The Andrew County Republican. [volume] (Savannah, Mo.) 1871-1876, 1876-04-07


to him three times from her open win
dow, but he paid no attention to it ex-
cept to quicken his pace a little, and she
watched him "as stiddy as if she had
"a bin a-settin' for to have her picter
took" she said, until he passed the
Widow Hainline's and disappeared over
the hill. Then she fastened up to the
store and the printing office to tell what
she had seen, and an hour later the SUR
prising event was the talk of the town.
With the afternoon, however, came "the
grim chieftain" with his speech, and
after the early supper they had u bon
fire and another speech, and in the
novelty and agitation of it all, the
incident of the morning was for
gotten, and nobody noticed that Perky
did not return. 1t must have been
quite 4 o'clock of Sunday evening when
his absence was first observed. That
some harm had bcfallen him seemed
the only reasonable solution of the mat
ter; and there was no time to lose in
delay or in speculation. The editor,
accompanied by such of the townsfolk
as he could readily get together, prompt
ly started in search of him. They called
to make inquiry of Aunt Naomi Sey-
bold, and she went on with them to the
Widow Hainline's, repeating to them as
she walked along her story of the day
before. The widow could give them no
additional information; indeed, the
whole of it was an establishment and n
shock to her, she said, and she question:
ed them very eagerly about it, while
Benny listed with a indefinite dread and
wished they would go on and look for
him before night came. They started
directly, down the road to the river.
Benny went with them, upon his own
suggestion, to point out the places where
he had been with Perky; and as he glanc-
ed from the familiar old leaning beech
half way down the hill, he saw that his
mother and Aunt Naomi were following
closely after them.
They found him just where Benny
had fancied they would find him. TWAS
hardly a stones throw from the road
and the ford, but such q quiet, soothing,
winsome little nook that it might have
been n fragment of some other world.
He was lying upon the grass, with his
arms under his head, and his feet hid
den from sight by the fallen leaves. He
could almost have reached the river
with his hand, but the murmuring of il
there in the bend among the bewilder-
ing roots and stones was so soft and So
uncertain that it seemed only an echo.
A cluster of haw bushes, bending be-
meath an overplus of fading and shriv-
cling w%oodbinc, shut off the vision on
the south, as the river bank did on the
west and the north; but on the east, up
the steep bluff, beyond the massive de-
caying trce-trunk that lay in the edge
of the thicket of hazcls like some great
broken-hearted giant, was the little ar
Dor in the rea of the Widow Hainline's
house, where the honeysuckles grew,
and where the widow often sat in the
cool of the late afternoon with her sew
ing. When they reused him, Perky
turned his eyes in that direction Il mo-
ment, then closed them again, and said,
rs if in rcverie, 81 must have been
dreaming"
They stood waiting around for some
minutes in an undecided way, and Their
the editor gently raised him to a sitting
posture, and he tried to smile as he
looked from one to another of them ant
said, $50 on with your picnic: dom
mind me-" No one spoke when h,
sank down again upon the grass ant
leaves; but Aunt Naomi Seybold tool
off her shawl and made q pillow of i
for him, and buttoned his open Goa
over his breast, for it was nearly sun
down, and there was a chill in the ali
from off the river. He appeared to b.
sleeping, the Widow Iiainline thought
ms she leaned over and gazed intent,
upon him out of the shadow of the ma
pie Just back of where his head lay; ant
Benny knew she must be very, yer,
pale, she trembled so as he felt her pu
an arm around him and press him t.
her side.
The setting sun flooded the crisp ant
stained foliage with 4 transient ccstac,
of October gold and crimson as Perk,
started Il little and sat upright again
and said he wished Benny would hurr.
back, for it was growing dark. TIL
} widow walked rapidly around in from
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