The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1872-11-23
SaiseeI!aHp.
HER TWO HANDS.


front. Cs,psr had bend, If be bad been
hall pcr'uofsi toe many years to so ON his
hands ia kue2s again, so heavily time sat on
his he'd, and 20 close to the earth did his daily
labor draw Lin.
H rs yJoi.natrr.T, trottiug old fellow,
working Lis mouth eagerly, and straining his
bic ared eyes, 50 he approached the towns drag
gled skirts, for very thiIkirs of his tolks-his
old woman ana his little gal.
There we're rora of dismal frame hEts all
aroult buis- 'y r.,'-al3 companies for the pur-
pose OF pu-... nRuy 81 their employees
fsmi,ies Il dns as possible. They geposed,
grimy ani barn like. squat on that sandy fouu.
dation which scripture condemns, swarming
with lezious OF tD.io g-headai children. Wo-
men, sharp at the elbows, and sharper at the
face, were -4i-ing clouds Of pork smoke from
Their re pecJiye xitchea s,.Srs. Ia fact, tine
whole eshoJrd resked with the smell of grease,
and be evening Was 81 warm a Laplander might
have resulted ii. Eat Caspar'a nose was not
delc re. He trotted over the cin6er sidewalk,
noddng this way and that, glad there was such
a fine air, and TIA. his old bones were so near
home.
"Th,r's the little gal. Is usual" he ehuckled,
as be turned a corner aud found Madgie on her
look cut at h. gate. She WAS comforting
sight to see in th At neighborhood, 80 tidy and
far, in calico and hraids and the pink desh-
color of youth. You wondered why she hadn't
been set fur.hgr mp town, and draped in some
thing costly; why her deft fingers had never
learned tle,o we're ton keys 10 unlock soul
which sumhers "a ,lsawcod, and which rises at
touch, IKE some blessed gouii, to comfort ell
ills and fill all thoughts; you wondered how
some high-brei father was not coming hsme to
her now. Bat then this old man would have
found it 40 h I'D 80 60 wthoo; Der. Then, too,
Madge might never III her life have struck the
ba in, bprh ia oh
she held her bank against I'll tbs future, and
the interest Of ~alch wDs the ouly income she
wanted.
"Inero you &c, sgaadp.! cried Madge.
ayes, and there you are, Magic. And here
We both are, N I'D de- entering the open gate,
and c2.tius down his pick
Hs put his hands on each side of her head
and cave her sounding susaek the check.
"Suppers ready."
"Ye., yes, just wit ill get little OF the
smuJ of ny hands aud neck. Its been pow.
erful hot, dusty day"
C,spar trotted through the little barn allotted
to him, h,iief hi- old wife, who sat ready tc
pour his te', and after blowing and plungine
through deal OF water, returned to his family
with shining countenaucs and a handful OF
onions.
81 list pulled these up for relish They're
COOLING, ingens is. You tended thas bed, didnt
you, Eadgief'
"Grrndma and L"
"And we wanted scme them ingens for mar
ket," said the old wife, eying tho sacrifice &C.
verey. 1--WE amt got ground to throw
away raisin' Injuries for ourselves"
"Well, well, mother" pleaded Caspar, dipping
his fragrant sphere in salt II don't calkllats t
pull em all. jst wanted soneth,n' tefreshin
after q hard day. Taste 'em. Madgie," SAID he
insinuating the emerald tops toward her.
"0h, no, grandpa, keep EN- yourself" shakin,
her head and smiling.
II feel,"rlmbled Caspar. filling his senses ant
and his Jaw with perfumed roots, until blind
man would have pronounced him Mexican, i
his nose had sat in Judgment over Caspar, 81
rally feel as ii I needed somethiD' refreshin,
workin hard day after day for nothin', 20,
might say. Sort Of SEEM your work 60 to piecei
under your eyes,and KNOWN the danger to then
on the road"
"Whpt do you mean, grandpa ?" cried Madge
turning rs white ss her bread aud butter.
"Why, honey, you see we've picked and picked
in that cut, and the sile's unsteady as water
The stones and earth jist roll on the track con
tineral. The company orto to do somethin tt
that cut. Stones as big ~ you is Jared dowl
every train. But then the roads new YET"
Men amt got nc sense" broke in the OLE
wife Don't you see that you're sksering tina
child to death for fear Charley'll get smashed
up! lie runs on that road"
Two blades Of keen remorse leaped from Gas
per'e blesred eyes.
snow, doa't you DO skoered, honey. Take al
inger, honey"
be reached over to pet her fingers.
Charley didn't pass to-day when The dir
was rattlin' down So He didn't pass till afte
eight this evening, and We loft the track a
clean az this table. Yes, sir. them rails 10 a
free and bright as new tin pans. So, don't yo
be sEeered, honey
I'm not scared about anything, grandpa,
said Aadge TREMENDOUSLY, but smiling like rain
bow.
antly, returning to his onions, ''you come dow
On me for nothiu'. She amt skeered Bit"
No, rot bit, She dew about the room like
bird, veshed the earthenware, brought he
grandfather his pipe, aud dropped at his feet I
tell him some funny story saoat. In his enioy
ment be wrapped himself in such cloud ths
she could h-rdly zee the clook.
Madge clipped ont TO tho gate She was o.
ten there, looking up the road The two oil
people sat inside, thinking OF tho days whc
shey were ycuug.
She was restless, and fitted over tho cinde
Sidewalk, following magnet which would hav
orswn her irotn the centre 81 the earth To th
road, OF course How often had she watche
'ae rails converging hOIizonward until the
sharpened themselves TO u needle point. Til
railroad had fascination for Madge. When
bsdy, che used TO follow her grandfather to hi
WORK, and hide emong bushes 10 zee tn. b;
1reishts numbering by, and the express train
whiriing Into town like screaming lsnd demon
she had heard OF the se., and the spel IL h.
upsn sailors, but she saw the railroad and fe
the spell. which nobody seemed 70 remark Iii.
1T cGst over iElahd leb0rors. Sho NV har h,,
playmates sucsed up by "the road y heard h,
grandfather tell o! hairtseslh ,scanes fron 90