Roxy Hastings — page 32: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

oe Pe en, FF a a 7 Toa a Ung ROXY HASTINGS. 23 he said, “but, you see, it’s worth nothing to a city man like you unless you've got capital and leisure, and can come here and give your time to it.” “T see, Father owned it fifteen years.” “Just so—and never got adollar off it, and had to pay taxes on it every year.” “Yes.” “Well. there’s where it is. It’s worth a little to me— nothing to you. Come, now we've seen it, let’s go down to Rooke’s and get our supper and decide on something, yesorno. I want to get early to bed, and be off to-morrow at daylight.” They went, accompanied, of course, by Sligh, who had followed them, whittling and listening, all over the land. Charley had at last made up his mind to sell. “Ts there any one about here who could make out a deed. for us, if we should close the bargain?” he asked. “Oh, yes; I believe Rooke is or has been a Justice of the Peace, and they do such things in the country here. I ean do it myself—I’d take the risk. Only we want a de- , scription of the property.” “Oh. we can take that from my father’s deed to me, which I brought with me. You can see I came down here on purpose to sell.” : “Oh, then we’ll be all right. I can make the new con- veyance in a jiffy ; for if we can’t get blanks, I can just copy the whole from yours, only altering the names.” The speculators were now in high glee, and Charley was scarcely less elated with the idea of taking home five hundred and fifty dollars to his mother. Why, it was nearly equal to six months salary at the place which he had. lost. Farmer Rooke was not the man to interfere with a bar- gain, although he well knew how terribly the young man was likely to be fleeced. He was a spare, gaunt man, miserly and famine-pinched in appearance ; and when the speculators had given him the cue, and a promise of a handsome bonus for his assistance, he proved to be a very ready and influential confederate. He didn’t believe in ile, not he. “You'll see,” he said, “it will stop flowin’ as suddenly as it started, and that will be the end on’t. If not, if they find more wells, and if it keeps on runnin’ whole rivers of it, it’ll get to be as cheap as water, and won't pay for barrelin’ and gettin’ it to market. Don’t you see?” Sharp saw, and so did Sligh. ecom (9) books (ele)