The Republican journal., 1881-10-13
On the Edge of the World.
BY SOPHIE SWEET.


We had gone up into the wilds of north
ern Maine, equipped with snow w-shoes and
rifles, in search of winter sport. Ned Hal
liday, my comrade, had slight preteNt
for the trip in the shape of business, his
father owning large amount of land in
the Aroostook, which needed looking af-
ter. My excuse for what seemed to strike
my friends as an eccentric pleasure trip
to be taken in the dead of winter was
that my health had become impaired by
the tolls and trials of my profession
which consisted principally of industrious
waiting for clients who never came.
Our journey had not been free from
those obstacles which are supposed to
give a zest to any pursuit. We were
showed up on the railroad until food
and fuel were exhausted; the stage,
which appeared where the railroad ended,
relieved the monotony of the proceedings
several times by standing on its head in
a snow drift; the driver, who was totally
insensble to the claims of the Maine law,
ended by initiating this acrobatic feat,
and Ned and | reluctantly dug him out.
But when the horses were fired into noble
rage to distinguish themselves III the
same way, we concluded to abandon the
whole eccentric establishment to its own
devices, and struck across the country on
our snow shoes. Just as we were becom-
ing thoroughly tired, we overlook an on
team, and on this primitive conveyance,
drawn by two beasts in whom the phleg-
matte temperament of their kind was alb
normally developed, we rode ten miles
with the thermometer at twenty degrees
below zero. Our driver was a large,
loose -jointed youth, with an astonishing
ly prominent Adams apple, and a bony
grin. He was loquacious but non COM
initial, after the fashion Of the rural New
Englander. The first time that he COM
mitted himself to decided opinion was
when he declared that "them critters
hay'n't a two-forty gait" and that "rid-
ing on an oX-team isn't goln' licketty-
split, the best way you can fix it, Which
statements could not be said to afford Op-
portunity for argument.
Continued inquiries respecting the game
in the woods only elected the information
that it ''wa'n't so skurse as it was some
winters, but skurser than it was some
Others"
lie reluctantly admitted that his Chris
tian name was Leander, but seemed to
be possessed of a stern determination
never to be so fool hardy as to reveal his
surname. He asked us two hundred and
seventy nine questions (Ned counted
them,) in a peculiarly indirect manner,
they being invariably prefaced by the an
nouncement that he didn't "calkilatc''
that it was SO.
Having exhausted the subjects Of our
aims and destination, occupations and
family history, style and cost of our
clothing, political, religious and temper
ance opinions, price Of wool and proyis-
ions tour way" probable future progress
Of the potato bug, and the reconstruction
policy, he remarked that he didn't seal
kilate' that we 'set no great by hunk
of raw salt pork"
We assured him that his calculation
was quite correct, and waited for an eX-
planation without manifesting any undue
curiosity.
After pensive silence Of some minutes
he explained that it was the staple article
Of diet in the logging camps, and it would
therefore be prudent for us to provide
ourselves with crackers and 'canned
stuff before venturing out to the camp.
He was kind enough to further explain
that these luXurles might be obtained in
his fathers store at Jonesville.
1t was joyful news when Leander zeal
kilated" that at the top of the next hill
Jonesville would "heava in sight a
cheerful sight to see the lights from its
windows twinkling through the gathering
darkness.
1t was not a thickly settled village.
''Scatterin', the adjective which Leandel
applied to it, was appropriate. 1t seemed
to be clinging to the forest primeval, and
was sheltered by it from the north wind
under the shadow of the mighty pines,
and half buried in now-drfts, the houses
looked as if they must beinhabited by
pigmies. The school house-which Lean
der facetiously called the "education
shop'-with one tall hemlock standing
directly in front of it, looked as if it had
come out Of a toy village. The graveyard,
on the slope of steep hill upon which
the last, cold, pale yellow sunset rays
cast weird light, gave us an uneasy i'm
preston that the sleepers were lying in
very uncomfortable positions. With an
abundance Of level or gently sloping land
Oh all sides, we wondered why the dead
had been given this apparently uneasy
resting place.
Ieander seemed to derive q sense OF
security from being within the precincts
Of his own village, and expressed himself
with much greater freedom. | am con
ho b,l i,,fo
ed by our arrival at the "tarvern," he
would have revealed to us the state of his
own sympathies on the "buryin' ground
and anti buryin' ground" question.
The "tarvern" was small farm house
with q large barn overshadowing it, and
tall pine tree standing sentinel at its
front gate. There was no sign signifyine
that it afforded entertainment for travel
lers, but, relying upon Leander's assur-
ance that .'Uncle 'Bijah Jones" would
"eat us and sleep u.s." we walked boldly
up to the door. An old man. his head
haloed by tobacco smoke, opened the
door. His manner was very much like
Leander's on short acquaintance-inq
tive but wary.
Burns sage counsel seemed to be the
policy of JOnesville:
Conceal yoursel as weel's ye can
Frae critical dissection
But look thro' every other man.
WI sharpepd slee inspection
Our inquiry whether this house was 3
tavern, seemed to plunge HIM into pro
found perplexity. He took his pipe out
of his mouth and knocked it meditatively
against the door before he replied:
"Well, folks, kind O calkilate that It is
We do put 'em up some, to obleege 'em.'
We signitied that he would "obleege'
us extremely by quitting us up
"Mebbe you'd better step in and talk
to Mis- Jones. Mis- Jones, she don't like
to hev folks come unbeknownst."
"But can't we see Mr.. Jones, the pro
prietor ?" asked Ned impatiently. Stand
ing in the teeth Of the north wind, will
the marrow freezing IN ones bones, the
very indecisive Jonesville manner is try
ing to the patience.
"I'm Mr.. Jones, but Mis- Jones She
she-she's terrible smart" Mr.. Jones