The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1875-06-16

j - ~|~--N.s
sits time for Charlie she mpttcred
abe viii be very cold r And she diverted
herself BY putting in the stove two OF
three sticks Of the soft fuel which burned
out 50 quickly and gave 50 little heat, tha,
there bad AlrSaiy been days that winter
When she thought she and the baby would
freese TO death.
To occupy herself snd forvVt the wiad,
she made Sn effort to neal some Of the
incidents OF the sptumn, while the world
was YET green, She Ssniled II the remeu-
brance Ofthst day when, IS usual, she was
all alone, her husband miles away, and,
seeing : shadow fall On the door, she had
lookei up suddenly, to find seven Indians
standing shop, her in the room She NJ
membered how they underworld 70 buy
the baby; the hOrrid old chiei, with the
white bsniase on his head. ofteryd silver
half dollar. and As she shook her heSd,
another and another, until be hal offered
sll be had, ten how they filed out, as
they had come in, like phsntoms, but
stopped At the wood, pile TO pick up the az
and hammer which lay there; snd how,
realizing how necessary these tools were
to her husband, she summoned courage
TO follow the thieves and take them away;
and how strangely weak and faint she
found herself when she WAS safe in the
house again and the redskins cut OF sight.
Then this nervous lady shiNercd IS she
recalled another day when an immense
snake, i've feet long, dropped down by
the baby'S cradle out octhe rafters.
1t was eight o'clock She heard the
horses feet striking the hard snow, and in
five minutes she opened the door to Char,
lie. She took off his gloves and comfort
er, after he had put the animal in she'd
back Of the cabin, aud put more wood on
the fire, and in tremulous tones, as he was
warming himself, asked, Was there 4 let
ter, dear!"
"No, Dolly, not this time; but here is
4 New York paper some Onehas sent you"
The kettle was boiling and she put the
coffee to steep, drew the table as close to
the stove as she could get It, put on it =
loaf of bread and the inevitable saucer of
molasses.
Charlie was so hungry, with his long,
cold ride, that the bread aud nolasses tast-
ed good to him; but on tins evening, as
she did occasionally, his wife loathed
them. She drank j cup OF the coffee, aud
then read the paper aloud to Charlie.
Even the advertisements were interest
ing; their old life came up so wildly
before them, that for little while, al
though bitterly disappointed not to receive
4 letter, Dolly forgot the prairie wind and
the prairie snow. Before the news was
all read, the baby awoke aud was taken
up and fed on coffee and bread-there
was no milk for the little fellow.
And thus the woman's days went on.
There was no variety in her life that win
ter, except that on Mondays she washed
out the soiled clothes, on Tuesday ironed,
on Wednesday baked bread. The wind
tore and raveled the clothes when they
were hung out to dry, even on the sunni
est days, and whipped the hens off the
sheets and tableelOths. 1t was novel and
almost uncomfortable toll TO her who had
never before done such work. She famed .
her back, and fruze her hands and feet.
When spring came, Dolly and the baby !
eft Charlie 10 pay visit to an uncle of
bis who had immigrated twenty years
earlier, and now had 5 saw-mill, : good .
frame house, and large family, and lived |
eighteen miles away, in Iowa Sheinteud-
II remaining but few days in this fam
ly, which was strange to her, and unlike
Ter; but no sooner was the strain little
oosened from DoIly's life, no sooner did
he sit down to rest by this alien hearth,
han she fell i'll
Solitude, hard work. poor food and a
out-giviing Of her own life to an-
'ther, had done the fatal wrOng-she had
yphoid-fever.
She lay there week after week The
,usy, kindly, haIfiguOrant relatives gave
ier such nursing as they could She scarce
; knew whether or not she wanted any
hing. Charlie could only come to see her
low and then, for the Spring work lay
Taiting-the hopes Of the year we're to be
.lanted- After time she was delirious;
enturies seemed to drag their slow length
yer her PROSTATE mind and body; all
orts Of curious fancies possessed her.
Ill tell you of but two: Once she mag
led herself little pool of water lying in
be hollow of s cottonwood stump znd
rying up slowly under burning sun;
nee, that she was one Of those Jumps Of