"Oh, well, now," said her husband, "maybe it don't, always."

"But supposin' it _did_?" The front of the telescope turned toward him
suddenly, and so perfect was the focus this time that Mr. Bowles
shifted his seat and took refuge upon another board at the other end
of the board-pile, out of range, albeit directly in the ardent
sunlight, which, warm as it was, did not seem to him so burning as the
black eyes in the bonnet, or so troublous as the tongue which went on
with its questions.

"Whut made you vote fer this heah railroad?" said Sarah Ann,
following him mercilessly with the bonnet tube. "We didn't want no
railroad. We never did have one, an' we never ought to a-had one. You
listen to me, that railroad is goin' to ruin this country. Thah ain't
a woman in these heah bottoms but would be skeered to have a baby
grow up in her house. Supposin' you got a baby; nice little baby,
never did harm no one. You a-cookin' or somethin'--out to the smoke-
house like enough; baby alone fer about two minutes. Baby crawls out
on to the railroad track. Along comes the ingine, an' biff! Thah's
yo' baby!"

Mrs. Bowles shed tears at this picture which she had conjured up, and
even her less imaginative consort became visibly affected, so that
for a moment he half straightened up.

"Hit don't look quite right," said he, once more. "But, then, whut
you goin' to do? Whut _kin_ we do, woman?" he asked fiercely.

"Why, if the men in these heah parts was half men," said his wife, "I