Trench and camp. [volume] (Augusta, Ga.) 1917-1919, 1918-10-02

Lem alters would persist in feedln' hul
taters to his koWs an they do say that
in all the kentry round I am as good a
koW doctor as ever Travelled Kappin 8
Pike,-but as / was a sayin as l was
eummin along by the Willer's place l
saw Mis- WileTs in the gATdiD', sad IKE.
Sez to myself SEE I, there's female in
distress an sez / TO myself SCI J. the
cumfortin' Of woman inside IS 81
more yaly than savin' a Rows hide; so !
stopped by the picket fence an was about
to speak when I seed it was no time TO
intrude. I'd heered that sayin bout
fools a rushin' in where Angels would
fear TO tramp an I thought I wouldn't
play the fool: so / lest hung by the fence
awaitn' tn Mis- WiIlers would look up.
| could see by the way she picked the
cabbage leaves that another Of her boys
had been drafted. Theys somethin' bout
the way woman does things when she
is feelin' bad that tells the hui world
that God an her are havin it out for
the good Of all concerned. Sine wasn't
folks Of littlt mind. but jest picldn cab
bage leaves and loolIin off to where the
road turned down into Grizzly Gulch,
whar one by one her boys was a goin
day arter day with a smile an a good
bye wave O. the hand an-eternity.
BIN by she cum along my way an
looked up. Well hody do SEE she smilln
an putin out her hand for its alters
been a custom in our little place To shake
hands whenever you meet, no matter
how often or under what circumstances,
Wal, we talked about the wether. an the
crops an the new preacher for a spell.
an then Jest naturally drifted on to the
war Mis- Willers all the time a strokin
the cabbage leaves an lookin' off down
to the gulch. aSed her if shed heard
from Tom That was her last to go as
far as | knew his bein' next to the last,
an / darentt AK her If the baby o. the
lot, young Jed, had been taken.
They was all a likely lot them boys, big
an strong and over six foot an havin
"a f,rIiT mt n HTa "a
Their father'd died soon arter Jed was
born from gunshot wound he received
a Petersburg in the CIyl War. The boys
had all cum along one CluS on another so
that Mis- Willers found herself arter the
funeral expenses was paid, with a big
hungry brood to her credit an the where
wthal to feed them all on the debit side,
1r. Willers had worked hard all his life
to provide but al his death the mortgage
wasn't paid on the little farm. Wal, Mis-
Wllers had took in washin an done
-SeWin an writ poems for the Runkln~
vile Tines enough to keep the interest
paid until the boys could get out to work
an be of some help They was seven o
them little critters an not moren seven
years difference in age frum the fuSt to
the last I've seen EN- in sun an rain,
wind an snow. aworllin' away like men
an never a complaint or shirkin o their
grim duty. An all the while. Mis- win
lers managed TO keep 'em in school
clothed an fed an lookin' respectable
like folks, goin on Sunday to church
an Sunday School, nc neat an gentle
manly as II they had bin Squire Berk-
namas who owns the big place over on
Pine Hill
Then it cum along time for Ben, who
is the oldest to graduate frum town
school an go off to college They boys
an added considerable to the fam SO
that Ben could go without much priva-
ton an hardship. The next in line.
that's Sam, was planning to go next