Uncle Fred Wife (standard:drama, 3514 words)
Author: stanley mcqueen kentucky backwoods writer	Added: Apr 04 2007	Views/Reads: 3401/2454	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
backwoods old days themes

Uncle Fred wife” 

My Uncle Fred lives about a mile down the hollow from our farm. He is my
maw brother on her side of the kinfolks, he has never married and 
probably has one of the best farms in Muddy fork counties, and he even 
has some money in the Muddy Fork township bank. Some folk around the 
parts has wondered why a man like Fred has never been like other men in 
taking a wife, but mammies always said” that him being so ugly and all 
is the reason and he is  shy man for the most part, well anyway me and 
him are good-friend and when I m not helping paw in our farm work I 
help him with his cattle and we fix broken fences in the fall and put 
in new fence post. Things was going good for Fred till and young woman 
named Martha swift come into the township and got her a room at the 
only boarding house in Muddy fork, her and Fred meet somehow there in 
the small township of Muddy fork, maw was furious about the whole thing 
and said” that she was too young and pretty to be interested in a man 
almost twice her age, Fred could be seen with her walking along the 
wagon road and they was holding hands just like young lovers do, I 
would have to admit she was a good looker for sure, any man would be 
honored to have such a pretty young gal , Maw swore to me and pap that 
all she was after was what money Fred had save and put in safe keeping 
in the muddy Fork bank, somehow I just felt like Maw did about this 
union, and was suspicious , it was not two mounts after they meet that 
her and Fred come by our shack all dressed up and they informed us they 
had just got married, I could tell by the look on maw face she never 
like the ideal at all, well it was not none of our doings but her and 
Fred was the ones that had joined, In marriage, and we could not tell a 
grown man what to do or how to live his life I never seen a man so 
happy as he appeared to me all smiley and all, and it looks to be he 
had struck in with a brand new pretty young dark haired gal that he 
never new a lot about her past, but happiness had come to him at the 
moment, it was on the last day of the week when I rode passed Fred 
place and the place looked to be some neglected , the yard was tall and 
over grown and the cattle had not been changed from the north paster to 
the south and this was something he always done in mid summer.. Seems 
like this gal was getting more attention than the farm and livestock, 
that day I rode by her and Fred was setting on the front porch and I 
could hear her giggling and him laughing at something they were talking 
about.. It seems a darn shame that a good man like my uncle would be 
letting chores go on his farm. He had change so after he meet her and 
got married, well a man make his own ways and I guess what suited him 
suited me so to speak.. Well it was about a month later that the 
sheriff come  to our shack and reported that Fred was found dead at the 
hog pen with a slop bucket gripped to his hand, the sheriff said he 
looked to have been just finishing slopping the hog and just fell dead 
. Looked like a heart attack our sheriff affirmed to us , but after the 
sheriff and corner left and rode down the trail toward muddy fork 
township , maw threw a fit of crying and going on something fierce, 
“that bitch killed my Brother” she screamed and screamed and paw and I 
could hardly keep her from going to Fred  Farm and killing Martha,,, I 
just knew something wasn't right about this marrying bit maw kept 
saying over and over, now that bitch will get that big pretty farm that 
my poor brother worked hard to pay for and now its all hers. Maw 
repeats” I will see her in hell before she has that farm to her good 
“maw declares”maw sent me and paw to fetch Fred corpse, it was customs 
of hill folks to have about three days of what we call the setting up 
with the dead, folks would come to our house and bring food and such 
and do respect to the dead and family , thats: the way country folks 
show honor to their dead kinfolks We took paw corn wagon and loaded his 
body on it and covered him with a quilt that maw sent along, we had to 
make a coffin and before that we carried him in the big room of our 
shack and laid him on a bed mammy had prepared for him till we got his 
coffin made. We went to work fast on his box and soon had a good sturdy 
pine box that im sure he would be honored to be buried in .. Folks come 
from far and near to the setting up and woman brought vitals and maw 
and paw put homemade chairs in the front yard because the house was 
full of folks Willie north and some more banjo pickers some and played 
music and sang gospel hymns. Never new Fred had so many friend as he 
did till I seen all the neighbors flock in like duck would coming back 
from winter thaw, It was a good setting up and rev salmwood come and 
preached a little over Fred Corpse and folks listen as the preacher 
said “ that Fred was probably in heaven looking down on a mess of 
friends and kinfolks. I sure hope the good rev was right about him 
being in heavens square, and all but I do know Fred took a snort of 
moonshine now and again, but maybe the good lord would not hold that 


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