River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1879-08-21
THE ~UNFORTINITs.

ton train has gone. It's the new range
ment made To accommodate the TUNE
line ut Greenville, and there's been some
BODY left over here every day since /
took effect it amt goin' ter do, he wen
on in voice of chagrin, as If he wa
personally responsible for the company
miscalculations.
"Now you've got tour mortal hours te
wait and it a terrible dull place for
stranger Ter wait in. This ere hayin
passengers left over ut South Nerony il
new business--but." with little start o
recollection and in a deprecatory tone
There's swamp honey-suckies out here
Just lcettle way, lots on EN-. Ladie.
come up here from the city ON purpose tel
pick 'cm--but perhaps gou don't car,
nothin' about EN-, ehl"
80 thank You for speaking of item,
said, 'they are my especial delight Dc
you think you can direct me so that | car
lind Ohere they grew
"ill send that leettle unfortlnit along
with YOU; she'll be glad ter go. Where
is the child2 She's ginerally som en-
round in sight er hearin. Hlllow there
unlortinil" he shouted in voice which
was laughable imitation Of low piched
locomotive whistle
Directly il response 10 the call, vel
low, busly mead, folloAod by plump
square Htrlt body, appeared from half
open doorway Of neighbonng shanty
and, in a moment, nondescript, wee
creature stood beside IL, nodding hen
round head shrewd'y in eager cCntrma-
ton Of the directions the G cd natured
station agent gave me.
'What is your name.n | asked locking
down into the square little girls face and
shy blue eyes, as we went out Of the sta
ton together along the edge of the shad-
Ell banK.
Och. sure an don't you know be
Brislin's girl.' she answered IN dialect
which was curious mixture of IRISH and
Yankee. II be the wun what was left
when Brislin's house was burnt up--lasl
year 'tNas now-an' all the Brislins,
'cept me, was burnt up in it. crawled
out the windy; don't We know: II tole
all about it in the papers. ] haint any
home since that day; but they all be
good to me in the shanty village, an |
get enough to eat mostly. | stays any
here where there bees chllder to look
after | was used to that; but our chill
dren - there was a load of EN- - was
b;Jnt in the fire, an Uncle Sammy :
wife took 10 calm me tile untortinit, an
now that bees what I'm called mostly,
though some OF them says, kinder soft
like: 1T be Brislin girl Uncle sam
my, it was he that sint me with ye-l Is
wife and all of EN- calls him Uncle sam
my-he says its dretfel strange how so
many o the unfortinit sort happens round
here. There be tree o them up here IN
the Willers. or four countin' the baby.
pointing with the short forefnger of Ell
brown, fat, grimy hand, Ugh" as the
long, 1.-THE, swayin@ branches of the tail
,illow tree near by whipped about in the
fEeshening breeze, turning the white un-
dersides of their tender leaves to the
light: Ugh. do you believe that to be a
ghost2
"Whv should 1t be-" I asked, shlver-
Ing in spite of myself ut such sepulchral
tone coming from the dcminutive body
of my guide.
why. bekase there b. graves III the
little ward that The little willows fence in
I L
Sammy knows all about it, He'll tell "
the tree stories If We ask him. and they be
curis stories | mesef reminder when
the ole man lay in the freight house yon-
der, dead as a hammer. lake, the look
over, said he was, and Freeman's wife
said the ghosts o the young man an
the Young y oman an the baby watched
wid the body al night. went wild BriS
lin. that was my father and looked in a
windy, but we couldn't see nOthin'. But
Freemans wife, she lives nigh the freight
ouse, she seed them there. an she sees
them now every little while, an they'v
seen in her very bed room, but not lately
She has ghost-seein' ewes, Uncle Sammy
says. The very reddest o the sweet pinks
grows Just beyond the Nillcrs over there
but we childer be afeared to stay there
an pick EN-. | will he after goin' with
qo", though if We don't lmnd my takin
hold o your dress
reac ed down and clasped the little
fat fingers, feeling well pad for the slight
act of protection by the eloquent look oI
surprise midgled with gratitude cast NJ
in my face from the sky-blue eyes.
I'VE chi der, 10 keep EN- quiet, pat
little punches of overs on the grave
most every day III the warm weather
We runs an throws en- over an wheels
an runs back wild our eyes shut for tcal
we shall see suthin' .-u4h!H as another
gust Of wind sewpt the long slender
branches OF the willows, disclosing Their
shimmering glcams Of white, "do You set
EN-, ladyl If they Be ghosts, an they
NAY be, they be lovely ones.
After our hands were filed with tn,
wonderful wild, sweet azalea blossoms,
went up and looked through the hedges
at the three lonely, grass grown graves
over which were scattered nosegays o
Wild flowers in various stages Of decay
offered by the simple children Of tht
''shanty village" for the quie,ng Of thu
supposed restless spirits.
Il guess, as long AS | he here now. III
t'row over few, said the little girl. -
shouldn't want EN- 10 feel sighted, fo
thew be strangers in strange land--no
as | know ghosts would feel sighted,
she added, naively a. She walked away
"but it seems to me | should il were IL
their places. an had as icw ferns Is thel
has-which you cant count many. don
you see-only Uncle ammy as plantet
the willows an knows the stories about
en-, an ehilder a. carries EN- flower
COS they's afearcd o EN-. an me as ike
wise shivers whor the willows blow white
but feels frenzy, kein likewise an nfor
tunatc."
/ questioned Uncle sammy" after IN,
return as | sat upon the shady side Of th
station platform arranging my flowers
[ and he told me the three ''curis" stories
while the square little girl stood uea
with an eager attitude. nodding her roun,
| yellow head emphatioaily now and then
! as some OF her statements TO me wer
/ confirmed.
/ Nv, /, the one that sleeps in the green
! est grave. said Uncle sammy, as he care
/ fully fashioned a spinning top OUT OF
bit of white pine board with tn e
blade OF his jack knife, was man
/ TWENTY-FIVE, / should iedge, ia. va
| killed by John Wilbur's freight o' bii
I ter. stormy day. a matter Of even q
eight wears ago, or -. The poor plfoi
tunit was walking on the tracS, som
/ three mile above here, with bis "a
| do an. his cap pulled over his Iace whe
/ thew come upon him in roundln & curY,