"HOSPERTALITY."

Press, Volume LXII, Issue 12375, 14 December 1905, Page 5

"HOSPERTALITY."

By Felix Fellows. Tho rain had come in torrents all the morning, but, by two o'clock in ths afternoon, tho hot July sun blazed upon the dripping slopes of the Tennessee mountains, and the handful of mounted bluecofts that trudged, heavily up the red clay road growled at the hot vapour rising from the earth, which, with the hot rays from above falling upon them, and their long ride of the morning, mad© further progress almost torture. The stick chimney of a mountain hut snuggled close against the mountain s.'de, almost hidden from the road by the tall bushes and undergrowth, broke upon the vision of tho men almost simultaneously, and a smothered Ah! and speedy tightening of, reins sent tho tired horses briskly forward. A eudden break in tho bushes that bordered the road showed a rugged path loading up to the hut. With ft quick yank of tho bridle ono of the men wheeled his horse into the path, and then stopped suddenly. There, almcst hidden in the brush beside the oath, on a rook that benched out from its fellows, sat a girl, and the surprise of the soldiers was reflected on her face. It was a plain face—with rather a largo mouth that stood open in consternation, and big bluo eyes that stared in wonder—a face that might belong to a woman of anywhere from, seventeen to twenty-seven, but a glance down her form to the 6kirt that cut off at the ankles, and the brown, bare feet exposed beneath, took you back to the conclusion of seventeen. In her lap, her. two hands clutched a half-finished yarn -stocking, with its bristling knitting-needles, while the ball of yarn lay. soaking in a littlo puddle further down the slope, where it had rolled unnoticed. "Here, girl," called tho leader, "have you seen anything of a man about here to-day p " , . "M-a-r-n," she drawled in reply, "hain't seen a m-a-r-n critter terday." a littlo brighter: "Who he's youalls a-lookra' ferP" • "A damned rebel scout—tail, fellow, dark hair and eyes. Been chasing him since daybreak, and on infernal chose he has given us too, up theae damned slippery Tiills of yours." , 'Wip, hain't seed no critter terday," she reiterated, languidly, stooping to rescue the blue ball, which she proceeded to cleanse by mopping it up and down the side of her honv?6pun gnwn. 'Say/ she drawled, "be yon-alls soldiers?" "Come, girl, who's irp yonder at the houseP" asked the spokesman, ignoring her ouestion. "Where's the men?" " Gone-ter-the-war, she drawled. "Pap and Dan lef a'most a ye'r ago. Hain't seen nuthin' uv 'era have yer?" and the big eyes took on a wistful ex'"Come, girl. lead the way; we must search tho house." "Nobody!s thar but Granny, and 6he s asleep." ' . . •, „ "Well, don t stand there, move along, 77 commanded the man. "Dasn't." paid the ghi. "Granny, she's got the a«mer, and she's got on? of her bad spells, and I.dssn't wake her." ' ■ ■' ' , ' "Come, come! this wont do; move along there; we can't be detained by a Granny or two." ■ "Wall." said the girl, panting one bare foot on a little elevation of clay and slowly bearing down till th? yellow earth oozed up between tho tore, "Wall." repeating the operation on another little mound of clay, "if you-alls bound ter do it. ye'fl have ter do it alone, 'case I dasn't. But I warns ver uot to-wake Granny, fcr its her spell day, and she's bad when yer get her started." "Well, I guess we can excuse you." said the leader. "Here, John, yon Sold the horses and we'll go up—and be sure to keeo your eye on that lovely specimen of Southern beauty." "Say," she drawled, "you-alls go easy. 'oa'se if she wakes up hell'l be a-ooppin'. shore 'nuf. And when you-alls come baclt. jes' turn down ther path thar, to the lef. to thor spring, and I'll g»-vou-aUs somethin' ter drink." " A laugh broke from the men. "Well accept." the foremost turned to say, j "provided your something is not spring water." .-, "Naw, 'taint neither. It's good ole Tennessee corn juice, as Dad fays, as good as ever pinned a ratt!esnake. Pap alius 'vit.es strangers ter drink. It's hospertality, he says, and, says he, 'Hospertality is the poor man's saving The men were ueanng the cabin door, when they heard the voice of the girl in a sort of stage whisper: "S-a-y, youalls. don't 'sturb ole frozen toes, whats bringin' off her second settin' under that 'a- table, or she'll raiso the roof, and that'll wak© Granny, and— T " "And we wouldn't be left in peace to enjoy Dad's 'hospertality,'" mockingly finished ono of the men. "Weil, I, for one. say let her sleep, for I'm as dry as a husk." This condition seemed contagious for the group went cautiously uo to tho open door, and as cautiously advanced within and began a hurried survey of the place. . The room was sparsely furnished, but bore traces of cleanliness. Its rough, home-made table, from underneath which the head of a Dominique chicken

protruded, eyeing tho intruders with an inquiring twist of her head, was ecoured white. Six split-bottom chairs ranged themselves in a straight line a'ong tho wall. In the corner farthest from the fireplace stood the four-poster, and the trundle bed was drawn out, with its furnishings piled up to air. On the bed lay a form, covered, despite the heat of the day, clear to the chin, with a heavy homespun banket. end ort top of that a gay green and yellowy patchwork quilt. r . Buried deep in the ch'ntz-ccvered pillow was a head incased fn a red flannel night-car>, with the face turned to the wall. The knees were drawn almost to the chin, and the hands were hidden beneath the covers. On a peg. at the Fifad of the bed, hune a homespun drew-, and beneath it. <fn the floor, stood a pair of stiff, solid- - lookinf slippers. Nowhere in Che room was there a pieeo of furniture largo enough to conceal a man. A hasty scanning of the walls and ceiling rdiowed no *vgns of an opening, save the customary hole leading to the loft. With « quiet movement, one of tho men lifted a chair beneath this and mounted upon it, only to dismount, convlncrd, by the network of sDidera' webs, that the board coverine nad Not been lifted for months. Better look if there is an entrance to it from the ouMde," suggested one, and tho soldier softly tiptoed out. and around the house, but came back, shaking his head. Apparently satisfied, they turned and filed out, and Granny slept on. As they came down the path, tho girl clumsily advanced to meet them, and conducted them along the "path to the lef," to a spring that trickled out of the mountain side and formed a pool m a natural basin that had fashioned itself among the rocks, half hiddon by tho grass. Stooping at one side, she groped about a bit in tho shallow water, and brought forth a good-sized jug, securely fastened to the handle of which was a gourd dipper. Placing the jug on the grass, she untied tho dipper, tendered it to the nearest man and said: "Hep yerself." After each had held communion with tho dipper a couple of times, she said to one of them: "Jes' hold the gourd while I pour out some fer that 'ar' critter, what' 6 holdin' them hosses. Wouldn't do to slight 'em, cause Dad says slightnV ain't hcspertality, and 1 knows a* how Dad would do it.ef he wus here." She filled the gourd to tho brim, then shuffled back to the gap in tho road. "Hyer," was all she 6aid as she presented the drink, "flyer's some of Dad's hospertality." The soldiers, treoping along behind her, snickered at her crude manner, and tho courteous bsw with which the gourd was received made her shy, and she fell to her way of smashing tho littlo mud heaps with her foot, and watching tho soft clay as it oozed up between her stnbbv toe 6. The empty dipper thrust into her hands made no impression on her, so intent did 6he seem in her pleasing occupation, but a loud "Good-fcye" brought her to a recognition that they were going. "Good-bye," she called; "if you-alls should meet Dad er Dnn, tell 'em the" and Granny's so and so, and tell Dad I's tended ther hospertality." She stood gazing after them, and something drifted back to her, like a wonder if' Dad wouldn't be Tiled when he heard she had 'stended tho hcspertality to a lot of bluecoats. For a long time she gazed down the road, till tho last sound of a hoof-be-1 died away. Then she hastened to the house, and with a glad "Dan, they're gone," broko into a low, gurgling laugh. "Talk about your bake ovens!" carao from the four-pester, and Granny piled out of that bed in a hurry. But what a grandmother! Six feet in her stocking*! And whon tho woollen night-cap was snatched off, it revealed three days' growth of board. Next off camo the" night-gown, and its wearer put it to an unwonted \mc in mopping away the perspiration from his neck and arms. From a drawer in the cupboard the girl produced a man's coat, hat and shore, and with a "Hurry, l?an!" parsed them to him. "There, bless you, girl! He was already at the door. "You say they went up tho Clayton road? ThaVs good, just as wo planned. Now, I'll cut through by the mill, meet Granny with the horse, and to-morrow morning will ccc mo safe back to the lines. It's early yet, and if I hurry, Granny will be able to get back to you tefore dark." She followed him down to the gap in the road, and, as his form disappeared through the bushes opposite, took her former seat on the ledge of the rock. Every now and then her eyea swept tho road in the direction whence the soldiers had vanished. Still she eat on, and ■when the last streak of sunlight had disappeared and the shadows deepened so that vision could no longer penetrate the distance, she strained.-her ears to catch the slightest sound:

Finally, amid tho bird calls, the soughing of the wind, and other familiar sounds of nature, she detected the snap of twigs like some one coming througn the grass. Presently the bushes again parted, at the spot where the man had disappeared a few hours before, and she sprang forward to meet a tired little old woman who emerged therefrom. "Well, he's off," was her first greeting, and "You're sure" they didn't come back this way?" added the grandmother. "Positive," answered the. girl, "and ef them Yankees never see a rebel till \ they ketch Dan, they'll never 6ee one." j