Connecticut western news., 1881-05-25
LAME JERRY.
A STORY OF THE MooNsHINERs, BY SEER
 WOOD BONNER.

With her baby at her breast, Jane Oscar strolled through the woods one summer morning. There were memories in this young woman's life that some times violently agitated her heart, and at such times nothing pleased her more than to plunge unto wild depths of the forests, and forget in physical fatigue the pain it angered her to feel. As she stepped on, fleet of foot, with down. dropped eyes, and arms tight as steel around her child, she was startled by a weakly uttered curse, loosed apparent ly, like 8 poisonous odor, from the ground. Pressing on, flung among a heap of weeds, beside fallen tree, she saw coiled mishapen figure. An ugly contorted face lay with closed eyes in a piercing sun ray. It had probably been the sun ray that he had cursed.
 "Lame Jerry p
 "Jane lis that Jane Oscar ?"
 Yes. Whats the matter ?''
 "They'Ye done for me, I'm afeared, Jane."
 "Who ? what in pity's name."
 Them wildcat demons who helped t run Welch's still"
 "You told on 'em to Peters?" in a loud frightened whisper.
 "Yes. And they've killed me for it. D
 "Mebbe not, Jerry. I'll go for Dick an we'll do all we kin for you." ~.
 Then with woman's impulse she took off her cotton dress waist, and hung it on bush in way to shield Lame Jerry's eyes from the sun and hiding her neck and her bare breast with her hair and the soft baby form, she hurried home.
 It was wrong in the boys all wrong," said Dick Oscar, when Jane had told him how she had found Lame Jerry half dead in the woods. .,4
 'Yes, it was wrong," said Jane, hotly, Gan cruel, too, to treat a man so, just for bein' On the side O the law"
 "Yes; they ought to a killed hin outright, " said MT. Oscar, thoughtfully
 Dick, you don't mean it '"
 "Come, come, my girl, you've got soft spot in yo' heart fur sneaks on ac count O yo' sister; but you can't expec me to stomach 'em."
 No, no," said Jane, in dull, lo1 tone; "but you'll be kind to Jerry won't you ?"
 '" Lord, yes. Why not? But if h. gifts up agin I guess he'll wish we'd , left him whar we found him."
 "That ain't our lookout"
 They brought him to the cabin, an nursed him, rudely, but with ski enough to bring him through the feve that set in from his infamed wounds.
 In his raving he called continual for his daughter.
 " "Cordy ! Cordy! Cordy P repeate in tones that rang, or moaned, or prayed but no woman bent over him save brown eyed Jane Oscar, and faithfully sh tended him, while the baby 'rscreame from its cradle in fright at the strang rough voice.
 A conscious day came, and he calle to Jane, "Does Cordy know?"
 He looked so pitiful lying there, stunted humpbacked figure, his eyes bi in his gaunt face, his hair white-an ol man hated by the mountain peopl among whom he lived, shaken by name less fears for the one thing that he loved "I ain't been able to git word te Cordy," said Jane Oscar.
 Dye know how she's got on. a alone there, the poor child! She WE always one to be frightened at shadow and noises."
 Jane said nothing. . |" Why don't you speak, Jane Oscar
 " You're mighty weak, Jerry. don want you to have no setback" r "An' what could you tell me, woman : to give me 8 setback ?" Jane put her lips together, and takir s up her baby, gave it her breast. j. "Mights we'll tell him, Janey," sa !, Dick Oscar "it's got to come." Tell him yourself, then" 9 Lame Jerry's eyes glared at the tw the stolid beings who were hiding son |. awful secret from him, one smoking ,, cob pipe, the other sucking her chi r removed, remote from his terrible su !, fering as heaven from pe1dition. ' "Whar's my daughter ?" d "Well, old man," said Dick Osca 0 "she's gone with Discoe." }. "Are they married?" ], "Not as I's heerd tell" U 70 God God Godp' e "Come, Jerry, don't take it 50 hal a He'll treat her kind" s "Treat her kind hope he'll k l. her! Oh, my lost girl my little To q Cordy"
 is "I'm powerful sorry for you, Jerry
 said Jane, shifting her baby comfol
 ably from one arm to the other. l. "Keep yo' sorrow till it's asked for } "You know he may marry her," sa , Dick, putting fresh coal in his pip h eff she's pleasant to him he's nj
 man, Discoe is."
 GA whisky drinking devil" 2 "He's got his faults, but they're t , faults of a man," said Mr. Oscar, imp # tiently-. .and he ain't a tattlin' sneak