over me,' 'n' smiles
under his cotton, but Mr. Kimball says 'f he told the truth he'd say
'Jathrop Lathrop's cow 's went right over me 'instid.

"I must say 's the minister seems to be survivin' better 'n his wife.
She says she thought 't the baby was the last straw, 'n' now here was
a cow ten thousand times worse. She says bein' resigned is all right
'f you c'n be alone 'n' sit down in peace, but she'd like to know how
any one c'd resign themselves to a husband 'n' twelve childern all
freshly stepped on. I told her's the new baby hadn't been touched, but
she seemed beyond payin' attention to trifles like tellin' the truth.

"Young Dr. Brown 's awful anxious for some fresh cotton 'n' old Dr.
Carter to get here from Meadville. He says he wants to dress Henry
Ward Beecher's ear 'f anybody c'n ever catch Henry Ward Beecher. 'Liza
Em'ly 's goin' around huggin' herself 'n' groanin' to beat the band,
but young Dr. Brown says he can't do nothin' for her because there
ain't no way to get in behind a rib 'n' pry it out to place again. I
guess the truth o' the matter is 't he 's jus' plum tired out piecin'
'n' mendin'. It's been a big job sewin' up after Jathrop's cow tore
round like that. They say 's he had all of a foot to over-'n'-over
along Mr. Fisher, 'n' Mr. Jilkins is jus' tufted like a sofa where he
stopped up where he was skewered. Mrs. Jilkins is pretty hot yet over
the parasol's bein' bust 'cause she 'd wrote her niece 's she was
goin' to give it to her 'n' her niece 's bought a hat with yellow
buttercups 'n' green leaves jus' to match it. But I'll tell you who's
in a sad way,--it 's poor Gran'ma Mullins. From the first second 's
they got her right end up again she begin to ask suthin', 'n' on
a'count o' her teeth bein' gone no one could make out what it was.
Hiram didn't get no sleep all night with her sighin' 'n' mumblin', 'n'
towards mornin' he made out 's she was wantin' to know 'f Mr. Kimball
'd replace them cups 's the cow smashed. Hiram went right after
breakfast 'n' asked, 'n' Mr. Kimball said not on Hiram's tin-type he
wouldn't. He said Gran'ma Mullins was carryin' 'em herself sooner 'n
trust Ed, 'n' he wa'n't to blame f'r such wild animals 's might
naturally fancy takin' after her. They tried to console her by lettin'
her see her teeth get put in a mustard box to go to the city to be
mended, but the worst of it is 's two of the teeth can't be found in
the square, 'n' Deacon White thinks he swallowed 'em whe