The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1877-01-25

o an'i the Squire's eyes ilt up q mornsn
y ~,ih more fire than they mad shOWi
''ei0T- s;uee his son went away, a
= Ei- I8ind painted him e picture O
r tb7i stuple space Hospitality filled.
she and would be standin' abou
a here he said, aloud, as he drew him
= self up between TIE front windows
? ''and John and Lucy. they'd be on
there among 'em. Let ne see, d,
/. they hold one another by the hand
! That was the way"
, And the Squire turned az il to lOol
ia the face of some one who might b,
standing at mis- side.
An, with what 3 magnificent smiil
might not Claudia WAyte have looked
: up into his face if she had only beeI
there.
Yet it seemed very much as |
somebody was there, for the Squire'i
hand rose forward TO the lapel Of hi.
: coat, as il he were offering his arm
and then he silently and sOberiy
strobe on out Of the house, locking tht
rude door after him.
Out of the EOuse, but not hOmS
: again.
Why should he go there, indeed
where there was not q soul except the
: "help" to receive or welcome him
no man in the valley had more Oh
more cordial friends than Squire
Chaplin, and he was very clearly in
need Of company, just then, Even
the imaginary guests with whom be
had crowded the great new drawing
room would hardly have suffieed.
There are more who come unbidden
to such gatherings as that than to any
other.
Not 10 his own home, then and
not, strange as it seemed, to that OF
any OF his neighbors.
More than one Of the latter met
and exchanged with him 3 kindly
greeting, as be strobe along the
sleigh-bsaten road toward the eastern
hillside. The very dogs OF the vii
Iage knew the Squire, and Wagged
their tails respectfully as he passed
them. 1t was easy, however, for all
men to see that he did not care to be
stopped, just then.
/ One man, mounted on what the
country folk call q "cheat load" of
green wood, blew his frosty red and
/ peaked nose and squeaked
"'Day, Squire. Whsre ye gOin'?
"Up the road 3 bitn
"U 0 the road? On foot? What ye
gOin' artsr ?'
iArter my sbadder," replied the
/ Squire grimly, as he pointed to his
lengthening image on the snow, and
strobe swiftly forward.
"Arter his shadder Now that's 8
queer say to a civil question. What
can be a takin' of him that way? /
wish't knowed. II 1t wasn't for
leavin' the team, now
And the bafflsd questioner squirmed
on his short measure of green beech,
while his nose seemed to almost
gisibly curl with the intensity Of his
curiosity.
Why cannot inquisitiveness now
and then take what the doctors call
fatal turn,' like other diseases ?
Up the hillside walked the Squire,
till he turned from the main road in
to one which had not been broken
since the last snowfall, for the valley
had been exceedingly healthy that
winter.
And now there were drifts TO floun-
der through, and then 8 fence to
climb, and beyond that, among the
scattered evergreens, the snow seemed
mOeking the less vivid whiteness of
the marble slabs which lifted their
memorial heads above it.
A stumble or two over a hidden
mound, and the Squire's patient
wading brought him to spot which
might have answered the questions Of
the man on the wOod-sleigh.
Nancy, wife Of
Then tine Squire stopped reading,
and lifted his hat from the heavy
mass of his dark gray-threaded hair.
The SHOWS wonderful deep, just
here,' he muttered. 4 don't see why
it need ha' drifted so in this partikler
spot. can't jist bear to have it quite
so deep. Yes, I could get around
back of the village without any body
seein' of me. I'd want shovel and
broom. There'll be plenty Of moon
light
If Mrs. Wsyte expected the Squire
to tea that evening, she was dIsap-
pointed and when the next morn
ing's sun looked down upon the east.
ern hillside, he saw that one large
patch OF the village 'God's-acre' had
been shOveled and swept clean of
snow, end that some one had deposit
ed bunch of fresh evergreens, with
some bright-red mountain ash berries
on one os the graves.
Spring would come earlier in The
city than in the country; but there
was 10 likelihood of another heavy
snow.
1t was odd, but Squire Chaplin felt
hungry that night when he returned
home, and, although the help had
long since had their supper in the
kitchen, and had cleared it away, be
insisted on having something nice
prepared for himself, and then he sat
up, eheerily reading and smoking, un-
til the late hour that brought Joe
Roberts and Lucy Ferrer home from
the great quilting-b bee. Not q dem
onstrstiye man was the Squire but
he kissed L1cy at the door, and she
thought she had never before seen !
him look so handsome, so very like |
john
Hard winters break up suddenly, as
ceptiOn t0 the rule. A week or so
that are sure to be sandwiched be- |
LHEG1 AOIIcuL5 Vi
brought John Chaplin home again.
In the Piney Woods p exclaimed |
his father after the first burst Of well |
come. We'll, I'd hardly ha' known |
ye. Did you plunder somebody =?
Not exactly laughed John /; 'but |
you know always have an eye to
business, and made some right good |
turns in lumber. So l came back by |
way of the city, and bought me new
outfit
4 should say you did, remarked
the Squire, emphatieally.
That isn't ALL continued John.
You and wear the same size, pretty
nearly, and so had just such anoth-
er, three full suits, built for you. Best
I could get. 1 Ireekon they'll fit.'
iJOhDu
"Don't say word, father. I've -
right to do what l please with my
own money
Il think understand you, John
you've seen how they do things in
town. Well, never thought OF that.
Wen begin work on the new house
right away John. Did you see any
body you knew when you were in the
city ?"
Yes said John. Tell you all
about 1t by and by. By the way, I've
invited friend Of mine to come and
visit me-
That's right, my boy, glad to see
him. Chuck the house full II you
want to. It's been lonely enough
while you've been gone
Never miDd,' replied the young
man, half cOldlyi you'll have COM
pany enough one of these days"
'John,' exclaimed the Squire, you
haven't said 8 word to Lucy"
True enough but then she had
come into the room so very quietly
while they we're talking, and now
she was standing aud looking at her
friend with such an
expression of open, simple-mInded
that John actually laugh
ed as he spraBg forward to kiss her.
To his utter astonishment, how
ever, Lucy half eluded him, with q
John, dOn't'-shat
she could hardly have explained, to
herself.
And be?
The Squire, too, could hardly be-
lieve his eyes, for John drew back
with q movement that was awkward
- HE naHaEa olaOonoa i