The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1879-04-09
JOsEPH's ADVENTURE.

Eat and my wife. And, though he had
hotA absent 50 long he was, so to speak,
young man yet. -,
Adventures Well, ! have met with
plentM Rough ones, sSme of them.
Please tell us of one" chimed in
.foseph laughed. "I can tell you of
seer one that l met with in the noun
ains." -,
Oh. YES, do! Which mountains?n
IN California; up in one ofrits wild
6lstricts.n
s'That will be the very thing
"Well,n said Joseph, running his
tanerinp fingers through his hair and
smiling at my wife. "rll soften down
things in the telling as well MS my blunt
speech and uncivilizcd modes of thoug Int
will admit of, and you must excuse the
rest"
"Oh, Ill'excuse anything Please be-
GIN
"When | started from home to settle
in unfrequented districts" began Joseph,
al act up n theory that no man should
ask woman to marry him until he has
prepared Il home for her. 1t is surpris-
Ing how much you begin to thin OF Il
wife w est yonder; which arises, sup
nose. from the extreme loneliness of ones
existence. | was no exception. Ihe
Land | took up was in the Rogue river
valley. and after | had got it IL bit ship
shane worked away with only one OBJ
iect in view--to bring home wife.
"But, Joseph, had you selected II
wife?n ] asked.
mo. | intended to do that as soon as
| could, though you may say l was
rather young to be thinking OF IL
worked on, and was pretty successful. /
built me house, got a considerable
stock of cattle, made flower garden for
my wife, and even put up the pegs and
nails she would want to hang her dresses
on, | intended that same autumn to
mount my horse, ride through the W all
amet valley, find my wife and bring her
home
At the notion of counting in that Off
hand style we laughed little. Joseph
laughed too, as if the recollection pleased
lin.
You think it strange ! see. II was
rot so very strange i'll those days out
there, where girls were as scarce as
angels. There was not girl within forty
miles of me; and as | assure you that the
very thought of one, as drove in those
nails for her garments to hang on, went
through me like thrill. You don't be-
lieve? Go West yourself and try 1t.
,"But do believe"
~ had about two hundred and fifty
head of cattle a good house with gar
den, young orchard, vegetables grow
ing, sweet-scentcd flowers-all in readi-
ness for the wife hoped to bring home
to bless me and to take care of these my
possessions. And what do you think
. happened to them ?"
We could not tell.
There came such plague of grass
hoppers upon the valley that everything
perished. Crops, orchard, howers, grass
every green and delightful and promis-
ing thing; the grasshoppers destroyed all.
You remember the second chapter OF
Joel?n
Inodded.
1.-THE land is as the garden of Eden
before them, and behind them desolate
wilde1aess, l. was ruined. My stock
died-at least the greater portion of it
the cattle had nothing to feed upon. Yes,
it was complete and absolute ruin"
Joseph paused moment, mentally
. looking at the past.
81 considered myself disappointed in
love too he resumed in the quaintest oi
tones. Though had not been out to
find my girl | knew she was somewhere
in that other valley waiting for me; and
when the greedy grasshoppers ate W
everything felt that | had been Tilted
1t actually gives me pang now to think
of those useless pegs on which my imagin'
alton had so often seen girls pink cot.
ton dress and white sun-bonnet.
Joseph gave great sigh. lie, was al
eccentric fellow.
81 became misanthropic-said TO my
self that between fate and the grasshop
pers / had been hardly used. Packins
up my books and a few other traps | bad'
adieu to the Rogue river valley for eve
and started for the mountains. 1t was
longish journey, as | had to drive befor,
me the stock which was left me. Their
in the mountains | settled down again
built myself fort and played hermit
No jilting girls should come near m
now
"A fort?"
=" A regular fort; stockade eighteel
feet high, with an embankment foHr fee
high around it and a strong gate in tn
middle. My tent was in the midstof til
inclosure, with my books and househol'
goods, firearms and all the rest of m
property slowed away in it"
"Were you afraid of IndiansP"
" Indians and white men. Yes, ! say
good many Indians, at first, within tn
range of my rifle They learned to kee
away from my fort, finding it did not pa
to attempt an invasion. Down in tn
valley below there were mining camps
and you perhaps know what some of tn
hangers-on of such camps are. ! sol
beef, that is, heads Of cattle, to tn
miners; and as l had sometimes It'd
sum of money by me, it was necessary. {
be careful"
"What a strange life for a youngmad?
said Mary. For you, Joseph"
'I herded my cattle, drove them I
market, cooked, studied, wrote and in
dulged in a mixture of misanthropy an
rifle practice. By the time had entere
on the second summer in the mountain
/ felt quite at home and was getting ricl
After all, the life had its charms.
man cannot quite tire of it when he
but few years out of his teens
And the girl-wife
Il am coming to her. Having hs