Leather-Clad Tales of Adventure and Romance, No. 38 — page 123: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

IN THE SUNK LANDS. 117 At last it came Mr. Bill Morris’s turn to pour forth his fabrication. He drew off his coat, and we gripped our seats in ex- pectation of hearing how he slew seventeen panthers inside of four minutes by the watch in his hand ; although why he should have held a watch in his hand at such a critical moment was one of the unexplained problems that was passed over in dead silence. ‘Hit wuz down on Dunlap’s claim,” be- gan Mr. Morris, ‘‘ Y’all know where Dun- lap’s claim is. I wuz a-goin’ over to see the old man, who wuz down with the shiv- ers,an jessas 1 got along by the little bayou that runs through there, I noticed an old sycamore that had been snapped off about forty feet from the ground. JI wuza-lookin’ at hit when I seed a coon run outen a hole in the bottom, shin up the old tree an’ go in over the top. Hardly had his tail dis- ‘peared when out he kim at the bottom, shins up the tree, jess same’s afore. _ “| kinder pinched myself to make shore [hadn’t taken too much an’ wuz still kickin’ when out he kim ag’in, gen’lemen,” said EONNIEOOO;KS ae