The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1875-03-11

slant [ heard it saw before me picture
of the family on the desert-saw you and
the big wagon-the old bald-faced horse
saw every thing! %
80, you mean by the beard of Ba-
laam !' Well, that is my only oath
my only s1oear. It's the family oath ;
my father before me used to swear 1t,
and no other. In this I follow his ex-
ample"
"What became of the poor emigrant
family?" I a5ked. "Where did they
finally bring up? Did you get them
over the mountains all right
''Did I get them over the mountains
all right! Well [ rather think I did
and I've got 'em right till now! p
It'll now? Then you know where
they are and how they are getting
along?"
eyes; I may say do. Did you no.
tice that Oldest girl2-looked a bit tanned
and dusty and used up out there, but
when she got rested and fixed up, and
her mother and the child got well, she
was little the brightest, lvliest and
best lookin' girl I ever saw anywhere.
[ tell you I got dead in love with that
girl before we'd got half way over the
mountains-just with her talk and pa
tlent ways. Then when I afterwards
saw her fixed up bet yer life wasn't
going to lose her !"
''Well, he continued, s'as [ was about
to tell you: L took the whole lot
right down to my ranch, and having
big barn of house on it that used be
sort Of a tavern, [ set 'em UP and told
'em to go to Hvin'
''They did as I told 'em, and went
to courtin' Molly in dead earnest-al-
most neglecting business to do it,
''To make long story short, in six
months we were married-bless the day
The trip to the church with her was the
best [ ever made-save one, perhapsl
But it seems like an old story now. Why
bless you! we've two bouncin' boys and
little girl by this time!''
'sAnd Thomas ?" I asked. GLOW
does Thomas make it?'
Thomas? o, you mean Anderson
my father-in-law. Well, he'll never set
the world a-fre He's good sort of
an old man, though. He's got little
ranch of his own, off part of mine. He's
contented as a lamb--he is. He jist
potters and potters about, and is happy.
''But grandmother Mumford- the old
lady, you know-well, it was just aston
lshin' the way she come out when she
struck California and that old horse
after they'd got settled on the ranch
Why, the old critter-the old woman, [
mean-she jist got as spry as quail. [
often used to tell her-when 7 SEQ her
chasin' the young turkeys-'G randmoth-
er Mumford, you'll be a-kickin' up your
heels next, like old Barney, out in the
pastur =
"Does she ever come the-tOh Num-
ford! Oh! Mumford!' dodge nowadays?"
ella ha ha - roared John Hender-
son. Chow do you know about that?
Oh, I recollect now she did some Of it
out there in the desert. eyes she
brings Mumford up occasionally, when
father Anderson don't fly about fast
enough, to suit her-when she's put out
with him, you know. Then she sits
down aud humps herself, like, or comes
over to my house and stays month at
a time. o! I forgot to tell you-she is
rich now Some of her big relations,
back In Kentucky-the Mumfords
and Sylvesters, among 'em-died and
left her, or it fell to her some way,
clean $4,000 in coin We've named
two of the children after her-I mean
the girl after her and the boy after Mum
ford, the one out on Green River. His
name, it seems, was Isaac-not a name
[ would have selected, but-well, as far
for Molly. mean that the old lady has
in her will, you know. But this is too
much like talkin' business at funeral,
and I'm rich enough already-almost.
A stout, handsome young man about
seventeen years of age, now approached
and was introduced by Henderson as
'sRobert Anderson, my brother-in-law.
He's one of the boys you saw over in
Washoe."
After some talk about the trouble on
the desert, Mr.. Henderson told me that
'Bob'' was driving one of his teams.
81 have three wings nova red
wing, a white wing and blue wing"
'sHave you the same old Red Wing?"
[ asked.
eyes," said Henderson sfbut, like