‘Next year or year after old Uncle Billy Rudd went insane and used to carry all the dinner pots outen the house when his old woman was cooken dinner and set everything over against the hencoops. Once he carried the cookstove out and set it out behind the ash hopper, fire in it, they said, the whole enduren time. Poor old Aunt Plez had a sight of trouble outen her husband. They had, a long while afore that, a couple of brats that died just about the time they was up any size and could ’a’ been any help. One died with lockjaw and the least one died with fits. They never seemed bright, their children never did. Billy and Plez took a right smart risk when they married, folks always said. Said the day they was wedded the floor to the house where they stood up fell in and let the whole party down amongst the timbers, floor fell plumb in. Folks said it was a bad token and advised against it but the preacher was already there and the couple wouldn’t hear to any let-up in the ceremony. Said the preacher was halfway through when the floor fell, splintered, and everybody tilted into the rubbish under the house. Well, they hauled out the bride and groom and advised against any further hitch-up, but Aunt Plez and Uncle Billy had set their heads to it and the folks went out in the yard and finished up under a tree, some of the women so shook up they cried like a funeral and hardly knowed what was up. It was a token I reckon. Everybody always said it was a token. People take a heap of risks, from first to last, in a lifetime. I knowed Uncle Billy in his old age an’ he was queer in his ways, even before he went plumb outen his head and commenced to torment Aunt Plez about the dinnerpots and skillets. But that wasn’t what I set out to tell. Once Uncle Billy…’

‘For God’s sake!’ Nellie said, waking a little.

‘Once Uncle Billy took it into his mind to roof the house, but the house had a good tight roof all the time, but Uncle Billy took it into his mind he’d put on a new roof. Took it in head to take the roof offen the henhouse and put it on the house and swap back the roof offen the house onto the henhouse. Well, he set to early one Tuesday afore day to rip the shingles offen the house. I recollect Pap sent me over there to borrow a whet rock offen Aunt Plez and there was Uncle Billy on top the house and the shingles a-fallen like rain and Uncle Billy gay as a songbird. I recollect his red face to this day. Aunt Plez was worried half outen her mind and said what they do if it come on to rain afore night, which it did, and worried about Uncle Billy up on the roof, his legs wobbly ever since he got insane in his mind. Aunt Plez said to me she was beside herself with worry and asked would I go get somebody to try to get Uncle Billy down offen the roof afore he fell down and in a manner killed himself. I studied out that it would take five men at least and so I went and got Pappy and some more and we got four plough lines to hoist Uncle Bill down. He took half the roof offen the house afore we got everything ready, and a heap of trouble it was in the end because Uncle Billy didn’t come gentle at first and Wilks Sanders had to ease him down on the roof and tie his hands and feet. Did you ever hear tell of how strong Wilks Sanders was in his time?’