Jim worked ez hard ez enny man could, but his ole mare died jist at fodder pickin' time, an' he couldn't do much out'n a critter, so a right smart uv his crap war lost. Becky didn't seem ter get strong ez she did afore, an' her sister up an' left her sooner 'en she oughter. She seemed tar be kinder mad all th' time ter think Becky had gone an' hed twins, an' she didn't keep her 'pinions hid. I reckon Becky warn't sorry when she went back ter her man.
Ez I war a-sayin', it war ten year ago this December, an' a right smart uv snow on th' ground, when Becky came by my house one mornin' ter ax me ef I'd go down an' watch th' fire an' leetle Jim fer a spell. I seed she war lookin' anxious like, an' I axed her what war th' matter. “Jim went a-rabbit huntin' yesterday evenin',” she sed, “an' he ain't kem hum yit; I reckon somethin' hes happened ter him, an' I 'lowed I'd go an' see. The babies ez both asleep an' I speck ter be home afore long.”
She went on up th' mounting path a-makin' fur the top, a-holpin' herse'f over the sleek places with that hickory stick uv her'n.
I went on down ter th' house an' found leetle Jim a-noddin' afore th' fire. It war about'n th' time he always tuck his nap. Pretty soon he war ez sound asleep ez ef he war on th' biggest feather bed in th' cove, 'stead uv jes' his mammy's cook apron under his little yaller head.
I pot on a fresh log an' was mighty nigh asleep myse'f when one o' th' babies waked up an' cried a leetle.
Somehow I got th' cradle in an awk'ard place acrost a plank ez war all warped up an' th' churnin' back an' fore waked up th' t'other 'un. She jes' lay thar a-look-in' fust at me an' then at her leetle sister, kinder onsartin whether ter cry or not.
By an' by I thought I'd holp her back ter sleep, so I tuck her leetle han' an' tried ter pot her thumb in ter her mouth, but thar warn't nobody knowed enny better thin thet thar baby thet she didn't want no thumb feedin'. I got up an' went fur some milk, fust a-lookin' out'n th' door ter see ef Becky war a-comin'.
Seein' ez thar warn't no sign uv her no-whar, I 'lowed I try ter feed th' young uns, beein's th' both uv them war a-doin' ther best at cryin'.
They didn't seem ter take much ter my feedin'; I reckon thet war 'cause I didn't set th' milk afore th' fire fust, an' somehow it 'peared like' th' milk most in general went down th' outside uv ther necks; an' Annie (that war th' little un) kept a chokin' tell I had ter take her up. Jes' ez soon ez thet leetle critter got whar she could look 'round an' sense things, she 'peared quite satisfied.
I managed ter git t'other un (Fannie) out'n the cradle. They jumped an' twisted tell I thought I'd die uv the misery in my back, but whin I pot them down they yelled like hallelujer!