The Boy With the U.S. Census

nce I'm going to be a census-taker, I th

his way through the weekly paper, lowered it so that he coul

or?" he

lmost anybody else in this section,"

llowing topics to develop slowly, even though his host was better informed than most of the people in the region. Although not an actual relative, Hamilton always called hi

ch doin's unless he has to," the Kentuckian resumed, after a pause

hat it's the right ki

kind of inquisitiveness," the mountaineer said, with

he questions are easy

no denyin' that some of 'em ar

hey are n

that yo' c'n never make see how knowin' their

eel that way, Un

' I'm willin' to tell all I know. But I jes' feel as sure as c'n be, that bef

ere was practically no trouble at the last census. I think it's a fine th

o' ever see any one that ever sat down an'

g interesting reading matter; it's because those figures really are necessary. Why

n't ask about a man's politics, I

gress depends on the figures of the population that the census-takers gather, and

say the same ab

," the boy

ll sorts of information about the crops an' the

tant enough, Uncle Eli? And then the railroads, too,-they depend on the f

it," the mountaineer said, l

al agent in the Census of Manufactures right away. I applied last Octobe

e that you've passed the e

lways been easy for me, and when my brother was studying for

s, so I s'pose yo' come by it naturally e

or the other," said Hamil

you're all sot, but it's the business o

lained "either with the Census Bureau or the Bureau of Statistics or some work like tha

o see it, but you're huntin' trouble sure's you're born. S'posin'

plied Hamilton stoutly, "

t law's used much,"

believe there were not very many arrests all over the c

, I know, courtesy is a whole lot bigger word than constitution. Up hyeh, we follow the law when we're made to, follow an idee backe

give trouble," Hamilton proteste

slowly shook his he

h, because yo' haven' taken yo' man jes' right. Thar isn't any such thing as bein' too graciou

uld shoot him up?

e folks up hyeh an' in the gu

ed the government would insure

deal. The only insurance I ever had was a quick ear, an' even now, I c'n hear a twig snap near a quarter of a mile away. An'

for you now, is there, Uncle

, with an answering slow smile, "an' I reckon sometimes that I m

do," put in H

hate to give up. I'd sort o' be lost without it now, after all these years. Thar's no one to

replied with assurance; "w

ause he's b'n at school. Shootin' an' schoolin' don' seem to hit it off. I reckon th

n't there?" asked Hamilton. "It must be very different

d a bit sence the war. You city people call us slow-movin' up hyeh, an' as long as thar's any o' the ol' spirit ab

d?" queried the

dn' have anythin' to do with it near hyeh. I don' want to see any little

ons of an enumerator's work in the mountain distri

n amazement, "you talk as though t

y're all over?" t

"I thought the Kentucky 'killings' h

in the paper some figures on that very thing. Yo' like figures, this will jes' suit you. Whe

them being for murder or manslaughter.' It says fu'ther on," the old man added, "that pardonin' is jes' as frequent now as it ever was. I

mountains only. That must be for crimes in the cities and all s

he schoolin'. The young folks ain't ready fo' revenge now, an' that sort o' swings the women around. An' up

women would always have been ag

ren't. They helped to keep

hanged much," vol

gainst the Howkles in the ol' style. But the feelin' is dyin' out

ad come from some part of the world where vendettas and that sort of thing had been going on for generations. There

substitute jes' to get a chance to see for himself what life in the mount'ns was like. He was writin' a book about it. We got right frien'ly, an' he knew he

is chair and chuckled with evide

e started right in to talk. Thar was no stoppin' him, an' I couldn' r

the feuds, Uncle E

, with a short laugh, "he beg

vag

uncivilized an' wild. Thar an't any finer stock in the world, he said, than the mount'neers o' the Ridge, clar down

re, they were gentlemen of good birth, most of them; th

t he explained that was the v

lton, "and I certainly don't see

r to climb back than if the fall had b'n small. An' that's why it's so

turn of mind, would have protested at

ose that went on, down into the Blue Grass region, went boomin' r

why not?" obj

the product has got to be taken to market. But thar was no railroad up in the mount'ns. Children were easy to raise, an' a population grew up in

well cut off,"

'round was advancin' up in the mount'ns, fifty years ago, we were livin' je

ountaineers at all," cried the boy, "b

s our own fault. If the mount'n country was worth developin'

why you didn't, Uncle

very man is his own master. But, thar bein' no available market if they did work hard, what was the use o' workin'? Some o' them, 'spec

re was more hospitality to be found up here in the

had no schoolin', not because they haven' got the makin's o' good citizens; if they're a bit careless about religion, it's because they've had no churchin', an' if they don' pay much heed to law, it's because the law has never done much f

try to get help?

t when the time comes for the mount'neers o' Kentucky an' Virginia an' Tennessee an' Carolina to get

ine right now, I t

in' in the men up hyeh, an' thar an't any lengths to which a man won't go,

answered, "w

' in some way or other-I never heard the rights of it-they took to shootin' up the Beaupoints every chance that come along. One day Dandie Beaupoint found a little girl that had hurt herself, an' he picked her up in his arms an' was carryin' her home when one o' the Calvern

et off?" quer

pened to hear about the wipin' out o' the Calverns. On his way home, he had to pass the Calvern place, an' so he made a wide cast aroun' the hill to keep out o' sight, when sudde

the old man waved the inter

by, there come a rifle shot, an' the rider got the bullet in his chest. Befo' fallin' from the saddle, however, the young

een with Hez Calver

tried to drag himself to the bushes in order to help the woman who had shot him an' who he had

dead, too?" a

e woman to their home an' nursed her night an' day for five long years. She was helpless, only for her tongue, an' she lashed a

he you

squar', an' put aside every cent that come out o' the farm. For thirteen years the Beaupoints looked after the farm an' reared the boy. On the day he was fourteen year old, Jed Beaupoint-that was

squarer than that!" exclaimed Hamilton

thar's yo' farm an' yo' rifle. Now, if yo're willin', I'll see that thar's no trouble until yo're twenty-one, an' then yo' c'n go hunti

e spot, of course?"

kian shook

a minute or two an' then said he'd wait unt

Beaupoints!" exclaimed the boy in surpri

uld be twenty-one, he rode up to the Beaupoint place, an' tol' the ol' man that he was willin' to let the feud rest

e Beaupoints had he, Uncle Eli? They

agreed to another ten years' truce, an' all went on peacefully as befo'. Durin' those ten years, however, Johnny's wife died, an' he got married again, this time to the sister o' a wanderin' preacher, a girl who had once lived in cities, an' she soon showe

d story," said Hamilton, "one always think

; it's jes' that life is held cheap. Most o' the

number of them, Uncl

ook like half a dozen, an' trouble would be goin' on in vario

he feud district, where the rifle is never out

e they, U

n razorback hogs, but afterwards got very bitter, owin' to the friendship o' one o' the McCoy girls

oward-Turner feud?"

the money he had won. That affair raged a long time. The Logan-Tolliver feud in Rowan County was over an election fo' sherif

ction with an election with s

alled Hazard, an' he helped Fulton French to start a little store. In time French almos' drove Eversole out o' business. That was a strange fig

n?" asked Hamilton in surpris

Rev. Bill Gambrill. Ho ran the French side a

r, too," said the boy. "Was that the

r the 'Hell's Half-Acre' feud was in Bell County, an' it started over some question o' water rights in Yellow Creek. It

e Eli, when you put them toge

hat lasted for generations, an' started over some election for a county judge. I don' know that

all over now

talkin' to the widow o' one o' the men slain in that fightin', an' sayin' to her how good it was that the feelin' had all died out, an' she said-thar was a lot of us thar at the time-'I have twelve sons

starte

ink these were the real causes; they were usually jes' firebrands that made things worse.

mountaineers in Kentucky fought for the North-I know you we

No'th!" exclaimed the old Con

n surprise, "I was sure that most

er much hyeh. Don' yo' let any one tell yo' that the Union army was made up o' abolitionists, because it wasn't. It was made up o' bigger men than tha

" asked the boy. "I can understand father d

rds to preserve that neutrality. I was willin' to let well enough alone, but when the No'th come down an' tried to force the State Guards to join their cause, I went with the rest to Dixie.

pted Hamilton, fearing lest the old man should drift int

ot along, an' jes' befo' the war, we had some words about the Kentucky State Guards. But I wasn't bearin' any grudge, an' I never supposed Isaac was. However, in a sk

pleaded Hamilton, his ey

, but after which thar's always good men lef' lyin' on the ground. We had driven 'em back a bit, an' I was comin' in when I saw a lad-he didn't look more'n about fifteen-lyin' in a heap an' groanin'. Knowin' a drink wou

ounded soldier!" cried Hamilton in

rudge. But I rolled over on the grass jes' out o' reach o' his stroke, an' he missed. I grabbed my rifle an' blaz

anest thing I ever h

ear close to his lips, thinkin' he might have some message he wanted to give. But, tryin' to look in the direction where Howkl

Hamilton approvingly.

now he was livin' after the war, fo' I saw his name once on a list o' veterans. But most o' t

him in the en

looked intently at t

that it's good for yo' to be hearin' all these

Hamilton. "Jake isn't to blam

now that I've got started. When the war was all over an' I got back hyeh, I remembered what had happened, an' I sent word to Isaac Howkle that I didn'

, "that didn't make a feud sur

as one. It was jes' a personal difference between Isaac Howkle an' me. Thar was lots o' times that

rst!" said the boy. "Did he s

my brother-in-law,-Ab's younges' sister's first husband. He had been married je

at it was Howkle who had done

rom the Wilshes' place come up with a message sayin' that Isaac

essage," said Hamilton thoughtfully. "Wouldn't bringing word like that loo

ok his head in

lies," he said, "no, they don

r you got that mess

they could have had me. But I had nothin' against them, nor they me, an' so it was jes' left to Isaac an' me. Once I found him

ht away?" asked H

nfair advantage, I shouted to him. It was pretty far off to be heard, but I could see that he recognized me. I was only waitin' long enough to let him get his gun to his

that fired

he young fellow h

ead?" ask

go down to see an' wait aroun' 'till all his friends gath

he bro

o' to keep clar o' this district. If you're reckonin' on doin' census work, yo' go somewhar that you're not known to an

Uncle Eli?"

it's because he doesn' know, an' so he's not to blame. I like your spirit about the census, Hamilton," the old mountaineer continued, "an' if