Them commissioners ort a have a little spare change by them, when they git pay from the people of the county for buyin bridges and pay from the bridge companies for sellin bridges. Ime a hearin a good deal about that bridge bizness. About them iron tubes that we paid the same for as stone butments would a cost, and that sellin out of the Trenton bridge in pieces privately, so that it would bring more “commission,” and of them contractors that come down here and got paid for not biddin on another job, and all them things, and Ime a layin low for Jobe so that the next time he lites into me Ile pulverize him. He’s been quiet for a day or two. He’s been out a tryin to borrow tax money, workin on the “gold basis,” as it were. He ginerally is quiet durin tryin times. He dont know what minit he may need my help. This tax bizness is a deep question, and seems to be a gittin deeper. How does it come that a feller what has a farm, and owes for it, has to pay the same tax as he would if he had it all paid for? Now, here is Jobe and me. We have this farm, that haint worth more nor $2,500; we owe $1,800 gold mortgage on it. So we own $700 of its worth, and the banker what holds the mortgage owns the balance. We have to pay $51.80 a year tax on it. That is, we pay $51.80 tax on $700 we own. Haint that over seven per cent. tax on all we are worth? Now, if the banker is permitted to deduct his debts from his tax list, and the storekeeper and manufacturer is allowed to deduct their debts from their tax list, why haint the law-makers what Jobe and his likes has been electin to office made laws to allow the farmer to deduct his debts from his tax list? Why haint they, I say? Haint a voter what farms for a livin jist as good a citizen, jist as much entitled to the benefit of laws as the fellers are what lends money for a livin, or what sells store goods, or gits rich by makin things to sell to the farmers and sich? If we only had to pay taxes on what we have paid on this farm, on what we have over our debts, we wouldent have to borrow any tax money this June. If anybody but them crazy Populists would offer to make sich a law, I believe I could git Jobe to vote for it. But them Populists are pizen to Jobe. He is so swelled up and elated over the county offices bein filled with Republican officeseekers instid of Dimicrats, that I dont suppose he will ever vote any other ticket, even if doin so would put him out of debt or bring down taxes and interest and sich. The second nite arter the cold weather drove Jobe in from the haymow to the comfortable bed of his lawful wife, I had a experience Ile never forgit. [Illustration: “JOBE WAS ON HIS KNEES IN THE MIDDLE OF THE BED.”] We had gone to bed about the usual hour, and as neither was very sleepy we fell to talkin. I had tried to avoid anything of a perlitical natur since that tryin mornin in the kitchen, and Jobe had got along with givin me a slur now and then.