
and at that age. when most men were
stacking their sins and groaning with
the gout. he was dicing and fox.hunt-
ing with the youngest OF them. He
always swore he would die with his
boots on. and they say when the doc
tor told him he had only few hours
leeway. he made his slaves dress him
completely and prop him on his horse.
They 'galloped out so, a negro on
either side OF him. II was a stormy
night. black as the Earl OF Hell's rid
ing-boots. with wind and lightning.
and he rode cursing at both. There's
an old black-gum tree a mile from
here that they still call Devil-John'r
tree. They were just passing under
II when the lightning struck IT, Light
ming has no effect on the black gum.
you know. The bolt glanced from the
tree ard struck him between the two
slaves without harming either OF
them. 1t killed his horse. too. That's
the story. To be sure at this date
nobody can separate fact from ic-
tion Possibly he wasn't so much
worse than the rest o. his neighbors
not excepting the parsons. Other