n infant to dispose
of, that is perhaps the first thing that occurs to a person. There was
a thick plaid shawl wrapped about the child. In the basket, beside the
baby, was a nursing bottle. About dusk I had it refilled with warm milk
at a farmhouse near--"

My head was beginning fur to swim. I pulled my head out of that there
hole, and rammed my foot into it. It banged against that grating and
loosened it. It busted loose some plaster, which showered down into the
room underneath. Miss Lucy, she screamed. And the doctor and Colonel Tom
both yelled out to oncet:

"Who's that?"

"It's me," I yells, banging that grating agin. "Watch out below there!"
And the third lick I give her she broke loose and clattered down right
onto a centre table and spilled over some photographs and a vase full of
flowers, and bounced off onto the floor.

"Look out below," I yells, "I'm coming down!"

I let my legs through first, and swung them so I would land to one side
of the table, and held by my hands, and dropped. But struck the table a
sideways swipe and turned it over, and fell onto the floor. The doctor,
he grabbed me by the collar and straightened me up, and give me a shake
and stood me onto my feet.

"What do you mean--" he begins. But I breaks in.

"Now then," I says to Colonel Tom, "did you leave that there child
sucking that there bottle on the doorstep of a blacksmith's house next
to his shop at the edge of a little country town about twenty miles
northeast of Galesburg wrapped up in that there plaid shawl?"

"I did," says Colonel Tom.

"Then," says I, turning to Miss Lucy, "I can understand why I have been
feeling drawed to YOU fur quite a spell. I'm him."

Transcribers Note: The following changes made:
ORIGINAL
PAGE LINE ORIGINAL CHANGED TO
17 28 Primose, Primrose,
41 12 jests looks jest looks
83 14 to, too,
84 4 jests sets jest sets
89 28 it it.
99 13 our fur out fur
121 4 Chieftan. Chieftain.
121 16 i it if it
160 8 them. then.
183 18 sir fo' sir, fo'
189 16 shedon' she don'
207 22 purty seen purty soon
210 5 They way The way
212 6 p