The Wyandot pioneer. (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1853-1868, 1857-01-08
81 RrautifuI 5torll.
From the Lady's Book, for January.
May: The squatter's Daughter.
Dy META VICTORIA VICTOR.
CHAPTER I.


The squatter, Peter Potter, sat in the
door of his cabin watching the sun 60
down, far away over the prairie. lis
hard. bronzed face glowed red in the
crimson light.
"Dry, dry - he mutterel. {. It'll be
as dry as an unmilked COW, by the sign
of the suns going down SO hot and red.
dcclar' this is bad " And he looked
with some anxiety towards the field Of
stunted corn which lay at tie right of
the house. lie had reasen to feel trou'
bled, for not a drop ofrain had fallen for
three weeks and the whole dependence
OF the family for food during the ensuing
year was in Ike corn crop and the l5ota-
toes For, if tlie corr sas sea, e',, sigsy
'sweult xkIeen have the whercwithal TO
@seHfhe two pig, gruniing laziiy in a
sly only Only iiStle back ofs.she cabin,
but pigs and chiliycn would nave to suf
fer together.
There was no market within hundred
miles of the squatter, and but few neigh
bors within that distance: lie had set
settled in this remote spot because the
prairie land was rich and ersily TILED, re-
quiring no wearisorne process of ear
ing and he could help hin1seIfto as
much as he desired His tent was pitch
>ed-that is to say, his log hut was erect
ed-with rare discrimination for a squat
ter. in the midst of clamp of trees on a
slight rise Of ground, and but about rod
from a barge spring, whose clear waters
flowed from the hillside in small
stream, which served to rrigate bis land
somewhat. This little brook, flowing
straight through his corn field, was not
enough to keep TIE broad leaves from
turning yellow through the drought -
aud, for the past two or three days, he
imagined that the spring itself had>faller
considerably. II its supplies should give
out. through the failure Of its sources
he knew that great suffering would be
the consequence therefore he had beer
watching the indications Of the heaven.
with earnestness, and was not a littlt
troubled to see the sun sink, like grea
ball of dull, ed-hot iron, heavily beloy
the horizon.
:" ] declar', wife !" said ne, looking
back into lis dwelling, "thir's no moro
prospects ofrain untilthe moons changes
ef then. The suns gone down as re,
as the kiyer of the bake-kettle you're
heatin' on the Goals thir. The corn's
within down like girls that's sick wit
the heart-distemper and here it is Mig
on to the middle Of July and the TALES
III amt SO high as our two-year old. =
Well the Lord have mussy on us
the spring gins out Wen have TO tai,
the little ones on our backs, and start fc
a new place" she replied, in the patie1
tone of a woman who had,been two veal
in a new country, and become accuston
ca 10 all KINDS ol disasters.
mo great dangers Of that, l. guess,
answered the husband, sturdily.
He was an energetic man, whose wi
arose in proportion to the daiculty to |
encountered and he was already begi
ming to recover from the slight feelir
of depression occasioned by the unusu
weather. Ills wife had great respect
his abilities, trusting implicitly in
judgment.
I wish geg come here, Melissy. al
see if you en- N rake out what this is cor
over the praire 1T such sweepi
* he aaia 4 few moments after.
M&ShA just stopped toput the cover
the babe-kettle, SO that the johnny ca
might be cooking, and, Mastering to
side, laid her hand on his shoulder. al