Polk County news. [volume] (Benton, Tenn.) 191?-1983, 1920-07-01
THE NUTMEG MAN.

the One-Eyed Cow very well. You
could tell this from what they said
and did. Peter said the story was "all
right" and Jane kissed Uncle Tan
for 1t and gave him q hug Besides,
they came back early the next evening
for story number two. They did not
come to supper, for that would hardly
have been polite. But they came as
soon as supper was over, and helped
Uncle Ta1'S son wash up the dishes.
When they were all settled to hear
again about the Easily-Lost Children,
. Uncle Tan said, Il shall tell you to-
night of how the children visited the
nutmeg man"
Jane did not hear the last words
very well, and so she said, "What kind
of man, Uncle Tan?"
"The nutmeg man."
Jane very much wanted to ask what
a nutmeg man was, but she didn't ask.
She wanted to know whether the man
made nutmegs or was made of a nut
meg; maybe he sold nutmegs or was
sold for nutmeg. But she didn't ask.
The reason why she didn't ask was
because she would rather guess at it
as the story went along. 1t was
more fun to wait and see.
OF course, she knew what nutmegs
are. Jane was nearly eight years old.
and big enough to help her mother.
When her mother made junket forf
supper, Jane was always allowed to
get out the nutmeg and the nutmeg
crater and CRATE the nutmeg into fine
brown specks all over the sweet white
ju1ket When Jane was six years old
she never pronounced the word nut.
meg" right. She always got it turned
round. She always called it meg
nut" Sometimes she forgot and called
it that way even when she was nearly
eight years old.
So Jane did not interrupt Uncle
Tan, and Uncle Tan told the story of |
the visit of the Easily-Lost Children |
to the nutmeg man. And now comes |
the story.
Once upon a time the two children
went blackberrying in Connecticut
Aristotle went with them. Each of
course the poor dog had none.
They all went along the road out
into the country till they came to the
Great Woods. The Great Woods is a
place in Connecticut where the trees
are very old. In most places in Con-
necticut and every other state the
trees are not allowed to get old, but
are chopped down. and used for fire
wood or boards. But the Great Woods
belonged to man who liked old trees
I'm great quantities-liked 'em much
better than fire wood or boards. So
this curious owner of trees let his
trees grow until they were very big,
md then chopped down only few at
q time.
So the children came to this woods,
and went in and soon came to the
blackberry patch. Blackberries don't
grow right in the woods among the
trees, but they grow in fields and
,learings. But there was a clearing
n the Great Woods. near the edge. A I
clearing is a place where the trees are
III chopped down. This clearing was
made by the owner when he was
,oung man, and had to have some {
wood in a great hurry TO build himself {
house. That was when he got mar
led. This was the only clearing in S
he Great Woods because he had I
lever got married again.
The children got into the clearing '
nd found 1t full of blackberry bushes, 1
nd the bushes were covered with S
ipe fruit. Those were the incest kind
( blackberries. They were large and
lack and soft and sweet and firm a
nd almost free from seeds. IL you k
II one you would not notice any
eeds. And when the berries were in h
ne pals they srlelled sweet, some "
hing like flowers. And they were very s.
licy. N
The children picked and picked aad
,eir pals were half full by lunch a
me. Then they ute their lunch In OF
he woods For lunch they just had al
licken sandwiches and blackberries Il
nd cocoa. Do you ask me how they hi
,uld have cocoa? They had II cold. al
hey had brought Il In a bottle. Arts. le
tile ate q sandwich and n dog biscuit. W
fter lunch they sat In the moss and CT
aled against tree and listened to th
cicada. Some people call the clcada ju
locust. It's all the same, whatever m
N call II. II is bigger than a grass ne
PIPER, Nnd II u'ts up high In the tree.