The Lake County star. [volume] (Chase, Mich.) 1873-current, 1875-03-18

quite as much feminine willfulness in it
as of any kind of grief The words that
were pouring into her ears were low
spoken and calmly uttered, but with a
hardness and almost harshness of tone
that seemed to belle the other "surface
indications of the speaker.
Not very tall man, certainly, was
the latter, though broad enough to make
the spreading brim of his Quaker hat
seem perfectly in keeping.
Hester" he said, with an evident eff
fort to avoid being heard by the young
man on the mare, "thee has been rude to
Absalom this morning, and l do not won
der he cares so little for thy conversation.
Does thee forget what l have said to the
about AbsalOm? His father was my
friend, and his inheritance is even better
than thine may be. Has there been any
quarrel between thee and Absalom
Peck T'
"Quarrel, father! Absalom Peck quar-
rel? Oh, don't 1 wish he would Why,
he wouldn't quarrel with anybody, not
even if he were taking their last cent
from them. / only wish he would let me
quarrel with himw
"Thee is strange girl, Hester Merri-
weather." replied the old man, "and thee
takes n good deal after thy mother.
Why should thee quarrel with thy has
band%
Husband? Absalom Peck my hus-
band, father? If were, / would quarrel
all the time. Pm glad thee talks plainly
This morning, father, so can answer
thee plainly. / don't care if Absalom
Peck's gray mare carries him clean into
the mountain or over it. He will never
have any wife at all, if he waits for me-"
There was world of spirit in the blue
eyes as they looked straight into her
fathers own, but the old man was wax
ing grave and stern, and he answered,
almost hoarsely:
Chester Merriweather, I know thee /;
thee has been talking again with that
lazy vagabond, Jack Maclay, of whom l
babe thee beware. Has thee not ?"
"No, l haven't" sharply responded
Hester, "for he hasn't been near the
house since you ordered him away. Jack
Maclay isn't lazy and he isn't a vaga-
bond. How does thee dare say such
things of man whose farm is as good as
even Absalom Peck'sW
"Akem Yes! Land enough, and 1
must say his last crop was good one,"
responded the now grim and angry faith
er; "but when man puts in his time
fishing, and hunting, and following dogs
through the woods, call him vaga-
bond, farm or no farm. Thee must never
speak again to Jack Maclay."
Just at this moment, the rounded
physique of Absalom turned somewhat
suddenly in the saddle, and slow,
wheezy voice remarked:
"Friend Merriweather, did thee hear
that sound, away there to the right? l
think it is the baying of hound. The
woods are full of deer this winter, and
they are very fat"
"Thee is right, Absalom," returned the
old man, "and if l was twenty years
younger Ahem Absalom, am glad
thee does not waste thy time in hunting;
but thee is right about the deer. We
must have fat saddle for Christmas.
Hetty will be glad to have thee come and
help eat it,"
Hetty Merriweather' face was fast
assuming more willful look than ever,
but she suddenly exclaimed, Father, it
is coming straight this way. Don't you
hear it? Oh, / should so much like to see
the huntp
"And the hunter, too, I fear" growled
her father; but Absalom replied with:
Did thee hear that jumping 1t is very
strange if it is deer"
"Hetty, my child-Hctty"
"Father!"
The last. exclamation was almost
scream, for even as Absalom Peck's slow
tongue ceased speaking, terrible appa-
rition sprang out through the bushes,
and crouched for an instant, on low,
fiat rock at the roadside.
Old man Merriweather had been born
among those mountains, but never be-
fore had he been face to face with any
thing so fearful as that panther. The
open mouth, the painting tongue, the
cleaning fangs, the furious eyes, the un-
usual bulk that terminated in such an
angry beating tail-Hctty might well
scream, for the beast was mad with the
wounds of many buckshot, and evidently
deemed himself "at bay"
Absalom had mechanically wheeled
his mare, but his fat and comfortable
face had suddenly turned as gray as her
own sleek coat, and in another instant
he had again reined her down the road,
digging her ribs with his heels, and
/ must 60 for helpl" ratified
away down the road, just as the savage
king of the mountains launched himself
from the rock with spring whose impet-
uosity carried him clean into the long, low
sleigh that contained Hester Merriweath-
er and her father.
That brief moment of hesitation had
been worth something, however, for, be-
fore the panther could rally for further
a fierce, yelping cry rang out
behind him, and tall, grizzly-headed
staghound followed the "painter" with
pluck, sinking his muzzle in
the montser's bloody flank, and turning
his prey on himself, for the moment.
Gallant old Grip! 1t was rash thing
for any dog to do, and in few moments
it was only too evident that he had met
more than his match.
As for the two ponies attached to the
sleigh, one would naturally have sup
posed that the screams, yells, bowling,
ETC., 80 close behind them, would have
started them on the widest kind of
rum" but their Quaker training from
colthood had been adverse to that sort of
thing and they seemed contented with
series Of fat and futile kicks, rears and
plunges, of no earthly consequence to
anybody but themselves.
What had they to do with fighting
panthers 2