Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The west shore. (Portland, Or.) 1875-1891 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 1888)
THE WEST SHORE. . ....... i ut demised. Tli' more U lJi,v'tr,(lli k yer hands an' t,'1 Hfk Vm tb more they a nci ) kick , .....ii.ft'tnin est like em. 1 . twM. Tbur I plenty o-men jck. , i n.l,t ilnck OP ne dog or man wi Linn klro lV BVK v" " . i. 1 V ' .. ... ' , Uhnnor tber own msiue, Ki,h I,m,( g wi' a mighty an' 4 tut impukvo like all on , H,Mla II, b,l one faulty one; thet o t L l-V friends of they milled wi im ,7 ho km"' le- He'd lme a 600(1 r any day frr a nice, tender, meaty bone-one, jr. bow, i fcatbry bit o meat along it Tbar be (4c Myin', 'TIT carder tb' bone, th' sweeter th tunV Mebl thr-U hy it wuz web a sweet morsel to 'im; 1 daDnh fr.me facts be queer 'nu(T, queer " ' Tw u;. tb' middle o Injun summer. Tbar wuz a arm, purplmh haze in tb sky; a hot, languorous ,ftn in th' air' thct tuck tb' grit outen us. Tb' U ux ino wuz iw'ttin' on tb' piazzy, thet run all round tb houw, c they build 'em in tb' south. We oi N-tttn' on tb' M Hide, figurin' on some improve tnaU wo wuz a goiu' to make, Zeke wuz busy wi' a jUt o' Km, tbft ole Chloe, tb' cook, bed gi'n 'im. HudJaly Wirt, m a ubito gown, an' her wavy, gold MiUir a lljin', tejjed outer a low winder close to 'ira an' down by 'im, her sbinin bead close to hiwn. Tbar wuz a gleam o' angry eyes, a horrible :.! in und an' a low outcry. We sprung for'ard. Tb' d.'g gin one ahocked, agonized, despairin' look at tb' ugly wound ; then, wi'out glancin' agin at th' U.tjr, utUrtvl a long, wailin' cry, an' leaped away to tb' w.ir IVy Uard again that btitled bowl, and Zeke artw mth a U V of sorrowful contrition in bis eyes, and with hii tail Uwn hit legs, 6lunk away to the UtUt oitrr of the room. No amount of coaxing .u!l iu jv bin, ain t return. The artist was 'ib' tmcb.,1, and eagerly motioned the moun. tajnor tcntinu hia narrative, M I allui bat- to rcjt th' htory, kae it makes 'im "ton He lint frrgit th' part be tuck in it, an' U rrrrM.vb a n-al, live thing to 'im, thet ye ;?U; o'ret an' sympathy; an' ;b J -urr it all jo.' Mk, tb' marrer - - U...K,. uu.nu. .lUM-oroutof hi, voice l-;Ua t! rrrnJ ... ... . 7 ?' . uu wn rU Lk'r Tb aWlt 0' t. fr;.,. l n the wound together brung on brain fever, an' f er a fortnight her life flickered like a candle w'en th raw wind strikes !. At th' end o' three weeks th' crisis hed passed, an' she was slowly, but surely, on th' road to health arrin All this time we hed seed nur heard nothin o' Zeke but th' boss hed swore by th' Almighty, ef he ehowed 'imself agin he'd shoot 'im dead in his tracks. One mornin' I wuz standin' on th' porch ready to start fer a distant part o' th' ranch. Th' boss come out wi' a gun in his hand an' said he was goin' to shoot some quails fer Vi'let. I noticed a angry flash leap to bis eyes, an' follerin' ther direction I seed a sight thet made th' tears drop from my eyes like rain. Thar wuz Zeke, not thirty feet away, a crawlin' to'rd us on his belly. He wuz th' mere ghost o' 'imself Btarved to a skeleton, an' within his haggard, holler eyes, wuz th' dumb agony o' remorse, repentence, an' a pitiful prayer fer pardon. Skursly th' fraction o' a second passed ; ther wuz a ominous click, a flash, an' Zeke sprung upward in th' air an' fell quiverin' to th' airth. I turned wi' drippin' eyes an' burnin' words on my lips. Th' boss dropped his gun, an' wi' a dazed, scared look, strode in th' house es ef th' sper rit o' th' dog wuz arter 'im. " Stranger, thar be summat awful in a dog's re pentence. Et premises a intelligence skursly below man's soul. "W'at comes o' it arter death ? I ha' a notion thet heaven 'ud be a mighty lonesome place to me wi'out Zeke to share it. But let thet pass, too. " I keerfully lifted th' wounded dog an' tuck 'im away wi' me. Th' bullet hed crashed through his left jaw, an' tb' scar o' it he'll carry to his dyin' day. I nursed 'im back to life an' health, an' we ha' been sworn pardners ever sence. I vowed, arter sech treatment, I'd never let th' boss know thet Zeke wuz livin'. I kep' thet vow ; yit mebbe ef I hed tole 'im, things might ha' went different wi' 'im ; I dunno, p'raps not Some weeks later, w'en I come back, I knowed to oncet thet summat wuz wrong wi' 'im. Es I rode up be wuz runnin' roun' an' roun' th' house at a tight jump, lookin back'ards wi' a wicked laff, an' bis coat tails ilappin' in th' wind like sails. Sudden be stopped an' peered, cautious like, roun' th' corner o' th' piazzy, a tbumbin' his nose, jes' so. Wen he seojl mo be come tip-toein' close up to me, wi' a look o' cunnin' in his eyes, an' sez he, in a shrill whisper, ' 'E's boil th, scent ; HI tricked 'im.' " Well, be hed them bad spells off an' on, alius declarin' thet Zeke's sperrit wuz pursuin' 'im night an' day, a belchin' fire outen his mouth. W'en Vi'let wuz able to travel, they all went back to England ; but he growed wus fast, an' come to be so vi'lent they wuzn't able to manage 'im. His frien's wuz goin' to take 'mi to a private mad-house ; but th' mornin' they w to start, he wuz missin'. Th' next mornin' his