Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1918-09-12
Why Hen Springer's Garden Was
Round.

Why Hen Springer's Garden Was
Round.
Down upon his knees, on the hoor
OF his barn, Caleb Peaslee toiled patient
" at drawing a circle in chalk on the
worn boards. Satisfied at last, he
busted his hands together and rose to
his feet.
"There!' he said. 81 guess that1l
do. II amt quite round as Hen
Springer's garden was, but | should
think that hired man of mine could tell
where to set the barrel, il he goes by
them marks, wouldn't you, Hyne? :"
Mr.. Hyne agreed, and then asked:
"what do you mean by 'as round as
Hen Springer's garden'?" he asked
curiously. "Who was Hen Springer,
anyway? never knew him, did | ?"
mo-" replied Mr.. Peaslee. 81 guess
that Hen Springer was gone before you
ever moved here. But you missed
something by not KNOWN him. He
was an odd stick, and he had ways OF
don' things that most men never'd
think of.
"Now about the time that Hen built
the round garden" said Mr. Peaslee,
smiling to himself, "he lived next TO
Salem Bunker, and Salem was anything
but a good neighbor. He KEEP hens,
and he never shut 'em up, and they used
to scratch out and eat up all that Hen
had planted. Hen spoke to Salem
about it time and again, but Salem jest
laughed at him, and told Hen that in
the fuSt place he wasn't ownin' up that
the hens belonged TO him, and in the
second place he'd rec'mend Hen 10
make his garden some other place,
where the hens wouldn't get into ii.
Finally, one year Salem got some
new hens-brahmas, they was-tall
enough 10 eat out OF a barrel and with
big feet that looked as il they could
scratch livin' out OF granite PAWN.
He fetched EN- home and turned 'em
loose, and then he thought it'd be a
good time to kind OF poke fun at Hen
Springer, who was out in his yard
lookin' at the place where he csl'lated to
plant his garden.
Hi, Hen,' Salem called over to
him, come over here a minute! I've
got something to show YOU So Hen
come over and leaned on the fence, and
I've got Hens own word for ii that his
heart kind OF sunk when he saw them
big hens and ROSTERS; he begun TO
have misgivin's that he wouldn't be
able to raise any garden at all that year,
and he knew from the smart way that
Salem acted that he'd got them over
grown critters on purpose.
Pretty able-lookin' roosters, amt
they?' Salem says, and Hen had TO
agree that they was.
"Well as told you, Hen was an odd
stick, and bimeby he got an idea that
nobody else would have thought OF,
guess. He started making his garden
in the shape OF circle. He took and
drove a stake right in the middle and
stretched a string from that and car
ried the end round, and all the land
inside the end OF the string was his
garden, and not a spadeful outside.
"When he'd got it all laid out, he
built kind OF coop four foot square
and sot ii right in the middle OF the
garden, and then he went up 10 old Ike
Fishers and got tame fox that Ike
had. Hen bought il and fetched il
home, and he anchored il in that little
coop with a strong, light chain made
fast 10 a ringbolt.
"Now, fox is funny thing; they're
shy, and they won't come out when any
ones round if they can help it. So j,
wasn't any matter for wonder that nc
one happened to see the fox for quite q
spell. He KEEP hid up when he'd be
apt to be seen, but when everything was
quiet he'd sneak out OF the coop and
round over the garden like shadow.
"Well, it wasn't a great while fore
Salem noticed something, and when he
did he made great to-do. Countin
up one day, he found that most OF his
big roosters and four or 1--we OF his
hens was missin' Bein' small-mind.
ed critter and measurin' Hen by what
he'd be likely to do himself, he laid il
to Hen KILN 'em and eatin' 'em. Blu
Hen faced him down so fair and square
denyin' it, that Salem had TO believe
him. But Salem KEEP watch, and fn'ly
he found out what twas. One OF his
hens got over into the garden, and She
hadn't much more'n got to scratchin
good when the fox flashed out and al
but got her. She fetched squawk anc
got out Of there in hurry, and Salem
sputterin' mad, went to find Hen anc
have it out with him.
"Hen let him run on and choke for :
spell, and then he took him by tn:
sleeve and led him over to the garder
and reached down and got the fox By
the chain an dragged him out; anc
without sayin' a word he dragged th<
fox, spittin' and snarlin', round the gar
den the full stretch OF the chain-anc
he showed Salem that there wasn't ar