&
Hooty hollered to me an’ says, “Buck, les’ you an’ me run over
to where the close is. Somebody might swipe them while we was
swimmin’ across the pond.” ,
“I’m willin’, says I, ,“cau§e w^-can get to them close quicker
-by hoofin’ it.”
-
.
.“Needn’t mind,” saysK irky, “I can see them close from here.”
Then he says, “Le’s swim her together, ’taint more than eight feet
in the middle anyhow.”
“Eight feet,” screamed Hooty.
“’Taint much,” ,says I, “I’ve seen holes twice ¡as deep. I ’d swim
this one only fer cramps.” '
“I would too,” says Hooty. , ' ’
B u tl knew how much of a liar Hooty Was.
“I tell you Kirky, we’ll let ydprswim the middle, it’ll be shorter
for you, an’ me an Buck’ll take the sides. You’ll hav^ tKfc shortest
swim.”
/W e a bet,” called Kirky, “only look out fer cramps.” ■
He didn’t beat us much, fer we had to swim further than he did.
He jest finished dressiii’ when we pulled up.
“Hooty beat you,” he yelled« to me.
I knew Hooty swum with onC foot on the bottom, ’cause -he
was afeared to go in over his head, so I yelled back, “No you don’t.
He swum with one foot oh the bottom.”
Kirky said I swum the same way; an’ I come pretty, near tell-
in’ him he was another. Finally he says;. ,
“Youse kids stay in while I go up by the road and get some
Indian tobaccer. W hen-Icome-back I’ll learn you -hpw to swim.”
Maybe you think HoOty didn’t feel cheap when he said that.
When he come back he said he’d come when he got his chew-
eat up? All' Of a sudden we' heard a hoot owl holler twice. That
meant ‘danger, and when twice; it meant fer Kirky. Hooty,'with
them cross eye| 'of his, had Scented trouble. I' looked on the top of
the hill and there come Kirkenbury’s1 rig. I was behind Kirky, who
was just pullin’ off his shirt, but'when he heard the^ignal he turned
tidew ays and that shirt came back on- in a hurry. When the buggy
got' about fifty yards' away, ^Kirk’s mother got- out while another
woman held the lines. His mother ■ crawled through, the fence and
corne a Sneakin’ up behind Kirky .t\^ w £ s surely- Scared'; I thought
Kirky"was takin’ hWT^st look at the'swimmin’ hole. He- stuck
U niv er sity
of
O regon M o n t h l y