Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1880-10-28

carriage, the cnlluren were not Hdi rs
happy as they expected. 1t was a long
walk home. for they lived at the very
other end of the village, and by the
time they had reached the little cottage
baby was awake and beginning to feel
hungry, giving impatient little cries,
and looking piteously into the strange
brown eyes that locked out of the
white sunbonnets. instead of the bright
blue ones she longed to see. To crown
their perpleXities mamma was out
when they arrived home, and when
they lifted baby out of her carriage she
cried aloud from fright and hunger.
.Oh, dear! If mother d only come"
sighed Ella, while Anna began to wish
she had not been so very sure the baby
was a founding her clothes did not
look as if she were neglected!
In the midst of baby loudest screams
Mrs. Reed came home, and heard with
CONSERVATION of what her little girls
had done. The first thing was to make
the poor little stranger comfortable,
and that took time. By-and-by, after
she had swallowed n cup OF arrow-root,
baby sat up and cooed and laughed. In
spite of her anxiety on the mothers ac-
count, Mrs. Reed and the little girls
enjoyed a few moments of the sweet
baby talk, but soon the mother, re-
Numbering what agony that other
mother must be suffering. said:
"NOw, Anna, you and Ella must 90
straight to the house you took the baby
from, and tell them where she is. l
will keep her quiet till you come back.
Make haste now, for the mother must
be nearly dead with fright. Are you
sure you know the house?"
.Oh yes, mother! 1t was a gray
house with brown blinds and n low
stoop- only two steps up-and the folks
had been moving, for there was big
boX"-
"Well, well! Only hurry off. Co as
fast as you can"
OFF went the children. Ella half cry
ing at leaving the baby, but Anna too
well aware of the mischief she had done
to care for anything half so much as to
find the poor mother. ''This is the
quickest way" she said. and hurried
on. Her very anxiety confused her,
and after long walk she could find no
such house as she had described to her
mother. At almost every corner one
or the other would think they saw q
gray house or a big box on the side
walk, so they turned and twisted till
they were fairly bewildered, and ut
last, after walking for nearly two hours.
they reached home. and with sobS and
cries told their mother they could not
find the right house.
The baby was asleep again, and Mrs.
Reed, without waiting 10 give the chill
dren their supper or eat herself, started
out. She inquired of several people if
they had heard of lost baby. but they
were ut the very further end of the
town, and the news had not reached
them.
1.-The paper comes out tomorrow
I'll advertise" thought the widow. and
then hurried to the office of the Dcmo-
crat and Eagle.
AS she entered gentleman was COM
ing out. "I'll pay DOUBLE" he was
saying, Ito have the posters all over
the village by nine O'clock. l prom
ised my wife, who is half crazy
"Oh, SIR" cried Mrs. Reed, lis it
her babyp"
"Yes, do you know anything?"
81 have it safe and sound"
''Thank God! Come home with me"
and seizing Mrs. Reeds hand, ME-.
Hall thrust her into a carriage, and or
dered the coachman to drive full speed
for home.
In another half hour Mrs. Hall was
standing between the two penitent little
girls, with her baby in her arms. Mr..
Hall and Mrs. Reed would have pun
ished Anna, but Mrs. Hall insisted that
she was as much to blame for leaving
her baby on the front stoop, and that it
was punishment enough for the poor
little girls to have their "fondlin' ;"
taken from them.
The happy father and mother lay
awake almost all night, too excited TO
sleep, and there in the darkness Mr..
Hall told his wife that he was going to
bring home a nurse for baby.
"Oh, John, if you'll only trust me
again! I'm nurse enough. don't like
great Irish girl-you can't trust
them"
.'Qh, 1 don't mean an Irish girl, my
DEAR" said John, with a queer smile
which in the darkness his wife could
not see.
CHAPTER III.
81 want dog l can trust-that has
been trained to watch thing, and not
let any one but its owner touch it,"
"Ere's your hanimal! A better crit
ter never was found. Watch that,
Dashr' said the dog fancier. throwing u
glove on the ground. "Now, sir, you
try to pick that up"
Mr.. Hall stopped. but a fierce. low
growl. evidently with plenty of bite be-
hind n waruob him off