Long, Hot Summer, The Page #4

Year:
1958
421 Views


If you see a young fellow along the way|who happens to take your eye...

- you can put him behind you|and ride double.|-

Miss Clara?

You were right the first time.|I got "no" written all over my face.

That don't bother me none at all.

- A lot of women say "no"|when they mean "yes."|- That's for sure!

I ain't foolin'|about these horses.

The man that buys one of these|will get the best horseflesh|he ever drove for the money.

Naturally they got spirit.|I ain't sellin' no crow bait.|Who's gonna start with a bid?

Tell you what I'll do. I'll give you|ten dollars for that there fiddlehead.

Ten dollars? You couldn't buy|that much dynamite for ten dollars!

There isn't a horse in there|can't run a mile in three minutes.

You put 'em out to pasture,|they're gonna board themselves.

Work 'em all day long,|and every time you think about it.

Pretty soon every one of them|gonna be so tame...

you'll have to put 'em out of the house|at night like a cat.

start it off with a bid?

- Minnie, what are you doin'?|- Buzz!

I got a hum in my blood,|and I feel as if I'd swallowed a bee.

You swallowed five bottles of beer in|the hot sun. That's what you swallowed.

- Who's gonna give me $40 for that horse?|- Ten dollars, take it or leave it.

- Eleven.|- That's the way, Pa.

- Shut up, son.|- " Thirteen."

- Wait a minute. What are you doin'?|- Fifteen.

Fifteen dollars. I got fifteen dollars|bid on that fiddlehead horse.

Who's gonna make it 20?

Kiss me, Will.

I got a number|of friends...

and, uh,|associates here.

I'm your friend. I'm your associate.|I have been for ten years.

Then what's the matter?

Will, all this time,|this summer...

all I've done is put up|22 jars of piccalilli...

and I put down a corn beef|in a crock.

And I say to myself...

"Minnie, where is it all|gonna end?"

It's gonna end with me eatin'|a corn beef. You know I'm partial to it.

At midnight suppers after you've|come sneakin' up the back stairs.

I want to serve it to you|right here at 6:00.

- Minnie.|- "Forty dollars."

What are you tryin'|to say?

I made plans, Will.

Matrimonial plans.

Matrimonial plans.

Now, you ain't ever heard me|say the word..."matrimony."

to overlook that.

- You know my married sister|in Tallahassee?|- "Uh-huh."

Well, she's makin' me up|some hand-crocheted sheets.

And I've sent away for some flatware|with the initial "V" on it.

Minnie...

I'm 61 years old.

Look, honey, it's no good|you tryin' to tell me you're too old.

I happen to be in a position|to deny it.

Hmm.

Just hand it over here. Thank you,|thank you. Twenty-two dollars from you.

Twenty-five from you. Thirty-two|from you, and thirty from you.

Thank you,|gentlemen.

Don't forget 'bout bangin' them horses|over the head till they get used to you.

- They won't give you any trouble.|- That's all there is to it?

- That's it.|- They belong to us now?

Yeah. Get yourself a rope|and go on in there and take the horse|that belongs to you.

All right, we'll need some rope.|Come on, Joe.

You're not much of a prospect,|Miss Clara.

You don't need my money.|You've got everybody else's.

Yeah, but it's the holdout|that challenges me.

I'll tell you, Mr. Quick.

The last time I parted with my money|to a pitchman, I was 12 years old.

- And nobody's ever taken you since.|- Nope.

Nobody ever will.

Well, life's very long|and full of salesmanship, Miss Clara.

You might|buy somethin' yet.

Here they come!|Look out!

Oh!

That's a musical horse.

Here, don't you bring|your filthy feet in here!

They'll go on all night|tryin' to catch them rabbits.

Boy, you got something|belongs to me.

You ain't no better|than a crook.

Well, you ain't nothin' better|than a con man.

You sell|my crooked merchandise.

Never mind the name-calling.|Now, where's my share?

I got somethin'|for you, boy.

Come on.

- Whoa, you!|- Head 'em off! Head 'em off!

Whoa!

stallion, you.!

The man that built this place,|his name's forgotten.

This was his dream|and his pride.

Now it's dust.

Must be a moral|there somewhere.

- Looks like that's about all there is.|- I don't know.

They got a legend|about this place.

They do say there's money buried|around here on the grounds...

at the time Grant overrun the country|on the way to Vicksburg.

- What's that got to do with me?|- I been watching you.

I like your push.

Yes, I like your style.|I like your brass.

It ain't too dissimilar|from the way I operate.

You've been here a few days,|you've gone up an inch.

That's 'cause you|listen to me.

You go on listenin' to me, and someday,|in a wild burst of generosity...

I might just make you a present|of this place.

Thank you for nothing.|It's falling apart.

You're a shrewd boy.

You'll find a way|of gettin' some good out of it.

Mister. You've been makin' me|a lot of promises.

- One of these days|I'm gonna collect on 'em.|- Surely.

I just ain't passin'|the time of day with you.

I'm aware of that.

Come to supper with me, boy,|at the big house.

You ornery critter!

There goes another one|on the creek bridge.

Could be, you know,|them poor unfortunates...

could come out ahead|on the deal after all...

get their money's worth|in health and outdoor exercise.

A night like this is good for him.|It stimulates his liver.

those horses, Mr. Varner.

They'll catch them and make|good work teams out of them.

You figure you know them redneck farmers|better than me, huh?

Suppose that's 'cause|the, uh, Stewart family's...

than the Varners.

About 200 years.

That's a long time|to live in one place.

You don't believe|in living in one place, Mr. Quick?

Well, my family moved.|Not that they wanted to.

They was encouraged|by the local citizens.

- You a hunted man or somethin'?|- Somethin', Miss Eula.

I'd like to hear|a yes or no answer to that, boy.

Well, ifhe's hunted...

he ain't caught.

Lucius, pass the drinks. Who's for|drinkin' some of my fine brandy, huh?

Alan, you're partial|to my brandy.

Let's see. How many years|you been drinkin' it now, huh?

Five? Six?

- I've enjoyed your hospitality|a long time, Mr. Varner.|-

I sometimes ask myself, do we get|the major part of your attention...

or are you brightenin' up|other parlors around the county?

That's Alan's|personal business, Papa.

Don't get yourself fussed,|sister.

Alan knows a friendly inquiry|when he hears it, don't you, Alan?

- When I hear one.|- Sure, sure!

A friendly inquiry|never bothered nobody.

As I understand it,|when you ain't here with us...

you keep pretty close to your house,|uh, with your mother.

Papa, I can't stand this.

that my mother is a widow.

- She relies strongly on me.|- Widow?

Your old man ain't dead.|He just disappeared.

Just wandered off.

- The end result is the same.|She's alone.|- No, she ain't, Alan.

She's got you.

She sure has you.

- I do my best.|- Not around here, you don't!

my conversation tonight.

- Guess I'll direct a little bit at you.|- "I didn't say nothin'."

You see Ben Quick here?

as a clerk right alongside of you.

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William Faulkner

The townspeople made fun of William Faulkner, because they didn't think he fought in the first word war. But he was busy writing many books. He won the Nobel prize in literature later in life. When he received the prize, he said he didn't know what a talent he had when he was writing. more…

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Submitted on August 05, 2018

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