Year: 1879

THE CANDIDATES TREAT.


II any stranger had desire to see
the old-time Kentuckians in their true
colors he should have happened in OH
one of their county-seat or cross-road
gatherings, either on court day." upon
occasion of stump speech from some
favorite candidate, or at military
muster" While the most untutored of
young girls in short insey frocks would
be tempting the passing crowd with an
exhibition of ginger-cakes, with the
quaint invitation, @Gentlemens, won't
you buy some cakeses?" boisterous
crowd would perhaps be gathered
around and intensely interested in
horse swap-always one of the marked
events, especially if either steed had any
pretensions as @quarter-nag." Anoth-
er part of the public square would prob
ably be occupied with a foot-race or
wrestle, while throughout the day
3ring" would be formed now and then,
from which, after noise for while like
the tramping of wild horses, two or
three pugnacious chaps would emerge
much the worse for wear" at least
with black eyes and bloody proboscis,
perhaps part of an ear missing, the vic
torious party to be marched off to the
nearest tavern or doggery, to celebrate
his success by treat all around


But candidates. treat" was in
deed an event. With whisky-barrel
rolled out into an open space, the head
knocked in, and the announcement
loudly made that it was Col. Jack
Crafty's treat" the hunting g-shirt crowd
would gather quickly around; and, as the
two or three floating gourds could be
seen in full play, lading out the fiery
stuff, some sharp and proyident chaps
might be seen-at least they have been
accused of it-slyly laying in future
supply at the candidates expense; they
first filing theirmouths with a plentiful
charge, and then quietly stepping on
one side to spout the contents of their
cheeks into long, straightforward
gourds, concealed under their hunting
shirtst


Dealing with the subject of treats
I don't know whether q rather remark
able exploit and some very sharp prac-
tice in this line, accredited to the re-
nowned Davy Crockett, has ever gotten
INTO print or not: but, at any rate, I
hear iof it somehow, and it is too
characteristic of the broad and practi-
cal joking of that period not to pre-
serve. As related, Davy, on one occa-
sion, found himself in close place in
a political canvass, and at q crossroads
grocery, surrounded by lot of thirsty
partisans and @nary a red"
to treat them with. But then, as now,
coon-skins, if not a legal tender, were
at any rate current at certain valua-
ton; and, having one, he handed it
over to the dispenser of @tangle-foot"
for what it would command in the way
of drinks. The man, after making a
draught upon the barrel of whisky be-
hind the counter, threw the coon-skin
up into the loft through hole over his
head, and Dayy, noticing it, sent one of
his handy followers behind the edifce,
who, with crooked stick, fished it out
from between the logs, rendering it for
another set of drinks. One coon-skin
is so like another that, in the haste of a
driving business, and not too much
light in his den, the grocery-keeper
kept it going in lively manner all the
afternoon until his barrel was quite
drained; and, after the crowd had de-
parted, and Re got chance to count up
his profits, expecting to find quite a
pile of coon-skins in the loft, he found
to his grief that the one coon-skin rep
resented almost the sum total. But the
worst of it was, perhaps, he never heard
the last of it as a firSt-rate trick; for
even q population as given to iollifca-
ton as vas that in the line indicated
never recognized cross-road grocery
keepers as public benefactors.


I must not omit the story told of one
of these noted frequenters of "treats'
and @musters" who, on his way to the
village one day, was commissioned by q
neighbor to get him pint of spirits OF
turpentine. The veteran topper had had
his frohc fairly out, and was reeline
home as best he might, when night. and
the stupor caused by whisky, and cold
together overlook him, and he was con.
strained to quietly lie down by the side
of the road, and, as it happened, in the
edge of small puddle of water. 1t was
frosty night in November, and there
he slept; and, as his friends afterward
declared, would probably have perished
for he was frozen in and they had tt
break thin crust of ice to get hi
clothing loose in the morning, only that
in his craving for something more tt
"drink," he happened to get swig a
the bottle of turpentine in fumblins
about his pockets toward morning, ant
that, warming him up, saved his life, ,whel
probably the dose would have burned
out the stomach of better man.


Another one of this same stamp, onl.
that he was an ex-member of the Legis
lature, took notion that he must hav
wife the object of his serious atten
ton living in the next county, where
at suitable intervals, the old bachelo
Colonel had paid his devoirs with tn
most earnest purpose possible to "set


tie down and quit all his wild ways"


The afianced was an elderly spinste


accredited with not little acidity {
temper; but, as the Colonel himse


was conscious of being thorough


good-natllred, he thought, despite tn


warnings of his friends, that he coul


venture on the somewhat-hazardou


enterprise.


Finally, with the lady's conser


gained, and the day set for the Ger,


monv which was to make the two happ


for life, the Colonel set out on his wa


thither. he was on horseback, of cours


and stopped over night at the coul


try tavern where happened to be 81


journing for few days. Proud of h


success, he couldn't conceal his exult