St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1880-11-12
Gentleman Jim.
BY MRS. JULIA c. r. DORR.

That's what we called him, Sir-Gen-
tleman Jim.
1t was in the winter of '73. Ever
been through the Lakes, Sir? Up the
500, and then on through Lake Superb
or as far as Marquette9 Well, that's
where we were that year, twenty or
thirty of US, gettin' out lumber for the
Eagle Mills.
Oh, no Not in Marquette. Marquette
was a city, with mayor and board of
aldermen, graded schools and water
works, even then. Not many pine-trees
CROWN in her streets, if she was young
The Eagle Mills were nine miles out
up the railroad. Not much of a set
Element. Just the Mills and the COM
pany's office and a great barn of a
boardin' house, and half dozen shan
ties, and one snug little house not much
bigger than a birds nest, where Mr..
Sterle-he was our young bosa, Sir
had brought his wife the year before.
A queer place for bride? Well, it
was. Lonesome That's no word for it.
The piney woods had crowded close up
round the Mills once; but the best of
the trees had been cut down, and
the woods on one side had been burned
over time and again. So now, as far as
you could see toward the south, there
were blackened stumps and charred
logs, and here and there tall, bare trees
standing out against the sky, like black
ghosts, as it were.
Further on was what l once
heard high-fyer of a lecturer call the
forest primeval." You might have
gone on for days and days, till you
came out at Mackinaw, and never seen
white mans face nor the smoke of his
campfire. Before and behind stretch
ed the narrow track that ran from Mar
quette to the iron mines, and the cars
went laundering by many times a day.
But there were no roads to speak of, no
neighbors and beyond the Mills were
the woods where we were at work fell
ing the trees and doing our level best
to spoil that side, as we had t'other.
For the woods are all right as long as
you let 'em alone. 1t is only when men
begin to meddle with 'em that they
grow strange and awesome like, with
shadows comm and goin'.
But, as l was a-sayin', it was a
strange place for a bride to come to.
We men wondered bit as to how she
would take to the new life when we
saw her step off the cars on to the little
platform and look round over the wild
place, with eyes that were as dark and
soft as a young fawn's. She WANT
over twenty-a slight young thing, with
brown hair all waves and crinkles and
little wind-blown curls, and lips as red
as Strawberries. That was all we saw
that day for she put her hand right
into her husbands, and he led her into
the little house and shut the door be-
hind 'em.
But, bless you, Sir, if there's love in
side the house, it don't seem to make
much. difference to a true wife what's
outside of it; and, as for her, she didn't
seem to be bit more lonesome than
that sparrow does on the bough yonder.
Ever read the "Arabian Nights" Sir ?
L thought so. Most folks has. Well,
you'd have thought of 'em if you could
have just stepped out of the woods into
that little house after she'd been there
awhile. Flowers a-blosssomin' in the
windows and vines a-wanderip, every
where, and books and picturs, and n
pianer, and all her useless little tripk-
cts, such as women folks set store by.
1t was just as pretty as pictuI'.
L don't know a great deal about wo-
men, not bein' a married man myself
and havin' lived in the woods mostly ;
but she seemed just as contented as the
ladies I've seen in the cities this win
ter. Anyhow, it frightened up the
place for every man of us just to catch
glimpses of her now and then, with a
flower in her hair; or sometimes of ii
summer evening, to hear her singing
like lark, or leastwise like brown
thrasher. l don't know much about
larks, either, not bein' used to 'em. And
OF Sunday she used to sing hymns. 1t
was as good as goin' to meetin', every
whit.
You think she might have been afraid
sometimes Why, what was there to be
afraid of? There WANT a man about
the place who wouldn't ha' laid down
his life for her, Still, don't say but
what some women would ha' been
afraid for there were half-b breeds
'reund, and it was rough up there, no
mistake. But, if she was, she didn't
show it.
A good deal of snow up there' l guess
sol You never saw snow. You don't
know what it means.
You've seen it three feet on a level
Three feet! Humphi What would you
think of seein' the cars come in day af-
ter day for weeks together, between
two walls of snow as straight and solid
as blocks of marble, aud so high you
could only see the top of the smoke