The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1875-11-20

trees and cut under brush, or taking hoe Il
hoe her row in the darling little garden, ou
of which they meant to make living, II 'hey
died for 1t.
II was only because they meant to so yer
hard, fancy, that they made the living VITA
out dying for 1t. 1t was almost worse, al IN
than coachman's wages in Mother England
There was the newnesS, and there was 'h'
inconsistencies, and there was the distance
from the market and there was the bitter
cold, and there was the blighting heat, anc
always there were the babies, and, besides
there were the Indians.
Yes, an Indian story Truly, honestly,
as my little friend Trotty would say, u live
Indian story; and though it isn't long one
It is every word IA true one. Most true things
are not very long in this world unless yon OK
cept the moral law or the multiplication Ia
Bile or a few such things as that.
John and Susan and Tam and Titus and
Betty and the new baby and the newest new
baby (when it came) got along pretty well
with everything else; but 1t wasn't pleasant
to see an Indian walking by with tomahawk
lust as you were quietly sitting down 10 sup.
per; and they got q little tired OF 81 -eping
with one ear open, listening for the awful,
echolng sound OF the cruel Indian war.cry
and whatever may be urged against life as a
coachman in England, at least ii was life IN
which ones attention. wasn't called s. fire.
quently to the top of ones head.
mine is fairly sore, laughed Susan with
thinking how it will feel to be s.alped"
But Susan was such brave little woman !
And if there is anything very much needed in
this world it is brave women.
"Ill have a gun" she said. SO she had a
gun "I'll be a good shot, she said. And
| quickly she became as good shot as John.
| And when John was at work in the garden
Susan gathered the brood about her in the
house, and lynx eyed as sentry and tincear.
ed as a mother, mounted guard.
Now there came time when nobody had
seen any Indians for 50 long while that even
the wise heart OF the mother forgot to lee
keenly about anything in this world If we
do not see it-an absent duty or an absent
| friend or an absent terror-all alike, they
grow a trihe dim or dull.
And one day, when Titus and Tam said
"Just one gallop on the prairie, mother with
old Jerusalem" their mother SAID: "Well |
don't know" and their father said; 81 guess
! I'd let EN-" and the lynx.eyed, and the Keen
ears, and the wise head of the mother said her
not nay-and so it happened.
Old Jerusalem was the big white horse ; the
faithful, ugly, grand old horse, that took steps
almost as long as a kangaroo's, and was more
afraid of an Indian than Tam.
SO Susan kissed Titus goodbye tenderly--
for he was the good boy OF those remarkable
Withstand that was why they called him III
tus and kissed Tam little more teudcrly
still, because he wasn't so good rs Titus, and
so had got called Tam and she 0id: Hold
on tight" and John came out and said :.
Come home pretty SOON" and Tam got on
first, and Titus got on behind HIM, and Jeru.
salem gave one great bound and away they
shot, clingIng with shining, bare feet to Jeru
salem's white, bare back-ior they were mag
niticent little riders, seven years old Aow, and
brave as cubs.
Susan stood watching them after John had
gone back to his work-stood watching them
long after they had swept away into the great
green beautiful sea of the treacherous prairie
grass.
Uneasy? Not exactly. Sorry that she had
let them go? Hardly that. She was II sen
sible woman, and, having done what 'shc
thought was right, had no idea of being troub-
led by it till the time came But still she
stood watching, her hand over her eyes
this way-and she did not go into the house
Till the newest new baby had cried at least five
minutes at the Top OF its new little lungs.
Titus and Tam and Jerusalem got pretty
far out on the beautiful, terrible prairie.
How beautiful il wasl Ii did not seem as If
1t ever could be terrible if it tiled. The green
waves of the sol grass rolled madly. The
wind was high. The sun was so bright they
could not look at it, The strong horse boun.
ded with mighty leaps. The boys could feel
the muscles quivering and draw tense in his
soft, warm body, AS they chung. IL was like
being horse yourself. They did not know
which was horse and which was boy. They
laughed because they could not help it and
4
til Oh, the sun, and the mad grass, and the
wild wind! Hi! Hi! Hill! Who could
be two boys on such II prairie, on such day,
on such horse, and not yell like little wild.
cats?
ITS pretty" sad little Titus, softly, when
they had got tired OF yelling.
You betr' said Tam, loudly. mi! Hill
Yi-i-ee eel"
81 guess we ought to go back" said Titus,
pretty soon; Titus was SO much more likely
10 remember TO be good.
"Oh, no." said Tam, who was generally a.
little bad when there was II chance
"Father said to come home pretty soon,
said Titus.
But" urged Tam, with bright air,
mother said 10 hold on tight. Hi! vi! YIN
All! what was that? What was ii. Could
Jerusalem answer? Can the wild winds talk
" III 'hS VIM paul Sl'NuN'
Is tongue.tIed and the great sky is dumb. But
something answered Tam O'Shanter'S shout.
Oh, there! o Titus! quick, quick, quick
Turn him round, Tam! Turn Jerusalem
round! InjuDsl Injuus! Oh, | wish we
hadn't come! What shall We do, what shall
we do? Oh, lam, what shall we do? Oh,
they've all got horses, and they're coming
straight! Get upl Getu Oh, Jerusalem,
do hurry! Old fellow, do get us home! Good
boy Good old fellow!
o, Tam! they've got arrows, and they're
golng-t0-shoot!
Petty little Mrs. Jacobs had got the newest
baby TO sleep, and got the baby that wasn't
quite so new to sleep, and given Betty her
patchwork, and sent her husband without his
beer, and swept the kitchen, ana built the fire,
and started supper on the way, aud | don't
know what else besides, when that fine moth.
er's ear of hers detected, through the sound of
the wind upon the prairie, a sharp, uneven,
and, TO her notion, rather ugly sound.
Betty was sitting in the door, but she heard
nothing. The sleeping babies did not stir