“I bet they been advocating the taking of us in,” chuckled Jimmy.
“Well, my dear friends, suppose we vote on it,” suggested the preacher.
[p116]
“Reach yer hand back there in the press, Mr. Opp, and git the lead-pencil,” said Jimmy, without moving.
“The motion before the house,” said Mr. Opp, “is whether we will sell out or take ’em in. All in favor say ‘Aye.’”
There was a unanimous vote in the affirmative, although each member interpreted the motion in his own way.
“Very well,” said Mr. Opp, briskly; “the motion is carried. Now we got to arrange about entertaining the party.”
Mr. Tucker, whose brain was an accommodation stopping at each station, was still struggling with the recent motion when this new thought about entertainment whizzed past. The instinct of the landlord awoke at the call, and he promptly switched off the main line and went down the side track.
“Gallop was here while ago,” Jimmy was saying, with a satisfied glance at Mr. Tucker; “said they wanted me to take keer of ’em. I’ll ’commodate all but the preachers. If there are any preachers, Mr. Tucker kin have ’em. I [p117] have to draw the line somewheres. I can’t stand ’em ‘Brother-Fallowsing’ me. Last time the old woman corralled one and brought him home, he was as glad to find me to work on as she’d ’a’ be’n to git some fruit to preserve. ‘Brother,’ he says, reaching out for my hand, ‘do you ever think about the awful place you are going to when you die?’ ‘You bet,’ says I; ‘I got more friends there than anywhere.’” And Jimmy’s laugh shook the stove-pipe.
“How many gentlemen are coming to-morrow?” asked Miss Jim, who was sitting in a corner as far as possible from Mr. Tucker.
“Ten,” said Jimmy. “Now, you wouldn’t think it, but this here hotel has got six bedrooms. I’ve tooken care of as many as twenty at a time, easy, but I’ll be hanged if I ever heard of such foolishness as every one of these fellers wantin’ a room to hisself.”