The Jasper weekly courier., 1877-09-21

full Oh misery, anu sat uoWu upon uoA
beside the stove and began 10 cry. II
was queer thing for a man like that 70
do--a great. rough laborer, 80 years Of
ace or more. Some dreadful trouble
must have come upon him 10 make him
show his sorrow IN that way without
disguise. The strangers stared sympa-
/ thetically. After awhile the proprietor
OF the store went up to him and said:
Well. neighbor, you seem to be In
trouble; can we help you any?n
The man did not look up; he shook
his head and said: 4rff
80 No, no, no! It's very kind Of you,
but nobody can help me. suppose
you think I'm an old fool; but she was
all the family l had, and she's dead \"
and great tear splashed down upon
the floor.
"She's dead Yon can't do me any
good now; but II you'd come around TO
my little shanty there about 8 o'clock
last night you might have done some
good-I dunno. When man Is de-
termined TO make brute Of himself
he'll do it, perhaps; but II there'd been
some one there TO say sDodd, what on
airth are you aboutp' why, mebbe-I
dunno, tho'-I was mad. When a
mans mad and has had glass too
much, what's the use of talking to himP
It's fixed things for me. Anyway
Lord, forgive me !--she's dead"
The tears splashed down again,
but the people looked at him with
faces that had lost little Of their SYM
pathy.
You didn't-didn't do any thing to
bring it on-whatever il WASP" said an
old lady with large basket on her arm.
4" shouldn't have thought II Of you
!" Yes, did did, sobbed the man.
"If II hadn't been for me il never would
have happened. loved her too. Yes,
did love her Nobody could say she'd
ever had hard word from me before
in all the days we'd live togther; but
last night Id had glass too much, and
stopped at the butchers down in the
village and bought bit Of steak-a man
wants a change from pork once in a way
land she was fond Of steak, she was;
and /, Jest fetched il in and said 10 her,
Wen have supper tonight. ehP' and
she sort Of nodded and winked at me
jest rs jolly, and then went out 70 the
well to draw water, and as body does
sometimes when any body Is in a hurry,
I lost the bucket off, and was aterrible
time finding il, and when l went in
well, you see, went in with an appetite
and there she sat, and-well, amt
dainty, but couldn't have touched that
steak to save me; and got mad Well,
l got madder than l ever was before,
and | just around and gave her
kick. Yes, did. II was to be hung
for it tomorrow, I'D have to own up. !
kicked her"
" You brutei- said the woman with
the basket; .skicked her because your
steak didn't suit you! Well may you
cry
" Yes 'm,'' said the man. "You can't
speak harder to me than / feel to my
self. / kicked her in the side, and what
Is more, opened the door and kicked
her out of ii, and then jest sat down
alongside my fire and talked the worst
kind to myself did, indeed--Lord,
forgive mei and | said I'D never, let
her in again. Yes'm, You can look as
you like at me; deserve Is; and then
went 70 bed
"Went to bed and left her out in the
colds- said the old lady. :. Never see
ing whether she was dead or not?'
Yes, did said the poor man, sob
bing hard, "and more than that, went
to sleep--I slept sound, too; and what
do you suppose walked me? Why, her
voice--I knew il from thousand. II
was the awfullest shrek, and then an
other, and then another, and 1t came all
over me what I'D done. I'D turned her
that had slept alongside Of me winter
nights more years than could remcm-
ber out into the cold night. I'D kicked
her out. Oh, was sober then, | tell
you. ! Sw what a brcle was TO do a
thing like that, all for bit Of paltry
steak, and got up and went to the door
and called, but she didn't come. call
ed again, and then heard her scream.
but fainter and farther off; and then
felt kind Of horror coming over me,
and dressed myself and took my Ian
tern and went out. walked this way
and that. looked and called /
swung the lantern low and | held il
high. There wasn't sign of her; and
at last ! got down 10 Boilers pond,
there by the edge Of the woods, you
know, and heard kind Of growing;
and past me, all in hurry, as they 20
when they've been doing mischief, few
those dogs Of Bolter's-icrce devils!
but they knew enough to be afraid Of me
then"
"And when | saw them my heart
stood still, and swung the lantern low
again, and saw her She lay in blood,
and the mark Of the dogs teeth were on
her neck; and jest took her up in my
arms and carried her along the road
home and brought her 70 the fire, and
there / cried over her and called her all
the pet names used TO call her when
first had her little young thing; but y