und out if he fetched the peskey critter on the
sides he'd squat right down. Wall, Jim knowed if he didn't git rid of
that hoss, his reputation as a hoss trader wuz forever gone; so he went
over in t'other township to see old Deacon Witherspoon. You see the
Deacon he wuz mighty fond of goin' a-huntin', and as he had rheumatiz
purty bad it wuz sort of hard fer him to git 'round, so he had to do
his huntin' on hoss back. Wall, Jim didn't say much to fuss, just kinder
hinted around that huntin' was a-goin' to be mighty good this fall, cos
he'd seen one or two flocks of partridges over back of Sprosby's medder,
and some right smart of quail over by Buttermilk ford, and finally he
sed: "Deacon, I've got a hoss you ought to hev; he's a setter." Wall,
you could hav knocked the Deacon's eyes off with a club, they stuck out
like bumps on a log, and he sed, "Why, Jim, I never heered tell of sech
a thing in all my life; the idea of a horse being a setter!" Jim
sed, "Yes, Deacon, he's bin trained to set for all kinds of game. I
calculated as how I'd git a shotgun this fall and do right smart of
hunting." So the Deacon sed, "Wall, now, I want to know; bring him over,
Jim, I'd like to see him."

Wall, Jim took the hoss over, and all Punkin Centre jest sort of held
its breath to see how it would cum out.

Jim and the Deacon went a-hunting, and as they wuz a-ridin' along
through the timber down by Ruben Hendrick's paster, Jim keepin' his eyes
peeled and not sayin' much, when all to onct he seen a rabbit settin'
in a brush heap, and he jist tetched the old hoss on the sides and he
squatted right down. The Deacon sed, "Why, what's the matter of your
hoss, Jim, look what he be a doin'." Jim sed, "'Sh, Deacon, don't you
see that rabbit over thar in the brush heap? the old hoss is a-settin'
of him." Deacon sed, "Wall, now that's the most remarkable thing I ever
seen in my life; how'd you like to trade, Jim?" Jim sed, "Wall, Deacon,
I hadn't calculated on disposin' of the hoss, but I ain't much of a hand
at huntin', and seein' as how it's you, if you want him I'll trade you,
Deacon, fifty dollars to boot."

Wall, the Deacon had a mighty fine animal, but he sed, "I'll trade you,
Jim." They traded hosses, and when they wuz a-comin' home they had to
ford the crick what runs back of Punkin Centre, and when the old hoss
wuz a-wadin' through the water, Deacon went to pull his feet up to keep
them from gettin' wet, and he tetched the old boss on