United States or Pitcairn Islands ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
"That's awful true," sighed another. "I have buried hundreds of dollars' worth of clothes in Arkansaw." "Why didn't yu' travel in a sponge bag?" inquired Scipio. And this brought a slight silence. "Speakin' of bites," spoke up a new man, "how's that?" He held up his thumb. "My!" breathed Scipio. "Must have been a lion." The man wore a wounded look.
We're ag'in the south bank of the Arkansaw, tryin' to throw the herd across. Thar's a bridge, but the natifs allows it's plenty weak, so we're makin' the herd swim. Steve is posted at the mouth of the bridge, to turn back any loose cattle that takes a notion to try an' cross that a-way.
Then I proposed "courage" as a subject, and put a question. "Thar's fifty kinds of courage," responded my companion, "an' a gent who's plumb weak an' craven, that a-way, onder certain circumstances, is as full of sand as the bed of the Arkansaw onder others.
'He had sold the other negro the third time on Arkansaw River for upwards of five hundred dollars; and then stole him and delivered him into the hand of his friend, who conducted him to a swamp, and veiled the tragic scene, and got the last gleanings and sacred pledge of secrecy; as a game of that kind will not do unless it ends in a mystery to all but the fraternity.
And when they heard from me that my sister was coming to join me, they were delighted with the idea of having another lady for company. All the same, Cora, I do not advise you to come here. Will write more in a few days; must stop now to secure the mail that goes by this train wagon and mule train to Arkansaw City, my dear." This was the substance of the young lieutenant's letter to his sister.
The cheers were given with a will and another vigilante cried: "A tiger fur Arkansaw." With that the hero was lowered into the grave which is one of the sights of the town. It was freezing cold the following day when Boyton and Creelman resumed the voyage, and Paul knew the rest of the journey would be a race against the winter which was now following close.
They all asked me questions, and I told them how pap and me and all the family was living on a little farm down at the bottom of Arkansaw, and my sister Mary Ann run off and got married and never was heard of no more, and Bill went to hunt them and he warn't heard of no more, and Tom and Mort died, and then there warn't nobody but just me and pap left, and he was just trimmed down to nothing, on account of his troubles; so when he died I took what there was left, because the farm didn't belong to us, and started up the river, deck passage, and fell overboard; and that was how I come to be here.
"I'd like to know," inquired Curly, bluntly, "what in merry-hell you're doing down in here, anyhow. Where'd you come from? Where've you been?" A half-humorous smile came to the face of the captive. "You seem not to know a Sandhurst man, gentlemen, when you see one," said he. "I said he was from Arkansaw," remarked Uncle Jim. "No foolin' now, young feller," said Curly, frowning.
"Well, is Lewisburg one mile, five miles or a thousand miles from here?" "I reckon its one o' them numbers." Paul was beginning to feel out of humor, but realized that he was conversing with a lineal descendant of the "Arkansaw Traveler;" he determined to get some information. Pointing to an island just below, he again put a question: "Which side of that island shall I take?"
Then General Lyon took out about 3,000 men, unt brought the whole crowd back with him." "Then General Lyon," continued Rosenbaum, "sent me out from Springfield, Mizzouri, to see how many men old Pap Price unt Ben McCullough had gathered up against him from Mizzouri, Arkansaw, Texas unt the plains. Holy Moses, I was scared when I saw the pile of them.
Word Of The Day