The Leatherwood God | Page 6

a
young woman unkempt as to the pale hair which escaped from the knot
at her neck, and stuck out there and dangled about her face in spite of
the attempts made to gather it under the control of the high horn comb
holding its main strands together. The lankness of her long figure
showed in the calico wrapper which seemed her sole garment; and her
large features were respectively lank in their way, nose and chin and
high cheek bones; her eyes wabbled in their sockets with the sort of
inquiring laughter that spread her wide, loose mouth. She was
barefooted, like Reverdy, on whom her eyes rested with a sort of
burlesque menace, so that she could not turn them to Mrs. Braile in the
attention which manners required of her, even when she added, "I just
'spicioned that he'd 'a' turned in here, soon's I smelt your breakfas', Mrs.
Braile; and the dear knows whether I blame him so much, nuther."
"Then you'd better draw up too, Sally," Mrs. Braile said, without
troubling herself to rise from her own chair in glancing toward another
for Mrs. Reverdy.
"Oh, no, I couldn't, Mrs. Braile. I on'y just meant how nice it smelt. I
got me somepin at home before I left, and I ain't a bit hungry."
"Well, then, you eat breakfast for _me_; _I'm_ hungry," the Squire said.
"Sit down! You couldn't get Abel away now, not if you went on an
hour. Don't separate families!"
"Well, just as you say, Squire," Mrs. Reverdy snickered, and she
submitted to pull up the chair which Mrs. Braile's glance had suggested.
"It beats all what a excitement there is in this town about the goun's on
at the camp-meetun', last night. If I've heard it from one I've heard it
from a dozen. I s'pose Abel's tol' you?"--she addressed herself
impartially to Mrs. Braile across the table and to the Squire tilted
against the wall in his chair, smoking behind his wife.
"Not a word," the Squire said, and his wife did not trouble herself to

protest; Reverdy opened his mouth in a soundless laugh at the Squire's
humor, and then filled it with bacon and corn-pone, and ducked his
head in silence over his plate. "What goings on?"
"Why, that man that came in while Elder Grove was snatchun' the
brands from the burnun', and snorted like a horse--But I know Abel's
tol' you! It's just like one of your jokes, Squire Braile; ain't it, Mrs.
Braile?" Sally referred herself to one and the other.
"You won't get either of us to say, Sally," Mrs. Braile let the Squire
answer for both. "You'd better go on. I couldn't hear too often about a
man that snorted like a horse, if Abel did tell. What did the horses
hitched back of the tents think about it? Any of 'em try to shout like a
man?"
"Well, you may laugh, Squire Braile," Sally said with a toss of her head
for the dignity she failed of. She slumped forward with a laugh, and
when she lifted her head she said through the victual that filled her
mouth, "I dunno what the horses thought, but the folks believe it was a
apostle, or somepin."
"Who said so? Abel?" "Oh, pshaw! D'you suppose I b'lieve anythin'
Abel Reverdy says?" and this gave Reverdy a joy which she shared
with him; he tried to impart it to Mrs. Braile, impassively pouring him
a third cup of coffee. "I jes' met Mis' Leonard comun' up the crossroad,
and she tol' me she saw our claybank hitched here, and I s'picioned
Abel was'nt fur off, and that's why I stopped."
The husband and wife looked across the table in feigned fear and threat
that gave them pleasure beyond speech.
"She didn't say it was your claybank that snorted?" the Squire gravely
inquired.
"Squire Braile, you surely will kill me," and the husband joined the
wife in a shout of laughter. "Now I can't hardly git back to what she did
say. But, I can tell you, it wasn't nawthun' to laugh at. Plenty of 'em
keeled over where they sot, and a lot bounced up and down like it was a
earthquake and pretty near all the women screamed. But he stood there,
straight as a ramrod, and never moved a eye-winker. She said his face
was somepin awful: just as solemn and still! He never spoke after that
one word 'Salvation,' but every once in a while he snorted. Nobody
seen him come in, or ever seen him before till he first snorted, and then
they didn't see anybody else. The preacher, he preached along, and tried

to act like as if nowthun' had happened, but it was no use; nobody
didn't hardly pay no attention