OCR Text |
Show A SHOOTING MATCH. Btory of tho Lovo Affairs or Mary, Don cnd'Dan'l. "I nln't much on tho hlioot, now," iatd the old mnn. a he tenderly hupff hU squirrel rlllo on the dpcrhorn hooks over the door, "but when I wru n youngster young-ster there wnn't no than cr bov In l'oor Korlt Valley llial could blioot alongside of inc. Nary n orif," and tho old man sighed heavily. "lint," ho continued, "this glttin' old Idiocies tho edgo off rt man's eycilght, and malce his hand I mj trembly that ho can't even tnlco n ' drinh of llrjuor without wastln' half of ili and ua fcr shootlu is old fellers might as well try to hit center with a maid at a hundred ynrds." Tho visitor, to whom this conversation conversa-tion was addressed, inado a few desultory desul-tory and Incongruous remarks, and tho old man resumed his talk, pretty much as If nothing at nil had been snld, which it wns mostly. "I never got beat but once," ho went on, with a good-humored reminiscent chuckle, "nnd that was by a feller that hadn't sense enough skeercely to go In out of the rain. Leastways that's what I thought when tho mate!, emtio off. tie didn't live In tny neighborhood, but he had n farmiiltonttwcnlymllo furder up tho l'ork, and 1 hail a habit of goln' up lhar to sco n mighty likely gal, that as dartor to tho man that owned the place next to the chap that beat mo at tho shootln'. Tho old man's name was Squtro Iligglns, and tho gal's name wns Msry Mary's a purty nnnie, nnd Mary was a purty gal Nothln' on tho Fork was apntchln' to that gal, nnd I wanted her bad enough to go up thnrsparkin' .ibout twict ii week durln' of n mighty hard winter, when It was eold enough o freeze tho knobs off n bureau. Mary under liked me, too. Liked mo better-n' better-n' o IV of tho other young fellers that was lmngln' round, execptin' lien Wllhlns, and If was neck nnd neck bo-tv. bo-tv. Ixt mo nnd lien. Iten wns her neighbor, neigh-bor, nnd the same felrer I hnd tho shootln' shoot-ln' uiitch with. I never could see linw sho stuck to lien, he wns sodoggoned freckled-fared nnd sun-burnt nnd sandy-headed sandy-headed mid Ignorant-liko nnd fooler than Tlintupson'a colt, but you onn't udl nliout a woman, nnd thar wasn't, no .join' bark on the solemn fact, that ef Hen didn't git out of my wny I vns never goln' to git the gal, and it was most nigh as certain thatef soinethin' didn't happen to me. Hen wasn't goln' to git her neither it was close runnln', mister, nnd the gal scttln' rill the fence, aggln' iib ou. That's another weakness woman has; I mean theso young women that has her choice, llko Mary Iligglns. Won't no dungcr of her fillln' n mnld-on's mnld-on's grave, even rt mo and lien boh got put out of the way. "One mornln' when I was on the road leatlln' up the l'ork, towards, Rnulro Iligglns' furm, I met lien comln' down with a load of hay, and I'd been goln' to see Mary then for mighty nigh n "Howdy. Hen?" said I, friendly enough. " 'llowdj', O.tn'1. s.ild ho to me. " "Pair to mlddlln'.'snys I. " 'lloln' vpto thewiiilio'a, I reckon?' nays he, (jue'tlonln'. " 'That's what,' says I, spcnkln' ns If I had tho rights to. " 'Mary nln't home,' snyn he. "'Whocald nnythlng about Mary?' i-aya I, glttln' red 'round the years. "Tha way you're go'ln',' nays he, with a grin. " 'WlmfH that to yon?' says I, not over polite. I reckon. "'Nothln',' t-ayj he; 'but cf -you want to hco her, yo.i'd better go down to mother'K. Cho'o down thnr to n nullti In'. "Hen grinned again nnd I got purty mnd, but not enough I,o hurl nnylxMly, nnd Hij-N I to him: ' 'Hen WilklnH.' says I, 'have you got n gun?' 'You don't want to fight, do you?" says he. baekln' off hinder, fer I thought he wns bkeert, and inobbo ho was. " 'No,' wiys Is 'but I want Mnry Iligglns. Ilig-glns. " 'So do I,' says he. "Theu it cleared up n bit, and wn both looked nl ench other sortrrshcrplsh and grinned, fer befor'o this wo hadn't ever hnd uo understand!!!'. " 'Uow ns wo know what wa want,' snya I, 'wo orlcr huvo It selthd on short notice who'd to git it, nnd cf you nlr ntfrceublo we'll hcttlo It to tho satisfaction satisfac-tion of nil parties nt Intrust, as tho lawyers my.' " 'IIowV' rays bo. " 'Wo can't both hare her, Itln we?' says I. i . " 'Not nccordln' to law,' hn.ys he. " 'JJcr no way.' i.ays I. " 'I roelion uol.' suys he. " 'Then s'poaln' wo hove a shootln' runtch fcr her,' sn)4 I, " 'I nln't ngri ifc-.blu to that,' says ho. " 'Fcr wl r?' rnys I. I " 'Yuii a'.v handler than me with n gun.'snisho. " 'foiiio iiiobbe,' says I, 'limbic enough, 'Imt I'll glvo you twcnt.v-llvo inrds ndvnntflgw, jind that'll nliout inuke 11 ecn.' "Well, after talkln' fer half nu hour cr more, we lxcd tin a sjiootiu' match, fer ueNt day, on Hen u ,..i hi, f r hu wna skeert to gonnywheies clkc, nnd I rid back home, and next forenoon 1 wns on hand follii' ns slick lis a whistle, fer I wus gnmbiln' on glttln' Mary.- Nolxjdy was to know nnythlng about our settle-mint, settle-mint, nnd when I i.eed Hen, ho wns set-tin' set-tin' on tho fence, about a quarter of a mile from his house, with ids gun aerost his kip, lookln' loncsomer than a cat In a ralnitoriii. Thar was mi old frnnio burn dtundln' by Itself In tho field, nnd we wunt over to it to have a quiet- place for tho clohln arrange-uicntH. arrange-uicntH. It had a pile of loose straw in It, und ns wo sot thar talkln', I wed a knot-holo in tho plank' nbout two inches ucrost, and 1 list him ef II wouldu't mako n,good enough murk with the straw Insldo to Uutch 'thobul-lots. 'thobul-lots. You see I was duin' tho most of tho cnfflnecrin', fer Hen was that shook up ho didn't fioo.n t" hnow h! head from a holo la tho ground. Ho said ho thought tho htiot-holo would do, to wo went outblde and it wus llko lis cf it had been put thar a purpose. "Wo stepped off n hundred ynrds fust, nnd druv a pin down, and then went on twenty-five yards nnd druv another, nnd mo nud Hen took our places. Wo wns fo shoot ten times apiece, mo five and Hen live, turn nbout, and neither of us was to go nigh tho other to ilustrato him during tho shootln'. I wns foelln' 1 in regular hhoottn' trim, and wheiu I slDtuiy live I knowed Hon was goln' to have to do 6omo mighty tall hhootlu' 'cr lo'.o the gal. Wo wont to tho murk-together und pegged up three holes, not I half nn Inch from tho knothole, and two j bullets had gono smack through, lcavln' no sign. "Then Hen In took his turn, and I was shore I seen him shako when hoHlghtcd his gun, but ho shot off his live, nnd wo went up to seo what ho bad done nd what do you think, mlilcr? There wasn't tho sign of a bullet holo any-whoresl any-whoresl "I looked nl Hon nnd he looked nt mo. "'You nln't shootln' very spry today,' to-day,' says he, grlnuln. "You nlr,' says I, lookln' ugly and foctln' my holts on Mary sllppln'. "Next round I was dead sot on doln' my level bout and I put threo ball through tho holo and scraped tho edges with tho other two. "Hen was haikin' peakld, nnd I seed his knees wabblin', but ho braced up aud went hack to bcttle who should hnva tho gal, and It 'pearcd to mo llko ns If ho was tukln' lllU'lirlStma.1 to flro them five shots, lie got it dono utlast, though, and wc walked up to the mark kinder iiiisni'tin, both of us, but thnr wasn't nny need of IL" "Did you win?" broke In tho visitor, In a high stnto of excitement nud Interest. In-terest. "Nnry win, mister," chuckled tho old man. "Thnt snndy-hended, thumb-headed thumb-headed citsf hnd sent every one of his live bullel smack through tho knothole knot-hole nnd lhar w-ntu't tho sign of n scratch anywheres In sight "That ended It fer mo, biHh fer shoot-in' shoot-in' and fer the gnl, nud I rid homo feel-In feel-In like a saw log bad fell on ino butt end fo'most, und Hen went lopln' ucrost tho Held tor'ds Squire Iligglns'. "About n month nfter tho shootln' match Hen nnd Mary wns hilchod nnd I wns to the hltchln' eclln' n good deal peartir than I did the day Hen beat mo, nn' gottln' somo Vonsqlstton out of n new gal. Jlst moved onto the l'ork. Hut I couldn't qulto git over Hen's beatln' mo shootln". "Along.nbout midnight, I had to gp home, nnd as I stnrtcd to git ou my lioss,t Mary followed mo out on tho porch. . "'Ilan'l,' says she. kinder cooln' nnd soft like, 'you won't git mad it mo cf 1 tell you bomethlu', will you?" " Of course nut, Mnry,' says I. 'Nothln' 'Noth-ln' you eonld soy or do would imiko mo mad ntyou.' " 'Well, then, Dnn'I,' says she, shahin' some, fer I was holdln' her hand nnd knowcd.wliHii you nnd Hen had that shoo! In' mrltch fer ine, Hen didn't have no bullets In his gun. They was just wads.' "Well, sir, you could n-knockod mo down with a splinter, and I got hot nil ocr, but I chnt my jnw, (town hard fern minute nud held in, thinhln' nbout them wiuIk. '"And ho didn't beat mo shootln', after all? snys I, feelln mighty good over It, all ntoneo. " 'No, ho didn't,' wys she, pattln' mo ou tho nrm llko as cf sho wns my mother. "'Hut he got you,' says J, droppln' back a peg or two. " '.Yen,' sayH alio, 'but I put him up to It. Dan!. "Then she rolled till I thoMght tho sun was rtiiMn', ami 1 thmwod my arms right 'round her und says I: " 'Mary,' says, I, 'you'vo got more sense than ltcu nnd uiu i-. .jfci....ol, pertiekerly me, and I'm glad you'vo got tho one you wnuteiU nnd with that I jumped on my boss nnd rid HcUnty.splIt fcr home, und when I got thar r jlfct hugged that vllle "I ml'1" c' It had been Mary Iligglns." "Dan'l," railed tho old man's wife from the lciuhuu at tins point, ''flipper's ''flip-per's ready." . "So air We, Mftslp, ' he said, rising. Tho visitor looked nt him Inquiringly ns ho roso to accompany him supper-want. supper-want. , , "YcViHinllcd tho oh) man, "sho s tho sams tliat was the new gnl on the l'ork tho night Mary and Hen got hitched." W. J. I.nmpton, In Detroit Trco l'ress. |