OCR Text |
Show AT THE COUNTRY STORE. HOW ELLKRY TAYLOR TOOK A HINT. Tho country storekeeper who had been looking rather disgusted for sov- vOT crnl minutes, ro- TA tired to tho back -ffi TPfc- . warehoom nnd ivkr&Q came out with n ' itSW J bucket of wet saw- Jwvr!CSL' ,u,st' wlth whlch v-lK'-jHl ho bognn to Jl aTs,- sprinkle tho floor 'm xmf"- J liberally around k mB ifA tho stovo. Wash V tH? Hal,cock and Sol X I Jjff Baker drow their Aft VtS cha,r8 back to es- fft iT5 cnD0 tn'9 Bhowor '1 W and Clem Willis, i.y. tti who was In from Lltt, Tarl1 W,U1 il CBgSi dodged be- , . hind Uio counter. S'?0'' "Didn't you dig '-fj'.' out only las' week, y ' Rufo?" Inquired Hancock, as tho storokeopor began to sweep. "Seems to mo you did, 'r elso it wus tho week aforo las'. You seem to bo glttln' mighty pernickety with your store." "Ef you quit lltterln' It up with plno whlttlln's I might leavo It tell Christmas," Christ-mas," retorted tho storokeopor. '"I "Marched Out to the Barn." don't want folks drivln' up hero an' unloading' sawlogs under tho Impression Impres-sion 'at I'm running a sawmill." "I kin tako a hint about 's well 's Ellory Taylor," said Hancock, ns ho closed his Jackknlfo and pulled his chair closer to tho stovo. "Thero nln't no need o' Bpcakln' out In meotln' tor mo. All you've got to do Is ter kick me whon you want mo to movo along." "Can Ellory Taylor tako a hint?" asked Willis; "I reckoned ho wus sorter dumb." "Ho was sparkln' MHIy Hanchcr," explained Hancock, "an' Old Man Hon-chor Hon-chor wasn't fav'rablo, nohow. Ho allowed a3 Ellery wus too blamed slow an' lazy ter amount to much. Ho wus a llttlo, fldgctty, bustlln' feller himself an' ho mado up his llttlo fidgety mind that ho'd glvo Ellery a hint that ho wusn't wanted. So when Ellery como to seo tho gal tho old man stayed In tho settln' room an' pestered Mllly 'bout ono thing 'r another an' nevor took no notlco of Ellery, no more'n ho wusn't there. Ellery stayed ontll 9 o'clock an' couldn't git In a word aldgowlso. "Nox" night ho como around crgln an' Old Man Hanchcr stayed with 'em samo's boforo. About 8 o'clock ho bo-gun bo-gun to fidget around llko a pea In a hot skillet an' then ho wound up tho clock an' 'lowed to Mllly as It wus tlmo sho wus In bed. An' Ellery nover got In a word aldgowlso. "Nox' night, though ho como nround same as ovor an' Old Mnn Hanchcr loosed tho dog on him as ho como through tho yard. Ellery Jos' hauled off an' kicked that pup clear over tho fenco nn' then went Into tho house. Tho old rran had been bullyraggln' Mllly about him, but sho wus tol'ablo gritty an' sho took ,Ellery into tho settln' room. "Pretty soon tho old man toilers In Jest a bl'lln' an' ho opened out on Ellery, callln' htm all tho names ho c'd lay his tonguo to, an' Ellory sot thero cs ca'm's If ho'd been talkln' about tho crops ontll tho old man stopped for breath. Then ho got up slow nn' easy llko an' grabbed him an' tucked him under his arm. "'Donl hurt him, Ellery I screams Mllly. " 'I won't hurt him,' says Ellery, an' ho marches out to tho barn with tho old man klckln an' cussln' undor his arm. When ho got into the barn ho hold tho old man with ono hand an' onfastencd tho linos from a narness with tho other hand an' his tooth an' then ho tied tho old man up, hand an' foot, an' laid him gently down on tho hay mow. All tho tlmo ho nover said n word, though tho old man said a-plenty. "It wus pas' 9 o'clock when ho como back an' onticd tho old man, who wus tol'ablo meek by that time. He mm didn't say uuthln', WU4S. though, ontll ho JiW had rubbed out j t somo of tho cramps J, . K. from tho old man's j)!j ffl lcB8- Then ho led fW I him to tho barn jM "fA door. TrWlw '"Iv0 ol,ml un jr A&'l tho clock, Mr. Han- va cher,' ho says, 'nn' jf t I reckon Mllly's In M J I bed by this tlmo. flr Thero wusn't no If J need of you a-say- B 7 In' all that to mo ill this evenln' no B y need at all. I o'n 4p, tako a hint. I'll r?hCi bo back to-morrcr jf evenln'.' n ' "'Woll,' says tho old man, sorter thoughtful, 'I reckon you mought as well como cf you want to. I c'n take a hint, too.' " |