Evening Republican, Volume 14, Number 111, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 May 1910 — GREAT THIRST OF A TEXAN. [ARTICLE]

GREAT THIRST OF A TEXAN.

Which He Wa. Glad to Aaaaac* at Ce»t of 040 Acres of Rich “I was a guest of a native of tho rich Brazos bottoms in Texas one time,”- said a New York man, according to the Sun of that city, "and he was entertaining me on a tramp. Pausing at a certain spot, he glanced over the land and then gave his arm a sweep and said: “ ‘As far as you can see in all ways from here Ties about the most fertile stretch of the whole Brazos bottoms, and that means the richest stretch of soil in the whole known world, sir; and all that section, 640 acres, was bought, sir, by. one drink of water.’ “I. made appropriate expression of amazement at this deal in Texas real estate and of course asked for a* detailed statement. , “‘Yes, sir,’ said my Texan friend, ‘64o'acres of the richest land in Texas, which means In all the world, for one drink of water. It isn’t strange, either, when you come to think about it,’ said the Texan musingly. ‘l’ve seen the time more than once, I’m afraid, vhen I’d have given more land than that if I’d had it for a good long pull at the water pitcher myself. “ ‘lt was quite a while ago all this happened, sixty years ago, I guess. It came off at Corsicana. One day a man went there to do some trading. Afterward hq bought the oTd stuffso pers'stently that they had to stow him away one night in a corner of Dominie Jester’s big loft. That was the last that was heard from him until along about 1 o’clock in the morning. Then he woke with a terrible consuming alkali desert thirst. There was no water in the loft and he didn’t know how to find the way to the lad, der to get down out of it. He put his head out of the window and as the moon was shining he saw the forms of a number of men stretched out on the grass belliw. “‘“Hey, down thar!" he yelled. “Come up h’yar, one o’ you, with a bucket o’ water an’ I’ll hand you a dollar!” He met with no response and yelled louder than ever, repeating the offer; adding that if he didn’t get a drink of water mighty soon he would take fire and go up in flames, but nc one below moved. Then he found hit gun lying on the floor and yelled out of the window: "If some! o’ you galoots down that don’t wake up an’ say suthln’ I’ll send you whar you’ll be beggln’ fer a drink yourselves from now on an’ forever till your tongues hang out.”? “ ‘That caused one of the men below to stir and yell back: “Send an’ be hanged! What you want up thar?* "“‘I want a drink of water,” th« man in the loft yelled back. "An* I’ll give a Hollar fer a bucketful this hyar minute!” “Hey,” the man on the grass yelled back, “reckon you don’t want water so rantankerous bad if ’that’s all it’s wuth to you!” “ ‘ “If any galoot down thar totes ms up a bucket o' water,” the man in ths loft yelled again, “I’ll give him a suttifkit fo' 320 acres o’ Brazos bottom!" “ ‘Land certificates were the chief circulating medium in those days on the Texas frontier. To this offer the man below yelled back: Yah! I wouldn’t climb the ladder to you upstairs whar yo’ is—-not fo’ no setch foolishness as that.” ““‘l’ll give yo’ a suttlfklt fo’ 640 acres o’ Brazos bottom fo’ one bucket o’ water!” the man in the loft yelled to the one below. “An* yo’ take up with that offer an* tote the bucket or I’ll give you’ all thar is in this hyar fo’ty-fo’ o’ mine. I reckon yo’ heah me!” “ "The man below mused a while and then yelled to the thirsty man at the loft window: “ ‘ “ ’Pears like you air suff*n some fo’ moistenin’', Connel, after all. J reckon I’ll ’cede to that offer o* yo’n an’ tote yo’ up the moistur.’ ” . “’The man got up, drew a bucket of water from the well in the yard and climbed the ladder to the loft. The thirsty man took a long drink. Then he paused for breath and exclaimed: ““‘Ah-h-h! Podner, yo’ have sho’ly saved my life. An’ I wish to remark, sub, that yo’ve saved yo’ own life, too?’ “ ‘Then he drank the. |est of the water in the bucket and went back to his corner in the loft. “ ‘The man who had toted the bucket returned to his place On the grass below. Next morning the lodger in the loft came down, woke the man on the grass who had saved his life and incidentally his own and handed him a certificate for 640 acres of land in the Brazos bottom. And there it lies, sir,' said my Texas friend with another sweep of his arm, *the richest spread o? farm land in the known world, worth to-day SIOO an acre if it’s worth a cent, and all bought for a drink of water.’ ”