St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1875-02-12
81. eSohns1urn Galrdonian.
st. John~pury. VI. Friday. Feb. IL. 1873.
Kitty's Forty.
BY EDWARD EGGLEsToN.

apart from women aud children. | never
knew Il BOYS school in which there was
not Il tendency to rowdyism. And lum-
bermen. fishermen. sailors. and all other
men that live only with men, are pro
verbally Il haii-hcar sort of people.
Fr0ntieISmcn soften down when women
aud children cOme-but ! forget my
self. it is the story You want.
Burton and Jones lived III Il >lanty
10y themselves. Jones WAS Il married
man. but finding il har', to support "
wife in down-caSt village. he cmIgrlt-
ed to North Minnesota. leaving his vic
under her fathers roof. until he should
hc able to make Il start. He ami
Burton had gone int" partnership. an"
pre-cmpted 4 ''town site "i three nun
bred and twenty acres.
There we're, perhaps. twenty families
scattered >par>ely over this town->ltr
at the time my story begins and ends.
for il ends the same week II begins.
The partners had disagreed, quar-
relied. and devidrd their interest. The
land WAS shared between them. except
II valuable forty acre piece. Each "l
them claimed this piece of land. ana
the quarrel had gone so high between
them that the neighborS expected them
to shoot ut sight. In fact it was under
stood that Burton who was on the forty
acre lot determined To shoot Jones If he
came. and Jones had sworn to 90 ont
there aud shoot Burton. when the fight
was postponed by the unexpected ar
rival of Jones wife and children.
Jones Shamty WAS not finished. and
hc had to torcgo the luxury of fighting
Il: 4 Ii. tn nj. Ia,
his wife and baby comfortable for the
night. For the winter sun was sur
rounded 10y '>undogS." Instead of one
sun. there were tour. an occurrence not
uncommon in this latitude, but one
which always bodied Il terrible storm.
In his endeavorS to care for his wife
and child, Jones WAS Modified little
and half regretted that he had been :"
violent about the piece of land. but he
WAS determined not to back down. ana
he would certainly have to shoot Bur
ton, or be- shot himself.
When he thought OF the chances of
being killed 10y his old partner. the
prospect was not pleasant. He looked
visttully at Kitty. his two-year old
child, and dreaded that she should he
left tathcrlcSS. Nevertheless. he would
not he backed down hc would shoot or
hr shot.
While father was busy otherwise. lit
tie Kitty managed To get the >hamtl
door open. There WAS II" Latch. ami
the prying fingers swung II back. y
gust of cold air almost took away hri
breath but she caught sight "t the
brown grass without. and the new verdi
seemed 50 big that the little feet were
f,in to try and explore ii.
She pushed ont through the door
caught her breath again. and started OF
down path h"rlcrcd 10y >crc GRASS
and stalks of wild S,ullowcr
How often she loI"cd to escape from
restraint. and paddle ont into the world
all alone 80 out into the world she
went. rejoicing in her liberty. with the
blue sky above. and the russell prairie
beneath. She would find out where
the path went to. and what there w;H
at the end of the world.
What did she care if her nose WIS
blue with cold. and her chubby hands
as red aS bcct~ Now and then she
paused to turn her head away from
some rude blast, torcrinncr of the
storm. But having gaSped moment.
she QUICKLY ltlltNtu utl hllN' hl'li' II
i'll search of the great unknown.
The mother missed her. and supposed
that Jones. who could not get enough
of the child'S society. had taken her out
with him.
Jones. poor fellow, chopped on I'M
til the storm came upon HIM. half
smothercd hN SNOW and half tI"Icn 10y
cold.
When there WAS nothing left i'ut tol
to retreat. he had seized an HrnfuI of
wood and carried 1t into the house
with him. to make sure that he had
enough to keep his wife and Kitty from
freezing in the soon coming aWiulnc>~
of the night. which noN settled down
ON the Stnl1n-hratcn and >nnw-blimdcd
world.
1t WAS in the beginning of that terri
hIc storm in which 50 many people
were fl oxen tn death and ne had fled
none Ia soon.
When once the wood was stacked 10y
the stove. Jones looked around for hit
~ He had not more than once inpuir
eel tur her when her father and mother
both read in the face OF the other that
she was lost in the wild da>hing snow
storm.
SO fast did the snow fail. and 81 dark
WAS the night that Jones could not SCI
three feet ahcaG vi him. He rudcayor-
ed to find the path which he thought
Kitty might have taken. hut it WAS
buried IN snow drifts. and soon lost
himself.
He stumbled through the drifts. cal
ling ont to Kitty in distress. not know
lug whittier he went.
After IN hour of dc>pairiug wander
ing and shouting he came to Il house
and having raped at the door. h,
found himself face to face with hi
wife.
He had rtumed to his own house ii
bcwildcrmcnt.
When we remember that Jones had
not slept for two nights preceding thi,
one on account OF his mortal Uuirrr
with Burton. and had now been beating
against an arctic hurricane tI;Impine
through trcachcrouS pillows of snow fol
an hour. We cannot wonder that ht
fell over his own threshold in il state OF
extreme exhaustion. Happy Ton hin
that he did not fall hcwillcrcd ON Tia,
prairie. as many Il poor waNtarrr did on
that fatal night.
As it WAS his wife must needs give
up the vain little searches she had beer
making in the ncighhorhn"d at tn,
shauty.
There WAS now Il sick husband Will
frozen hands and feet and face to care
for Every minute the Thermometer
fell lower and lower. and all the heat
that the little cook stove III Jones
shanty could give. would hardly keel
them from freezing.