Fayette County herald. [volume] (Washington [Washington Court House], Fayette County, O. [Ohio]) 1860-1???, 1879-12-11
ARomanoe Of the FrnntIar.

in crowd without second glance
and a wealth of coal-black hair, neatly
arranged, except a single heavy loci
that by its own weight had escaped
from its fastenings. She seemed hal
frightened at her position, and her darl
cheeks and forehead flushed to the root
of her hair as she stepped into the LITTLE
room where the Squire sat dispensing
justice. She seemed not over sixteen
and modesty was apparent in her very
attitude, as she stood with folded hands
awaiting the commencement of further
proceedings.
Her companion was a grizzled, awk
ward, looking man, apparently fifty
years of age, with an ugly scar stretch.
ing from the inner point of his left eye
across his cheek to nearly the point oi
his chin, describing an arc, which had
left wide track bare of an otherwise
luxuriant growth of gray whiskers.
Hair matted and growing low down on
his forehead, together with the distor4
tion of his eye, occasioned by the scar,
gave his cOuntenance sinister leer,
POoIlNOlJ L0pulS4V0'
The ill-assorted pair stood for mo-
ment while His Honor disposed of some
papers before him, the man fumbling a
worn-out felt hat, while the girl nerv-
ously twisted her fingers. AS the JUS
ticeturned toward them expectantly, the
man stepped to the desk, and, leaning
toward His Honor, said in confident
ial, husky whisper:
Esquire, you marry people, I sup
poseP" The official nodded,
Well, l reckon l can give you a lit
tie job this morning "
"Who are the partiesP'
"This little gal here an me-"
His Honor pushed back his chair, put
on his spectacles, and deliberately sur
veyed the man from head to foot. His
inspection finished, he turned to the
girl, whose bushes, under his earnest,
inquiring gaze, chased each other over
neck, cheeks and forehead, until she
was one glow of burning color.
"See here, myman," said the Squire.
4" come into my private room for a mo-
ment. Take seat, miss"
Leading the way to the inner room,
His Honor closed the door and turned
fercely upon his companion. "Ain't
you ashamed of yourself, you old scoun-
drel, to come here expecting me to
marry you to a child like thatP''
"Now don't get hot, Squire. |
know l amt much to look at. I've been
told that since / was kid, and this
beauty spot, /" touching the scar, ''ain't
an improvement. An it's all along O.
this scar that this 'ere circumstance
has come about. This was the way of
it: You see, what with being so ugly
and awkward, and all of that, l amt
been the best man in the world. [
never harmed anybody, but / generally
kept pretty full, and if 1 got ahead any,
why, it all went in a few days for Ii
quor; and so l travelled round, and was
never anything but Vagabond. Well, |
last spring struck the camp, an saw
men making money, an after a big
drunk found myself without a cent.
This amt no place for a man when he's
lead broke, an | tumbled to myself an
chopped short. | worked month in
he Little Pittsburg, an never got
Trunk once, an then l took my money |
Ind laid in two months grub stake,
IN went up South Evans an took up
,laim. There s where / first met Kitty,
)ut there. Her father had the next
,laim to mine, an she kept house for
lim, an we got kinder neighbOrly like.
When / got broke l was down forty
eet, an the hole looked good. I work
ID for the Little Chief month then,
md then / went at it again. All that
ime | didn't drink drop. The second
lay after l went back to the hole Kit
US father sickened, and in three days
Ie was dead. Me an two or three
'thers did all we could for the girl, but
here wasn't many Of US up there then,
n we was all poor, an she had no
money to get away with, so / just
moved my grub over to her cabin, an
told her that if she'd do my cookin',
n / struck it, I'd share even with
er. She couldn't do anything else,
oor thing, an so l went on work.
lg, an in a month / got it. Of ]
curse felt good, an if Tdbeen broke ]
would have been all right. But I !
ad a couple of dollars, an l came to I
Dwn, an when the money was all gone t
was too drunk to 60 to that little gal; &
n because l knew she'd. come over to {
" cabin to call me to supper, l
fought I'd go down the shaft an
eep it Off But drunken men can't
slculate, you know, an after I'd let {
e rope down an fastened it l went to q
ide down the rope an touched the a
lcket, which was on the edge of the i,
lie, and it came down on my face an v
it this scar. don't know how got F
,wn the rope, but know that when +
got down couldn't get up, an I laid d
ere without knowin' nothing, an n
hen Icame to it was mornin', an @
ere was that little girls face lookin' t.
'wn the shaft. l thought it was an is
gel, an kinder swOoned off again, h
, the next thing knew some one was ST
IN the rope around under my arms, b,
blessed if it wasn't. that little gal. b.
hen she got through she just Skinned h
the rope and histed me up herself. III
lon't know how she did It, but she o,
t me out an nussed me, an Pm well. ii
sold my hole yesterday, an got is
Ough to keep us both comfortat le, ay
I've got used to her, an don't tknow m
" to get along without her, an so