Gallipolis journal. [volume] (Gallipolis, Ohio) 1837-1919, 1874-08-06
KITTY'S FORTY.
BY EDWARD EGGLESTON.

1t doesn't do men any good to live
apart from women and children. |
never knew a boys school in which
there was not a tendency to rowdyism.
And lumbermen, sailors, fishermen,
and other men that live only with
men are prOverbially half-bear sort
of people. Frontiersmen soften down
when women and children come-but
l forget myself, it is the story you
want.
Burton and Jones lived in a shanty
by themselves. Jones was married
man, but, finding it hard to support
his wife in q dOwneast village, he had
emigrated to Northern Minnesota,
leaving his wife under her fathers
roof until he should be able to ''make
a start" He and Burton had gone
into partnership and had "preempt-
ed' town of 800 acres.
There were perhaps twenty fami-
lies scattered sparsely over this town
site at the time my story begins and
ends, for it ends in the same week in
which it begins.
The partners had disgreed, quar-
relied, and divided their interests.
The land was all shared between
them except one valuable forty acre
piece. Each of them claimed that
piece of land, and the quarrel had
grown so high between them that the
neighbors expected them to shoot at
sight. In fact, it was understood
that Burton was on the forty acre
piece, determined to shoot Jones if he
came, and Jones had sworn to 90 out
there and shoot Burton, when the
fight was postponed by the uneXpect-
ed arrival of Jones's wife and child.
Jones's shanty was not finished land
he was forced to forego the luxury of
fighting his old partner, in his ex
ertions to make wife and baby COM
Portable for the night. For the win
ter sun was surrounded by "sun
dogs" Instead of one sun there
were four, an occurrence not uncom-
mon in this latitude, butt one which
always bodies terrible storm.
In his endeavor to care for wife and
child, Jones was Modified a little,
and half regretted that he had been
so violent about the piece of land.
But he was determined not to be
backed down, and would certainly
have to shoot Burton or be shot him
self.
When he thought of the chance of
being killed by his old partner, the
prospect was not pleasant. He look
ed wistfully at Kitty, his two year
old child, and dreaded that she
should be left fatherless, but he
wouldn't be backed down. He would
shoot or be shot.
While the father was busy cutting
wood and the mother was busy other
wise, little Kitty managed to get the
shanty door open. There was no
latch as yet, and her prying little fin
gers easily swung it back. A gust OF
cold air almost took her breath away,
but she caught sight of the brown
grass without, and the new world
seemed so big that the little feet were
fain to try and explore it.
She pushed out through the door,
caught her breath again, and started
away down path bordered by sere
grass and the dead stalks of the wild
flowers.
How often had she longed to es-
cape from the restraint and paddle
out in the world alonel So out into
the world she went, rejoicing in her
liberty, in the blue sky above and the
rusty prairie beneath. She would
find out where the path went, and
what was at the end of the world !!
What did she care if her nose was
blue with cold and her chubby hands
red as beets2 Now and then she
paused to turn her head away from
the rude blast, a forerunner of the
storm, but, having gasped a moment,
she quickly renewed her brave
march in search of the great un-
known.
The mother missed her, but sup
nosad that Jones. who could not pet