The Hillsborough recorder., 1878-09-18
JOHN BRAY AND HIS kid"

| Ttlt VIII e Utte lii " Wttk u tnufltuIti
Autlur Ctggshall. as he Looked up f,om
his writing; "sl,e and my little Lily-Gnl
keep them I'LL they. arriye--safe. l imIe,
aud happy r. r.
The news spread through the camp.
'Pannn's wife and Kid are coming. sai,i
nne rough fellow to ann,llrr, running his
fingers ihmnell his heavy rod beard.
There's u0ia wnniaE oI a bahy rnnn,i
within 4 hundred miles. We of the Roar.
ing Riser'll i,e allie 10 brag-but l Wish
i'twassoile other chap than the parSoil' 2
The minor who spoke had the reputa-
tion of bring the ~orst man II, camp. M
well ss the sn,aricsl. He was powerful
fellow. over six feet tall. promrtionateIy
brad shouldered, and exceptionally y
though ru,ieiy handsome. He lost no ol'-
portuiiity io counteract whatever Of good
iniiu-ne~ the ''iarson' was exrriing.
The i.srson. Auihur Coggshali. was u
slender. pale, gifted man. John Bray, in
his rude health aud contempt for 'b,ok-
keeping.' of csurse ln,kel dawn upon
him lie never swnreS - hard as when the
minister was In hearing, and even ile
simple sj~ecll lac mad. about the PARSONS
wife and kid wa- full uf blaspiirniy. a..
The minister s;.i NJ The dmr of his
miners hut, aud lmke,l along the grand
brea,ith and height oi The wonderful n,"tiil-
tains, blazing how IN countiess cthors uIi.
der the midday sun. *s **@
Carrie will see this Carrie will admire
that, he said, sofily t0 himself, aud then
dared not think o:it. E,r fear some uniore-
seen irni,ble or accident should mar his too
great llappiness'
What dreams were his! The whole
camp of three hundred must. II IHnss.ble,
lie led To become llonest, Go.l-frariBg men
Lang befoie iI,is, he l,a,i Thought IL would
le done hut for John Bray. They had
even coll-ctrsl the iinitrr for church,
hut Bray ia.l ridiculesi the wlinle under
taking, aud the result was the men we've
ashamed Ia continue u. g..
Every day. now, the miners expected
the new lor they llad heard were coming
to tire ,uines, aud the emigrants were sup
posed 10 le within days journey. A
few ofthe tetter sort fook horses to yo aud
meet them THE minister went with
them. In less than two hours ihe miners
returned bearing the dead body of the
tarson, whose horse lad taken fright some
few miles from IN. camn aud thrown him.
His head had struck rick, and the good
man died without n yrtan. z2 -~e
'Paraon's dead. eh - snid Bray, with an
oath. aud rrnning his great brown fingers
through his busI,y red hair. 'what'sto
beconle of his woman aud kid? @
'Sm know ~ we'll as do was the
answer. For my part. I'D rather he aver
Ia tile bend when the critters do cnme
than To meet the parsons wiieand tell her
what's happvnW,l.' aa ~@@4 @>s 6aE
so tarsnn'siead y muttered Bray again,
Struggling his broai shoulders. and casting
q side-glance at tile hui where the clay
form. rested-'Iarnn's-dead. Well, !
dunno ~ liked him; but ] recen he
never did me bo harm. aud now hes
stepped out, some way feel had he's
gone ~@% ~ =@e 80 #a 5.E=
Toward night. tile purity came in. The
miners hesiiaied TO break the news io the
eager. pretty looking. paie.faced woman,
wi,o had braved the long journey. in de-
licair health, 10 meet her missionary hus.
band. Sire lonked about for him. The
child a very cherib for beauty, of six
years--pulled nj her gown, aud cried,
Where's papa? want ta kris him.
u was terrible hour. Every body
shrank from hul Jol.n Bray. .sa@eF
'wo,'t you 20 bring my papa p aske,l
the child, leaving her neither aud lifiing
her sweet blue eyes to Ills face. The alan
shook his big l,es,d, aud even his mouth
trpmbie,i. # s~s f>~e*
'Ican't do that, my little kId.' hr said,
without an oath. Your pa las given iII
Iiis checks, little un. He would ride ugly
Bees, aud the beast threw him, and
Acry that seemed To- ecl,o as from
hundred breakiag hearts pierced tile
sweet summer air. and :l,e l,arson's wife
had fallen "a tile ground. Johu lifIe,l her
in his strong arms mud carrie,i her straight
Into tile hut, though the others protested
against IL. %~@~
shell want tu lie near him. know
that he said; aud he wins right. @
All that night one could hear tile law,
agopized mmns III THAT di,nly lighted
miners hut, aud some ~ tile rough, ryn,-
pathizing men remained sitting about out
side. Tie moon lnked In upon tie tear.
less gile. Of the one nourner, the beauti.
fully sculpturpd features u the dead man.
aud The lovely sleeping face Of the little
child, SO curio,isly like that other in It's
long repose'
John Bray walked round the hut the
whole night. He svemr,i 10 have con.
siituied himself the sole protector. ifnot
nournef. ifns thing Was 10 be said. he
said Nj n ary tlfiLE was 70 be done, Il was
dunr by him.
Through the following day At the
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