Raymond S. Spears

“ You can see we’re worried a lot. What use’d it be to build our levee away up, an’ them fellers on yon side with a new levee an’ lots o’ money an’ workin’ the way they be to keep hit from overtoppin’?"
"Rich fellers always has the highest levees," Jimmy suggested.
"An’ poor fellers on t’ other side—look what they got!"
Jimmy could hardly keep from laughing. From Badoria to Gumbo few volunteers appeared on the levees to help fight the rising waters in the time of high tide. Up and down the river, people said that Badoria was hard hit by the hook-worm, and was too lazy to help itself. ”

“ We need somebody that’s a lot o’ nerve. You’re a smart-lookin’ kid, quick-actin’. Likely you’d open up yer eyes at a chanst to earn—ah—fifty cart-wheels, eh?"
"There’s some jobs pays bigger," Jimmy sniffed, and the call to the snack gave the man a chance to revise his estimate of the river youth.
"Maybe it’d be a hundred—two hundred," the man hinted darkly.
"What for?" Jimmy demanded bluntly.
"Why, you see, if that levee over theh should happen to break—why that’d lower the water on this side the river two-three feet, prob ’bly, and then we’d be safe." ”

“ Others were sent for, and the group around the stove was augmented by new arrivals, until all the chairs and several boxes were occupied.
Talkron and the big fellow did most of the talking, in low whispers. ”