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This Week's Verse

A farmer came to camp one day
with milk and eggs to sell,
upon a mule that oft would stray
to where no one could tell.
The farmer tired of his tramp,
for hours was made a fool,
by everyone he met in camp
with, "Mister, here's your mule!"

(Chorus)
Come on, come on, come on, old man
and don't be made a fool,
by everyone you meet in camp
with, "Mister, here's your mule!"

His eggs and chickens all were gone,
before the break of day;
the mule was heard of all along,
that's what the soldiers say.
And still he hunted all day long,
alas! a witless tool,
whilst every man would sing the song,
of, "Mister, here's your mule."

The soldiers ran in laughing mood,
on mischief were intent;
they lifted Muley on their back,
around from tent to tent;
through this hole and that they pushed
his head and made a rule
to shout with humorous voices all,
"I say! Mister, here's your mule."

Alas, one day the mule was missed!
Ah! who could tell his fate?
The farmer like a man bereft,
searched early and searched late,
and as he passed from camp to camp,
with stricken face ~ the fool,
cried out to everyone he met,
"Oh, Mister, where's my mule?"

(These lines, author unknown, reportedly were popular
as a song in the Confederate Army)

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THE BEAR AND THE DOG AT THE CHURCH HOUSE
(THE MAN FROM MUDDYFORK)
Stanley Ray Mcqueen, Kentucky

The other day a gentleman told me about a fellow who has a bad habit of telling lies ...... He joined a church and the preacher knew he had been noted as being very bad to tell lies ...... The untruthful fellow would get mad when he told someone a lie and they wouldn't believe him ...... Well, the preacher met him at the porch of the church house where everyone had gathered just to chat a spell before the service, and the good pastor had a good sense of humor, so he thought to mess with the new member who was noted as a liar ...... "Well, well, Slim," says the preacher, "We all missed you not being here Sunday. Where were you last Sunday?" ...... "Well, preacher, I had some work that needed doing real bad so I missed to catch up on my work," answered Slim ...... "Well, you missed the awfulest thing that ever happened here at the church," replied the preacher ...... "What happened?" asked the curious Slim ...... "Well," said the preacher, "I was up behind the altar preaching my heart out when the door of the church suddenly busted open and through it comes a big black bear ...... And right behind the bear was a wee little Mexican dog ...... That dog was biting and tearing at that bear like a wildcat would do a dog, and this might be hard to believe," said the serious-looking preacher, "that dog killed that big grizzly bear right before all the Good Saints' eyes, and it was a sure kill, I tell you, Slim, that bear was killed graveyard-dead, sure enough," explains the preacher ...... "I know this will be hard for you to believe," repeats the preacher ...... "Oh, no it won't," says Slim ...... "Well, why won't it be?" asked the preacher ...... "Well, that's easy," says Slim. "That was my dog that killed that bear" ...... All the folks laughed, and as usual, Slim got real mad, and leaped off the church stoop, madder than blazes because they laughed at his lies.

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THE CHURCH AT AVOCA
By Jim Pearce

Among the forests and fields of lower eastern Bertie County NC, near the Sound ~ where you run across an occasional residence and one huge biomass extraction plant ~ stands this appealing piece of the past, the historic Chapel of the Holy Innocents. The adjoining graveyard has markers from 1753 to the 1970s. The church, also known as the Capehart Episcopal Chapel, was built by the Capehart family in 1880. It was rescued and its storm damage repaired by David Peele and David Holmes, of Avoca Farms. (Information for this caption courtesy Amanda Bunch and Down East Magazine.)