The coastland times. [volume] (Mnateo [i.e. Manteo], N.C.) 1947-1959, 1951-11-23

al in that. The sign "Fish and
Whiskey" meant nothing: Nearly
all the merchants sold whiskey,
and almost every man drank it,
and those who sold it prospered
while those who drank it were di-
vided into several categories, all
of whom had fun in the beginning.
One of the local men of promi-
nence and well beloved of his
neighbors drank but once year.
He worked hard and was a highly
moral man. But every season as
soon as he "got his corn in" ne
would buy a barrel of whiskey and
go on a hinge that would put most
moderns to shame. He would set
to with will and drink more and
more each day and have more fun
than anyone. Some of his antics
caused his family much embar-
rassment and they frequently
hauled him up to the attic and
locked him in. At such times he
amused himself by throwing val
ued old furniture out of the third
floor attic window. Sometimes he
had the upper hand and locked
his family in the attic and ram
PACED through the first and see
ond floors until his passion for
breaking-up-housekeeping w
stated. Once he strayed from his
home and decided upon a nap on
a. public plot of land. His hired
man was sent to take him home.
On the way home he rallied brief
ly, while lying across the hired
mans shoulder, and bit the faith
full servants ear off. But the gen.
tleman sobered as soon as his bar
rel was dry, and drank no more
until the next season when he
"got his corn in" He was a fav-
orite in the village and the old
folks shook their heads propheti-
cally and said, "He's a good boy.
It's a pity he drinks"
No Bustles
And Jasper Spencer was a good
man, but he was a puritan. He
lived on the far end of Lazy Lane:
He ran his household with an iron
hand, made his wife go to bed
whenever he did, and kept one eye
open at all times. That part about
the eye is not a figure of speech;
he did it. And he never missed
anything when everyone wished
he would. He had two handsome
daughters who were in the social
strata that required everyone to
be in vogue at all times. But Jas
per was violently opposed to bus
ties. He emphasized that no bus
tie would ever be attached to a
member of his family. His daugh-
tiers feared him as much as any
mortal could fear a mortal. They
acquiesced, sort Of. They refrain
ed from wearing bustles around
their father. But they had bus
ties; they kept them down the lane
carefully concealed in water BUSH
es. When they went out they
would don them, and when they
came home they would un-don
them and leave them in the BUSH
es until the next time.
But, as we said, Jasper kept one
eye peeled. One Sunday the two
worthy daughters were headed for
church. Jasper did not always go,
but he did on this occasion. And
he was terribly Jared when he
saw his daughters, who were not
aware that he was following, dis
appear into the bushes at the side
of the lane and reappear a few
moments afterwards greatly ex-
aggerated. They made the church
and entered. No sooner had they
seated themselves than Jasper ap-
peared with fury on his face. The
girls arose and departed, for they
knew their father was the type
of man who would go to any ex-
IRENE to satisfy his mind that his
daughters did not have on bust
les.
When Jasper was dying he kept
the same eye opened for five days.
He was not left alone for a minu-
te. He had the best attention. But
it upset the young lady who was
with him on the fifth day when
he called his wife loudly, the first
utterance to escape him during
his sickness, and closed the open
eye and opened the one which had
been closed for so long and was
dead. He had been old and set in
his way, and his way had been
peculiar, but his children were all
on the level.
Postwar Depression
After the Civil War the wealth
of the land was gone, except in
the few instances where individ-
uals had grown wealthy through
commerce with the Yankees. But
the boys who had gone away to
fight for the type of existence
they had been accustomed to re-
turned to a shape of things that
was hardly similar to what they
left. A few of the slaves refused |
thar froaJnro - H. L.. Io.L