St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1867-11-08


way out of the room, and looked round
at it,-it was so white, Johuny.. Ii
would be long time before l should see
it again,-fve months were 4 long time;
then there was the risk, coming down in
the freshets, and the words Id said last
night. | thought, you sec, if | should
kiss it once,-I needn't wake her up
maybe should 90 off feeling better. So
/ stood there looking she was lying so
still, | couldn't see any more stir to her
than if she had her breath held III. |
can't get over wishing I'd done 1t, yet.
But was just too proud, and | turned
round and went out and shut the door.
We were going to meet down at the
post-oiiice, the whole gang of us, and |
had quite spell to walk. was going
in on Bob Stokes team. | remember
how fast walked with my hands in my
pockets, looking along up at the stars
the sun was putting them out pretty fast,
and trying not to think of Nancy.
But didn't think OF anything else.
1t was so early, that there wasn't t
many folks about to see us off; but lob
Stokes wlfe,-shc lived nigh the office,
just across the roadside was there TO
say good by, kissing Of him, and cryin-
on his shoulder. don't know what dit
ference that should ."ake with Bob
Stokes, but | snapped him up well. when
he came along, and SAID good morning.
There were twenty-one of lis Just, on
that gang, in on contract for Dove AMI
Beadle. The boys went oil in gool
spirits, singing until they were out oi
sight of town, and waving their caps Al
their wives and babies standing in thl
windows along on the way. | didn't
sing, | thought the wind blew too hard
seems TO HE that wa, the way,-rn
sure there must have been a reason, for
had voice of INV own in those day
and had led the choir perpetual for iiy,
years.
We weren't going III very deep; Dov,
and Beadle's lots lay about thirty mile
from the nearest house: and a sira.nlim.
lonely place that wus too, five miles ou
OF the village, with nobody but dog an
} deaf old woman IN it. Sometimes, a
| was telling YOU, we had been in a hun
drcl miles from any human creature bu
: ourselves
, lttoOk us two days to get there though
with the oxen; and the teams wer
, loaded down well. with - many axe
: and the purk-barrcl>. Ii WAS one OF .ou
| ugly gray days, growing dark At fou
I o'clock, with SNOW Fin the air. when "
l hauled up in the. lonely place Th
| trees were blazcd pretty thick. | remcn
r Der, especially the pines: Dove all
t Bealle always had that done up proinl
e in October.
l Its queer, Johnny, bow We do remtn
n ber things that amt of no account bl
i | remember, as plainly as if it were We
{ ter'iay morning, just how cverythin
: looked that night, when the teams can
n up, one by one, and We went to wor
d spry to get TO rights before the sun WEI
Is DOWN.
I There were three shanti.>.-thJ
don't often have more than two or thr,
Y in one place,-thcy were empty, and Il
~ e,,,,,- I.,I I,,.,.J -, IL, ,,-.,. .-,,,,-
il far As YOU could sce,-,lnwn tine car
Y path. and ail around. and away into 1!
N woods; and there WAS SHOW IN the i
I now, setting in for regular nor ea>ic
II The trees stood up straiE all aruul
n. without any leaves. and under the bush
W it was as black as pitch.
/ Five months, said 10 myself
e five months -
le What in times the matter with vo
I'd Hollis p says Bob Stokes, with grc
1t slap on my srm; you're giving that (
c. OK molasses on his hay -
re Sure enough | was, and he SAID | az;
De ike dazcd crestur, and very likely
re did. But | couldn't have told lob t
l. reason. You see, knew Nancy W
u just drawing up her little rockin" cll;
DC the old one with 4 green cushion-cl,
by the fire. sitting there with the q!
at lren to wait for the tea TO boil An,
NJ knew couldn't help knowing, if
lis tried hard for it-how she was cryi
ne away softly in the dark, so that none
Is, them could see her, TO think of the wor
be we'd said, and | gone in without (,
iii making OF them up. | was sorry
them then. o Johnny, | was sorry, a
I'd she was thirty miles away, and could
lat let her know.
} If | could have sent her a scrap Of
nd letter, or message, or something,
MS should have felt better. But there was
Nv any chance of that this long time, UNI
en We got out OF pork or fodder, and had
all send down,-which we didn't expect
,ut for we'd laid in more than usual
he We had two pretty rough weeks w,
l to begin with, for the worst storms
ny the season set i'll, and kept i'll, and | Ii
lg! er saw their like, before or since.
md seemed as if there'd never be an END
md them. Storm after storm, blow a
it blow, freeze after freeze; halt q da
the sunshine, and then at it again,
were wei! tired of it before they stopp
zap it made the boys homesick.
- However, We kept at work pr,
her brisk,-lumbermen are mt the fellow
:, be put ou. for snow-storm,-cutl
elf, and hauling and saving, out in the ;
RE- and wind Bob Stokes troze his
Int foot that second week, and was tr
tly, bitten pretty badly myself. Cullen
was the boSs-he was well out OF ST
my L tell you, before the sun came out,
lie l cross enough to bite a teDpenny na
ack two.
wn, But when the sun is out, it isn't so
rms kind of life, after all. At work
day, with good hot dinner in tie l
ng; die; then back to the shanties at i
at to as rousing fire and tiptop supp'
IAN anybody could ask for.
YER | used to think a great deal al
ixed Nancy nights, when We were sitting