Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1925-07-03
HOW DAN
FOOLED THE
YANKEES
20 by Short story Pub, Coz
By FELIX FELLOWS

all the morning but, by two
Il o'clock in the afternoon, the
hot July sun blazed upon the
dripping slopes of the Tennessee noun
tains, and the handful Of mounted
bluecoats that trudged heavily up the
red clay road growled at the hot vapor
rising from the earth which, with the
hot rays from above falling upon them,
and their long ride of the morning,
made further progress almost torture.
The stick chimney of a mountain
hut Struggled close against the noun
tain side, almost hidden from the road
by the tall bushes and underground,
broke upon the vision of the men al
most simultaneously, and a smothered
All and speedy tightening Of reins
sent the tired horses briskly forward.
A sudden break in the bushes that
path leading up to the hut. With Il
quick yank of the Bride one Of the
men wheeled his horse into the path,
and then stopped suddenly. There, al
most hidden in the brush beside the
path, on a rock that benched out from
Its fellows, sat girl, and the sur
prise of the soldiers was reflected on
her face. 1t was plain face-wlth
rather large mouth that stood open
In CONSERVATION, and big blue eyes
that stared In wonder-a face that
might belong to a woman of anywhere
from seventeen to twenty-seven, but Il
glance down her form to the skirt that
cut off at the ankles, and the brown
bare feet exposed beneath, took you
back to the conclusion Of seventeen.
In her lap, her two hands clutched
a haf-hnished yarn stocking, with Its
bristling knitting needles, while the
bail Of yarn lay soaking in a little
puddle farther down the SLOPE where
1t had rolled unnotlced.
Here, girl" called the leader, "have
you seen anything Of man about here
today"
"M-a-r-n"-she drawled In reply,
"hain't seed a m-a-r-n critter terday."
Then little briehter-"Who be's you
alls a-lookln' ferf'
"a id Confederate scout-tall fell
low, dark hair and eyes. Been chasing
him since daybreak, and an Internal
chase he has given us too, up these
id slippery hills Of yours"
"Nup, hain't seed no critter terday,"
she reiterated, languidly, STOPPING to
rescue the blue ball, which she pro-
ceeded to cleanse by hopping 1t up
and down the side Of her homespun
gown. "Say"-she drawled-"be you
alls soldiersT
Come, girl, who's up yOnder at the
hOusef" asked the spokesman, lgnor-
ing her question. where's the menu"
Gone ter-the-war," she drawled.
Pap and Dan lef Almost yer ago
Hain't seed nuthin' NV EN- have yer?"
and the big eyes took on wistful ex-
preston.
"Come, girl, lead the way, we must
search the house."
"Nobody's thar but Granny, and
she's asleep"
"Well, don't stand there, move
along" commanded the man.
'Dasn't," said the girl, Granny,
she's got the asmer, and she's got one
of her bad spells, and l dasn't wake
her"
Come, come, this won't do, move
along there; we can't be detained by
granny or two
"Wall," said the girl, planting one
bare foot on little elevation Of clay
and slowly bearing down till the vel
low earth Oozed up between the toes,
wall" repeating the operation on an
other little mound of clay, 'lf you
alls bound ter do it, yen have ter do
II alone, case | dasn't But | warns
yer not to wake Granny, for it's her
spell day and she's bad when yer get
her started"
well, / guess we can excuse you,
suid the leader. There, John, you hold
the horses and wen so Upland be
sure TO keep your eye on that lovely
specimen of southern beauty"
SAY" she drawled, "you-alls go
easy, case il she wakes up hell'll be
poppin, shore 'nuf And when yOu-alls
come back, jes' turn down Their path
thar, to the lef, to ther spring, and
I'll git you-alls somethln' ter drink
A laugh broke from the men. "We'lI
accept" the foremost turned to say,
provided your something is not spring
water"
Nav, faint neither. It's good ole
Tennessee corn juice, as Dad says, as
good as ever plsened a rattlesnake.
Pap allus 'vites strangers ter drink.
It's hOspertallty, he says, and, says he,
'Hospertallty Is the poor mans saving
grace"
The men were nearing the cabin
door, when they heard the voice Of the
girl in sort of stage whisper. "S-a-y,
don't 'sturb ole frozen toes,
what's brlngin' off her second settln'
under that ar table, or she'll raise
the roof, and that'll wake Granny,
and"
"And we wouldn't be left In peace
10 enjoy Dads 'hospertallty'," mock
ngly finished one OF the men. "Well, |
I. for one, say let her sleep, for I'm
rs dry as a husk." This condition
seemed contagious for the group went
up to the open door, and
rs cautiously advanced within and be-
gan a hurried survey of the place.
The room was sparsely furnished,
,ut bore traces Of cleanliness. It's
'ough homemade table, from under
leath which the head OF Dominique
'hicken protruded, cycling the lntrud