"Drake,.David.-.Old.Nathan" - читать интересную книгу автора (Drake David)

as much a part of the casual gossip of the community as most of
those settled hereabouts, but when folk came to consult him he
heard things from their hearts which a spouse of forty years would
never learn. He recalled being told that Sally Ann Hewitt, the
storekeeper's daughter from Advance, was being courted by rich
Newt Boardman's boy among others. "Say on, say on."

"Sally Ann wouldn't have a piece from my daddy's cleared land,"
said the boy, confirming the name of the girlЧand also confirming
the intelligence and strength of character Old Nathan had heard
ascribed to Hewitt's daughter. "So I set out to clear newground, the
forty acres in Big Bone Valley, and I did that."

"Hired that done," said Old Nathan, rocking and sipping and
scratching the dog.

"Hired Bully Ransden and his yoke uv oxen to help me," retorted
Boardman, "fer ten good silver dollarsЧand where's the sin uv
thet?"

"Honest pay fer honest work," agreed Old Nathan, turning his hand
to knuckle the dog's fur. Ridges of callus bulged at the base of
each finger and in the web of his palm. "No sin at all."

"So I fixed to plant a crop afore raisin' the cabin, and in the Fall
we'd be wed," the boy continued. "Only my horses, they wouldn't
plow. Stood in the traces and shivered, thin they'd bolt."

Boardman tried a sip of his coffee and grimaced unconsciously.

"There's milk," his host offered with a nod toward the pitcher on the
table beside the bowl of mush. "If ye need sweetnin', I might could
find a comb uv honey."

"This here's fine," the boy lied and swallowed a mouthful of the
coffee. He blinked. "Well," he continued, "I hired Bully Ransden t'
break the ground, seein's he'd cleared it off. But his oxen, they
didn't plow but half a furrow without they wouldn't move neither,
lash'em though he did. So he told me he wouldn't draw the plow
himself, and best I get another plot uv ground, for what his team
wouldn't do there was no other on this earth thet could."

"Did he say thet, now?" said the cunning man softly. "Well, go on,
boy. Hev you done thet? Bought another track uv land?"

"Sally Ann told me," said Boardman miserably to his coffee cup,
"thet if I wasn't man enough to plow thet forty acres, I wasn't man
enough t' marry her. And so I thought I'd come see you, old man,
that mayhap there was a curse on the track as you could lift."