Part 8 (1/2)
One old lady thought ”somebody'd have to sign for her 'fore spring.”
Aunt Graves thought that ”poor folks, who lived on bil'd vittels, hadn't orter be called on.”
The hat was, however, pa.s.sed around, and three dollars and seventy-five cents raised, ”for the gineral purposes of the meeting,” according to Ike's motion; and I will say here that this amount was appropriated towards the purchase of books for the Puddleford library, which was established at this meeting, and which has now grown into usefulness and importance.
The hat was reached up to the secretary, who gave it a couple of shakes, declaring at the same time, that he was ”happy to say that the public spirit of Puddleford hadn't gin out yet.”
Squire Longbow then rose and said, that ”some plan must be laid to get up a set of lecters. There were three great sciences, law, preaching, and physic--law consarned property, physic consarned the body, and preaching consarned the soul. These sciences must be scattered, so everybody could enjoy 'em. He could talk on law himself, and Bigelow could on preaching, and physic was understood, any way. There were other subjects which would come up in their order. There was paintin', and poetry, and music--but them warn't of no account in a new country where money was skase. Politics was one of the uncertain sciences, and it didn't do much good to speak on't, any how. A feller might study and study, and just likely as not the next election would blow him into fiddle-strings. Yet politics had got to be had, 'cause that was what kept the country alive, and made liberty grow.
Old Gineral Was.h.i.+ngton himself had a little on't. He said 'twas one etarnal job to start edication, but jist get the thing a-goin once, and it'll move off like ile--it'll run rite off like a steam injin.”
Ike said ”he know'd a curtain lecter or two might be had,” looking round at Stub Bulliphant. ”They warn't the worst kind nother. They'd bring a man all up standin', when nothin' else would. He'd seen a fellow cave right in under one on 'em, and come out as cow'd as a whipt spaniel. About lecterin'
on politics, he didn't know. He guessed the bushes were a little too thick to talk on that, yet. He hoped the meetin' would speak right out, and 'spress their feelin's, wimmin and all.”
Old Mrs. Fizzle had been watching the movement of this august body for some time, and had thought, several times, that it was her duty to speak. When Ike, therefore, invited ”women and all,” she concluded to try it. She was a tall, weasel-faced looking person, and belonged to Bigelow's church. She was an out-and-out temperance woman, and had kept all Puddleford hot by her efforts to put down the sale of intoxicating drinks. She was a fiery, nervous, active, good sort of a woman. Mrs. Fizzle rose. She said ”she thought she would give this meetin' a piece of her mind, consarnin' things in general. She didn't know but the meetin' was well enough--she liked meetins--she said she didn't care nothin' about politics, never did her any good as she know'd on--she didn't want to hear any lecters any way 'bout that. If some on 'em would talk 'bout temperance, she'd turn out, and give a little something to help the cause along. She said if she really thought that this meetin' could stop Clewes from selling licker, she'd tend it reg'lar.”
”Certainly, ma'am,” said Ike, rising, and turning his eyes towards Mrs.
Fizzle. ”We'll put a _ha_bus corpus on to him 'fore breakfast to-morrow morning.”
Mrs. Fizzle said, ”she didn't know what that was, and she didn't care much, if 'twould only hold him tight.”
Ike said ”it would hold him--couldn't break it no how--it was made by the law to catch just such chaps with.”
”Wal,” said Mrs. Fizzle, ”if the law made it, I'm 'fraid on't. I've hearn tell how folks creep through holes the law leaves. I don't like your scorpus, as you call it.”
Squire Longbow rose. ”He felt it his duty to say, that a writ of habus scorpus would hold anything on airth. It was one of the biggest writs in all nater. He could hold all Clewes' grocery with one on 'em. He felt it his duty further to say this as a magistrate, who was bound by his oath to take care of the law.”
Mrs. Fizzle ”thought that would do. She had great 'spect for the Squire's opinion--and she now thought she'd go in for the meetin'.”
Sile Bates said, ”for his part, he thought the meetin' was getting a good deal mixed. 'Every tub orter stand on its own bottom,' as the Apostle Paul, Shakspeare, John Bunyan, or some other person said. We can't do everything all at onst; if we try, we can't make the Millennium come until 'tis time for't. We can kinder straighten up matters--hold onto the public morals a little more--and give edication a punch ahead. But who knows anything about the sciences in Puddleford? and who can lecter? 'When the blind lead the blind,' as the newspapers say, 'they all go head over heels into the ditch.' Great Caesar Augustus, Mr. President, jist think of a lecter on 'stronomy, that _etarnal_ science, which no man can lay his hands on, which the human intellect gets at by figuring. Just think of Bigelow Van Slyck, Ike Turtle, or _you_, Mr. President, measuring the distance to the stars.
Don't it make your head swim, to think on't? He wouldn't say that the Squire couldn't lay down the law for the people, 'cause he made most on't, and ought to know it by heart. (The Squire gave a loud cough, and straightened himself in his seat.) As for licker, he always _was_ agin it, that is, he never touch'd it except in haying, harvesting, husking, and occasionally, a little along, between, when he didn't feel right. He s'posed he was a strict temperance man--was secretary of a teetotal society once, but it died out for want of funds to keep up lights and fires. He hop'd this meetin' wouldn't get so much on its shoulders, as to break down 'fore it got started.”
There were several more speeches and suggestions made. There were two or three on the floor at once, several times, during the progress of business.
Order was out of the question. A course of lectures was finally decided upon, and the meeting adjourned. The reader will not forget that the end had in view by this rough, deliberate body was n.o.ble; and, in their own way, they moved along steadily towards it. Such a people do not forget their duty, however ludicrously the discharge of it may be at first.
Looking back from the present, over a period of ten years, at the proceedings of this meeting and its results, I feel quite disposed to write down Squire Longbow, Ike Turtle, and Sile Bates, among the philanthropists of the age.
CHAPTER VII.
Social War.--Longbow, Turtle & Co.--Bird, Swipes, Beagle & Co.--Mrs. Bird.--Mrs. Beagle.--Mrs. Swipes--Turkey and Aristocracy.--Scandal.--Husking-bees, and ”such like.”--The Calathumpian Band.--The Horse-fiddle.--The Giant Trombone.--The Gyastacutas.--Tuning up.--Unparalleled Effort.--Puddleford still a representative Place.
I have taken the liberty, in the preceding chapters, to speak freely of some of the leading characters of Puddleford. I have alluded to Longbow, Turtle, and Bigelow, not because they were the only people of the village, or the best; but because they were the rudder of society, and steered it along in the same way that s.h.i.+ps are guided over stormy waters. Now, there were a great many more very excellent folks, who helped c.h.i.n.k in and fill up around these more important personages, and make up an harmonious whole.
Zeke Bird, the blacksmith, was one; Tom Beagle, the shoemaker, another; Lem Swipes, the tailor, still another. These men were among the first settlers of Puddleford, and had done as much towards its up-building as any other.
They had immigrated from a place in Ohio, and consequently knew something about the world. All three families were cousins, or second cousins, to one another, and they acted in unison upon any public or social question.
They hated, with a supreme hatred, Longbow, Turtle & Co., because they were ”aristocrats.” Mrs. Bird, who was a very impulsive, peak-nosed sort of a woman, and who always wore a red flannel petticoat protruding beyond her dress, and her shoes slip-shod, used to often say, ”that if there was anything she did despise it was a stick-up. She didn't believe old Mrs.
Longbow, or any of her darters, were any better than common folks; and she'd see the whole pack on 'em pumpin' lightning at two cents a clap, before she'd skrouch to 'em!”