The St. Cloud journal. [volume] (St. Cloud, Minn.) 1866-1876, 1869-04-22

'"e': TO question her witnesses. /,
''o|7 Margaret aid
ooh, never mind, Judge. # Dr..
Dreaming would rather ask all the
questions himself, have no objections :;
'or nc succeeds admirably" g,
Becky told the story of Peter,
death and previous treatment Recall
4"s 'ne scene made it necessary for her
to apply her white 'kcrcbief o,ten ~
her eyes and nose and few eyes in the
room remained dry. To Dr.. Dream.
'os)s questions as to whether it were
not tor Peters good that Miss 1,onton
had refused him drink, she persistent.
y answered in the negative.
"Tben," said he, in his coI1cst. ;n,xt
doubling and sarcastic style, "you pre-
tend to say that lady would depv
drink to sick child in order to puo-
ish him."
| eyes," said Aunt Becky, l,okins
steadily into hls face, II tink she did
dat dah. She neber didn't want to do
fetah no good, case she alters hated
him."
"Hated him." said be finally, "bow
did you know she hated him ?'
""hy case she alters 'peared to love
to chunk i'm mo- dan she did de rest
on 'em, an deah knows she chunk 'em
all mighty, but she chunk Petah
most"
"chunk I" said he with a snecr.
"Will you tell the gentlemen, what , on
mean by chunk ?"
"Yes," she replied, closing her fore.
fingers around the point of her thumbs.
and striking forward, "dat's. What
chunkin' is; an she chunk Petah
mighty" she continued, wipiDg away
her tears, ''chunk i'm when he was
powerful sick !; an was a gwine to
chunk i'm mo- arter he was dead, an I
wouldn't let her,
"Io strike the dead body ?" inquired
"lndermere. Margaret explained
Aunty's mistake.
"Wel!," said the old creature. 81
tot she wuz gwine to chunk i'm,
case she chunk i'm SO much"
| "And you tell this made up story in
the presence Of the lady who has bet n
so kind to you?" said Dr.. Dreaming,
in a tone of great surprise.
"'Tisn't no made up story y' was
the reply. II know she's dab. l sees
her we'll 'neugh and she knows it's all
trute! She knows I amt feared on
her, case she dasn't to tie me up. She
knows she alters hated Petah, an said
many time she wish he wur dead, case
he wur little beast. She warn't neb-
or k'nd~to nobody only when de ladies
wur roun', or de doctah cum" Turn
ing to Miss Ironton she said, "You
know, Miss Irnton it's de trufe. You
knows you fro Petah in de rain when
he wur powerful sick, an you chunk
i'm mighty! You say when 1 go to
you to let me give i'm watah dat he
wur nasty beast, an shouldn't hev a
drap. You knows you alters hated Pc
tan. You knows dat dab; an you
wunt deny dat afo' me-"
The look of dismay on the face of
the Iron woman at this address. was
such that Margaret would fain have
spared her but Peters moan of eva
teri" which had dissolved her heart
once, made it very hard now.
Or. Dreaming threw himself back in
his chair with gesture Of disgust and
waved Aunt Becky away.
Mr.. Vanderbilt, the farmer at The
Home, testified that regiment of SOL
diers en- route had camped near The
Home, during the time that Miss Iron
ton was matron and teacher that after
they left he had gone to the ground
and collected the scraps as feed for pigs
and chickens; that the children had
come to him by stealth, begged it all
aud eaten it; that he had seen them
taking swill out Of the pals and eating
it; that he could keep no swin near
the barn for the children stole and ate
it, even raw potato and turnip parings ;
they did this only when there was no
matron ard he thought they suffered
for food; had known one girl Of nine
years old kept six hours of hot sum-
mer day in the smokohousc, for taking
an apple from tue ground; there was
No light or air in the smokehouse.
All DR.. Dreaming's sarcasm failed K
do anything but darken the details ;snd
he questioned him until it was afte,
ten o'clock. So the meeting adjourned
until the next Thursday.
Thusday evening came, and with il
Miss Ironton and her lawyer. Th'
| Denton party had left. Mrs. Homans
, seamstrcss who had been employed a
The Home while Mrs. Wold was nat
! ron, testified that herself and that lad,
were unable to get through with tn
sewing, and that Miss Ironton woul'
not permit the older girls, two Of then
, thirteen, to aid in making or meudiu!
their own clothes; but kept every chill
: that could be made to use needle sew
[ ing small scraps of calico together b!
9 overseams. in making a quilt to SEM