Old Yeller

by

Fred Gipson

Bud Searcy is a neighbor of the Coates family. A big, red-faced man who chews tobacco and who has a reputation for being “shiftless” within the Hill Country community, Bud frequently visits the Coateses to socialize and eat. When Bud shows up a few weeks after Papa’s departure, he brings gossip and warnings: there is a “strange varmint” stealing from Hill Country families’ storehouses and vegetable patches, and there are rumors of hydrophobic (or rabid) animals staggering through the countryside. Bud seems to fancy himself a kind of town crier, yet he doesn’t do much within his own community other than spread the word about exciting, strange, or dangerous goings-on. Bud does help the Coates family later on in the novel when he brings his granddaughter Lisbeth to stay with them and help out around the house as Travis recovers from his injuries. A lazy busybody who nonetheless seems to truly care about his neighbors, Bud provides some comic relief throughout the novel.

Bud Searcy Quotes in Old Yeller

The Old Yeller quotes below are all either spoken by Bud Searcy or refer to Bud Searcy. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
People and Animals Theme Icon
).
Chapter 6 Quotes

This sure looked like a case of hydrophobia to [Bud] Searcy, as anybody knew that no fox in his right mind was going to jump on a hunter.

Which reminded him of an uncle of his that got mad-dog bit down in the piney woods of East Texas. This was way back when Searcy was a little boy. As soon as the dog bit him, the man knew he was bound to die; so he went and got a big log chain and tied one end around the bottom of a tree and the other one to one of his legs. And right there he stayed till the sickness got him and he lost his mind.

Related Characters: Travis Coates (speaker), Mama, Bud Searcy
Related Symbols: Hydrophobia (Rabies)
Page Number: 50
Explanation and Analysis:

It made me mad. "You thievin' rascal," I said. "I ought to get a club and break your back—in fourteen different places."

But I didn't really mean it, and I didn't say it loud and ugly. I knew that if I did, he'd fall over and start yelling like he was dying. And there I'd be-in a fight with Little Arliss again.

"When they shoot you, I'm going to laugh," I told him.

But I knew that I wouldn't.

Related Characters: Travis Coates (speaker), Old Yeller, Lisbeth Searcy, Bud Searcy
Page Number: 53
Explanation and Analysis:
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Old Yeller PDF

Bud Searcy Quotes in Old Yeller

The Old Yeller quotes below are all either spoken by Bud Searcy or refer to Bud Searcy. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
People and Animals Theme Icon
).
Chapter 6 Quotes

This sure looked like a case of hydrophobia to [Bud] Searcy, as anybody knew that no fox in his right mind was going to jump on a hunter.

Which reminded him of an uncle of his that got mad-dog bit down in the piney woods of East Texas. This was way back when Searcy was a little boy. As soon as the dog bit him, the man knew he was bound to die; so he went and got a big log chain and tied one end around the bottom of a tree and the other one to one of his legs. And right there he stayed till the sickness got him and he lost his mind.

Related Characters: Travis Coates (speaker), Mama, Bud Searcy
Related Symbols: Hydrophobia (Rabies)
Page Number: 50
Explanation and Analysis:

It made me mad. "You thievin' rascal," I said. "I ought to get a club and break your back—in fourteen different places."

But I didn't really mean it, and I didn't say it loud and ugly. I knew that if I did, he'd fall over and start yelling like he was dying. And there I'd be-in a fight with Little Arliss again.

"When they shoot you, I'm going to laugh," I told him.

But I knew that I wouldn't.

Related Characters: Travis Coates (speaker), Old Yeller, Lisbeth Searcy, Bud Searcy
Page Number: 53
Explanation and Analysis: