The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1878-01-09
a Life for a Life,


Befirode Dodge was blne. n syas
August weather. -there was uo Air stir.
ring from ono arid noon until the next
and tile insc ts hiased malicionslf all sIay
long ia tie rarehed grasses. Perhaps
that was the nason that Bcrtrode was
blue.
Perhaps 1t was that as she walked
Growers Tract, day by day. and saw the
summers hinted comnl6tion in the rad
apples burning among the rrav-nrner
boughs, the hay-Iields at sfterrnnrth the
purple tasselled corn. ana vellow wReat
thas she felt hee life to be ainaless. She
had let the snmmer cone and wane
acsosa herpnssive existence. phe nre-
vious winter she had said. q L feel ice.
bound now. When summer comes. I
will shake OF this inortion aud redeem
tc- lay.
Yet the summer was rapidly paesinr
and she was still ardreafn. The bonr
never seemed to come which called her
% exertion. Well. - loves vonno
dream = comes but on1s it was All Welt
PERHAPS
Growers Tract aud her farmhouse life
was not dull a. she had expected n
would be when she returned from her
mountain tour year before only "A
times the outdoor sounds and the
leisurely growing works Of nature an
pressed her. III tie winter She ka.I M
been gay, looking at the sunset across |
the snow, Watching tbs chick .a-daes. and |
searching the woods Tor purple merer.
ion. In the spr;ne the long walks Eo H,e |
pest Office had been full Of joyful fapoies |
and golden realities she loved the /
sweet country sights and scents more f
than ever before in her life.
buisin August something seemed to
oppfess her. The sky burned too blue.
the woods were to calmly content in
their greenness, the davs closed too
beautifully il their ripe splendor as sba
walked tue Iract at sunset. coming
from the post-offloe-comino alw5vas
empty handed. Yes, something was
wrong and when she realized r. fnilv
she said
am idle--I am stepped in idleness.
1 have been doing nothing for wear.
nov viii have some work, and Dick
may 80 TO the post-ofliee. / care too
much Tor those letters.
Whatever those letters might be. there I
came no more Of them. A certain gay
tourist drifting about the world, forgot
e write them at last; perhaps Bertrode
was pretty but one travelling everywhere
laeeia Rany pretty faces.
beflrode's cheek grew thin and white.
Her mother saw that she struggled TO re- Z
press growing iFritableness. But she
worked on increasingly at her new EN-. {
plogment OF teaching the district school
of Growers Tract She devoted herself
% the children. Their parents said they
had never before learned SO fast Ber- q
rode smiled only family at their praise.
One day, coming home from school
through the woods, she flung herself .
down among the ferns and dry grasses.
1t IS dust and ashes ' she cried. s
Ihe sky cleaned blue through green =
coughs overhead, and a bird sang cheer 6
~ IN neighboring bush. She Law 8
mere until she felt the dew falling. As b
NE rose up, something rustied at her {
nde She looked down a great rattle n
make was clipping through the grass.
,oing nom her, apparently unaware of d
ler presence. Fascinated, imm0vable. b
,et fuh Of horror, she stood and watched
ne creature. For a moment it glided Il
teadily ON, its course so direct, it's ap-
'earance 50 subtle and deadly, that she
eit spellbound as she regarded It. u
'uodenly, With q thrill Of horror, she 4
aW the reptiles aim It was making
llfecti{ Tor a SHADY spot, where q man 81
~ asleep beneath the trees. One ],
moment more would be too late to pre- +.
"'' lNf thfcaiened aiiofA SfmiinQ 4