Argosy All-Story Weekly, Vol. 123, No. 3 — page 212: what you’re looking at

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

A94 * orator asked aggrievedly. ‘“ And how come yo’ don’t quit making it when the govern- ment says—”’ . ‘* « While spring-water keeps a-flowin’ and green corn keeps a-growin’, there’ll be white liquor cooked in Caroliny,’” young Palley chanted. “TI deploah that the ahmy didn’t teach yo’-all moah obedience, suh.” “ T ain’t been convinced that it’s disobedi- ence to make use of our own land, sir—so long as they don’t catch us at it,” grinned the soldier. ; “Tl have yo’-all up yet, young man,” the colonel declared hotly. “Soon as I’m ‘able to locate the spot yo’ keep the liquoh hid away in, '11—” A second shot rang out. The report had dove-tailed into a lightning move on the part of Blalock—a sample of draw-and-fire creditable to half his years. “ Didn’t git him—eh, col’nel?” the town- objector sympathized. “T feah not, suh. And I must ask the ladies and gen’lemen heah to ovuhlook the autrusion of old Mistuh Palley from next doah, so’th, into t’-day’s pleasuahs. It’s just a—a so’t of second ” natuah with him to shoot at me.” “ But, col’nel, yo’-all thot, too!” = Suhtainly, sub. Would yo’ have me outdone in cuhtesy by an enemy?” ““ Seems like yo’-all ought to quit pepper- in’ at each othuh so much,” complained the objector. “We both Have ouh reasons, suh. Neithuh of us evuh shoots blindly; I will admit that one of us always. pestuhs the othuh into it.” “It’s because yo’ bought in our mort- gage, colonel, and pestered father with the foreclosure notice this morning that he’s shooting at yo’-all now,” stated Tom Pal- ley. ‘“ How come that had to be?” “ Fo’ my own puhpose,” the colonel re- plied, absently fingering his revolver. “ It may hint at old Mistuh Palley having to move away arom next doah, so’th, befo’ long.” To the’soldier Trahern Blalock’s face had shown grim; now the fine features softened ' as he addressed his towns people once more. Railing at celebrations in general, the col- Google ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. one] hastened on with his own smal! celebra- tion—gesturing it with his gun. “Yl soon be done detaining yo’ folks, ladies and gentlemen. Yonduh sunflowuh a- -twisting with the sun tells me it’s fo’ o’clock in the evening—five o’clock the people up No’th insist on making ft. But with that, too, we of Callabee decline to comply. Such new-fangled playing with God’s houhs is—ah—daylight-slaving time, it should be called.” | Again the crowd buzzed approval. If not exactly agreeing on the temperance question, all were in perfect accord on re- sistance to those tlock-juggling schemes; their old time had steod. staunch for genera- tions. The colonel waited for quiet, his eyes shifting to the hedge as if in doubt whether he had scored a hit dn that direction or not. Then his gaze passed on to the timber fringing the west—dense pine and gum owned by himself—and he pointed. “ But we must not judge the No’th too seveahly. We must remembuh that even Callabee heah is unlike the almanac in its sunsets—that we have ouh sungets a full half-houh soonuh than ouh neighbuhs; but that was Heaven’s business, in making the timber grow so thick. Ouh chickens go to bed by it; so do we,,mostly. Let othuh folks’ call us odd fo’ doing it—we don't mind. Fo’ what could be moah beautiful than the slipping of the sun into the tops of the fdtiage yonduh? It’s all ouh. own— so let us keep on being odd.” A girl rose from her seat on the steps; she pulled down @he old lion-head and whispered something into) its ear. _ “ What’s that, Nancy, deah?”’ dertoned once more. deah. I reckon.” She un-— “Why, yes, Naacy, “Odd and beautiful,” Nancy said aloud, . and impressively. e o While her father was seeming to ponder that combination of-ideas, Nancy turned to wink lovingly at the rugged soldier-moon- shiner; with brazen premeditation he had moved close to her. “T have fohmulated a/deep proposition,” said the colonel at Jast, his tone calm and low. “T will explain, ladies and gen’lemen, in detail.” He leaned earnestly toward the "ig! in a | f ro iG ©) G SS