Sam Lawson's Oldtown Fireside Stories: With IllustrationsStowe, Harriet Beecher
General
Sam Lawson's Oldtown Fireside Stories: With Illustrations
Stowe, Harriet Beecher
New England -- Social life and customs -- 19th century -- Fiction; Short stories, American; Storytelling -- Fiction
“Then old Ketury got up, and reached her stick up chimbley, and called
out louder, 'Come down, come down! let's see who ye be.' And, sure
enough, down came a pair o' legs, and j'ined right on to the feet: good
fair legs they was, with ribbed stockings and leather breeches.
“'Wal, we're in for it now,' says Cap'n Eb. 'Go it, Ketury, and let's
have the rest on him.'
“Ketury didn't seem to mind him: she stood there as stiff as a stake,
and kep' callin' out, 'Come down, come down! let's see who ye be.' And
then come down the body of a man with a brown coat and yellow vest, and
j'ined right on to the legs; but there wa'n't no arms to it. Then Ketury
shook her stick up chimbley, and called, '_Come down, come down!_' And
there came down a pair o' arms, and went on each side o' the body; and
there stood a man all finished, only there wa'n't no head on him.
“'Wal, Ketury,' says Cap'n Eb, 'this 'ere's getting serious. I 'spec' you
must finish him up, and let's see what he wants of us.'
“Then Ketury called out once more, louder'n ever, 'Come down, come down!
let's see who ye be.' And, sure enough, down comes a man's head, and
settled on the shoulders straight enough; and Cap'n Eb, the minit he sot
eyes on him, knew he was Jehiel Lommedieu.
[Illustration: 0035]
“Old Cack knew him too; and he fell flat on his face, and prayed the
Lord to have mercy on his soul: but Cap'n Eb he was for gettin' to the
bottom of matters, and not have his scare for nothin'; so he says to
him, 'What do you want, now you hev come?'
“The man he didn't speak; he only sort o' moaned, and p'inted to the
chimbley. He seemed to try to speak, but couldn't; for ye see it isn't
often that his sort o' folks is permitted to speak: but just then there
came a screechin' blast o' wind, and blowed the door open, and blowed
the smoke and fire all out into the room, and there seemed to be a
whirlwind and darkness and moans and screeches; and, when it all cleared
up, Ketury and the man was both gone, and only old Cack lay on the
ground, rolling and moaning as if he'd die.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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