The Marengo Jake Stories: The Tales of Jake Mitchell and Robert Wilton Burton

Tripping Jake

TrippingJake A gentlem[a]n recently had occasion to go to the depot to meet a train which reaches Auburn at a quarter past ten o'clock at night. There was a trunk to be brought up, and the services ofMr. Smith (ofcolor) had I...--.:........u.-.....c~w been engaged for the purpose. It wanted some minutes to train time when the gentleman reached the depot. There was no light about the place except that which the stars afforded. The little waiting room, which, during the day had been crowded with passengers of every shade ofcolor, was now closed, and there was no place to rest except on the steps ofthe old dilapidated frog-stool, which, since the destruction ofthe railroad building by fire last year, does duty as a depot. The gentleman had not been seated long before the sound ofvoices made him aware that he was not alone. The voices came from a pile of lumber hard by, and belonged to Me. Smith (of color) and a blonde gentleman from Marengo. 78 / TrippingJake The conversation, which the gentleman could hear distinctly , ran upon wonders ofone sort and another and finally turned upon fishes. "Well, Jake," quoth Mr. Smith (of color), "you is seed a heap 0' cuis things, I know, but is you ever seed a rale sho nough big cat-fish?" "Cose I is," returns Jake. "I seed a many a un down dar in M'renger. "How big was he? Lemme see. De bigges one I ever seed his name was Tom." "Yah! yah! yah!" laughed Mr. Smith (ofcolor) "who ever yeard tell ofa fish havin' ofa name, cepin cat-fish an' pearch an' de like 0' dat." "Well, you see, dat'n whar I'm gwine to tell you 'bout he des laid roun de wof dar in Moplis so long till ever'body knowed him, an' dey tuck to callin' ofhim Tom. Dat's how come he had a name. Well, sah, dey tried to ketch dat feesh ten year er mo' fo' ever dey got 'im, an' w'en dey got him at las' dey cotch 'im wid a harpoon, becase he was too big to be cotch wid a hook. You aint never seed nair harpoon, is yer?" "Naw. I dunno what dat is." "Well, hit's a iron thing wid a beard on it. I aint talkin' bout har beard like dat what yo' wife pull out'n yo' chin." "What make 'em calls it a har poon fer, den?" "Hit's a sharp pinted thing an' hits got beard on it des like a feesh-hook. Don't you know ever you git a feesh-hook stuck in yo' britches de beard won't let it come out, dout cuttin' a piece 0' de cloth out wid it? Well, dat's de same sort 0' beard de harpoons has. "Well, say, dey was some fellers a watchin' for dat feesh one day, an' w'en dey seed 'im dey tuck'n flung dat harpoon at 'im an' stuck t im 'im. Dat's de way dey cotch him." "How big was he?" TrippingJake / 79 "Man, sah! he was a buster. He was twenty foot long, an' big 'cardin'. Dey tuck an' drug him up town wid a six mule team, an' whar he drug 'long hit made a deep gully in de street, an' efyou go down dar to Moplis I speckyou'll see dat gully tell yet." "I spose everybody had fish to eat den." "No, dey never." "What's de reason dey never?" "Becase." "'Case what?" "'Case folks warn't gwine to eat dat feesh. Dey warn't dat hongry for feesh." "What was de matter wid him?" "Dey warn't nothin' de matter wid him." "What make dey never eat him den?" "Becase dey knowed him too good. Dey knowed what he been a earin' to make him grow so big." "What he been a earin'?" "He been a eatin' dead folks. Ever'body what git drownded in de Bigby river, an' efdey staid in de water long 'nough, dat cat-feesh eat 'em up boddaciously. Dat's reason dey use to couldn't never fine nobody whar git drownded in de Bigby. Man, sah! w'en dey cut dat feesh open dey faun' five er six gale an' silver watches in him." "Oh, hush! Jake, you know dat aint so. Better mine what you...