St. Cloud Democrat. [volume] (Saint Cloud, Stearns County, Minn.) 1858-1866, 1864-03-17

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opportunity to rest till morning, aud to iced
ny faithful pony. .9''"f-
Leaping lightly up Tie steps, and tray
srsing the porch, 4 knocked thrice, quickly
and loudly. Some stunning Of. feet and
earnest wh,spering ensued, and then : lid
souslv-deformed boy opened the door. 1
do not know thats1 ha4a ever seen, = tace 20
'terror-s.ricken; his lips wore quiveriinx.
his knees tremblins.r y and the a hand BY
which he hold ths'laaeh .shiyersd and rat.
tied in fearful maa.sr. =, T saw It glance
:that one Of his feet twst elubbed, and that
his right arm vas short and wither,.td. Be-
side = bla.lng loS;:ars In ..cgr,.t sooty
chimney place sst two GIRLS and very old
.an, who seemed aYite q iii At ease The
pale faces Of the girls were little relieved
Ar tho attitude Of thspld man, who had At
tempted ia rise, but appeared 70 have been
;parali,ed inthe act In his hand he grasp
ed the tones, and his face expressed son
aictins emotions 1f 'bsfs, 2 Fear, and despair.
'Good evening"" e.id soothingly 81
hope that 1 he1ep't disturbed you."a Il
/: "You have disturbed me-" said the old
man, rafting the tongs In bis quaking I'm
gers; ':you ha' nigh been tho death O. me.
You ha' given me turn that'll shorten my
days What are you arter, on folks prop.
erty in the de4d hour o night, knoekin' .t
their doors, and scarin' their wimmin Z"
AT this one Sf The girls began. to sob,
and tho eyes Of the cripple dilated with
rage. - ~ i :,
''Composs yourselves," said I, Walking
into the room, my spurs Gathering, and my
sword dragging along the floor ~ am not
an enemy, though wear tho uniform Of
one. I am soldier, as you see, ..tr.y
and wearied, and wiling to pay for bed
by your nre, and little corn for my
horse" -, "c.r
I'VE h.' n.yther bedlnor cSrn Is fioz Yam
KEGS. You h.' overrun our farms, and
murdered our boys. Beggary and tears
come upon, you all, IS you h. brought
them upon us - gy.,t,,-.,+,<SS - =
Inlay, then" said I, drawing up : ehair,l
and seating myself resola,ely ~ ths h5sitb,
''since you IRE % inhespitable, T must take
what you viii not sell: Here / sit, and here
shall remain. II there is food in your
stable, muet ssize enough for my beast,
and ct daylight I will leave you. Ne q. -
Inc cripple lookeu "~su11Uus1y INTO NY
eyes here, rs if measuring my strength
and courage; but l quietly removed my
spurs, cast eft my sword, and asked him
the way to the stable. .l,....:us>,,. $
"Get the lantern, JAY" said the man;
''if we ore to lsse the corn, ve may as well
.ts paid. Show the soldier to the cswhouse.
Gi hihzA Twelve ears and rick o hay
Marth Ann, do you spread o. eounterpane
yer in the corner. Nancy, fetch up = pail
O. cider. Stir yer trotters!" II. =, > :. :, =.
Settling, hinae1f in the chair, the old
man nuttered ne,vously, and glowepa at
the fire as he raked the fagots ,ih d heap.
Pale and sinister, the cripple ,limped
through a doorway, and fumbled in the
darkness Of another room for the inquired
lantern. The girls fulfilled their instr,,c-
tions with agitated fsces, and cast doubtful
eyes upon me At. intervals. They were
coarsely clothed in frocks Of gray ksrsey,
and their shoes were rough and large
T;he younger of the two had prettil.y tim
id face, with shy black eyes, and her hair
was ttea With piecs Of, 9lue ribbon. j. :; :.
"what's Yer name at homer said the
old man At length, looking hercely up.
replied good-hbmeredly, anxious to induce
! pleafanter reception, and asked the old
gentlemen to tell me his own name in re-
turn.
.,"lish.feot,: .ir.Y .aid ", in .',;s .one 1 ii
mingled braggadocio and sullennsss. 1.-THE
Lightfoo,s ha' been one o the fust families.
Jeems Lightfoot was the best speaker that
ever sot in the legislator Of virginny.-
Neal Lightfoot belonged to the Wiggius
branch o the family, and owned the best
Piedmont horses in this section q country.
Patrick Lightfoot Of Je,m. River
!: ''Yers the lantern for The, Yankee,'' said
The cripple, limping into the room. He
stAspd .blackly and hnlf defantly, flung
open the door, apd muttering that vas to
.'look alive asterss 4iiiH;. hose" led tks way
across the yard to log stable o. shed,
J, '.stop," said 1; '.the good pony must be
watered," and turned toward the Old well.
TO my great surprise, the cripple ,dsrted
forward, drqpPips bis lantern, and seised
me with the griR Of . strong man. y':ae'l
"Doa,teethere4" he said, with ! strange
l5,,sttered voices; ''there ain't no water
there! The pole has got vedged at the
bottom. Come yer; come this way.''gs z
+, L found him absolutely dragging me, and
was not more aaaxed at his vehemencc than
A$ Els wonderful physic Il power, 80 incon'
sistent, ss 1 thought, with hisi deformity.
Truly had fallen among boorisho people.
Yieldingto to the whim ii the lad, | 12v,etsrr,,da
my horse .t;the *snal"s, we'll, but .iss,a..d
Ito remove the ssddle At his solicitation,
Returning 70 the dwelling l founda t.bl.
spread, and some Indian bread, bacon, and
cider prepared for mo. The young girl t.