The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1881-01-26
BY Z G WILSON AND H. T. WARDLAW

XII. led q family in order to steal a ga
baby and a .iackass and black Gog-bu
| took myself for a man with q power
full responsibility on his hands.
THE fust two or three days l wa
AWFUL feared / wouldn't find any che t.
take Lainey off my hands. Then, b,
ling, I began to dread meeting or find
ing any one who would take her. AM
at last, to tell yc the truth, | left tn
regular stage-roai and sneaked OFT owe
the Sierra into California by an ole
abandoned route.
| got some changes of clothes fol
Lainey here and there from emigran
women, piece at q time, and by the tim
I got down into the coast counties
cow counties some calls 'em = I wa
might handy in taking care Of tina
young lady,
81 got down to my stopping place
well on into November, turned my jack
out on a ranch, rented q little cabin in s
little town-not such very little town
and went to keeping house and attend
ing to my boss speculation. | hired 81
old Mexican woman to look after
Lainey when l wasn't at home.
Eat last it came Christmas day an6
I had Lainey by the hand, going ur
street as big as could be, to fill hel
stocking. when we meets q lady, and
down crops that lady IN her knees on
the boardwalk right in front OF US, and,
reaching ont her arms, she said:
"'Lainey Woods! Lsiney Woods
Thank God, l have found you at last!
"And that lady took my baby into her
arms and began kissing her.
well, it cut me so to the qcick that
[ started away without saying one
word, and would have left, but the lit
tie one wouldn't stand no such nonsense,
and came a-crying and tearing after me,
dragging the woman by the hand.
Giles my papa-my new papa. l
won't stay wiz nobody but him.
WELL, you see. to shorten a long
story, the lady and me talked it all
overflow she wa Lainey's mothers
friend-how the Indians had killed
Lainey's mother, and how disease and
grief had killed the father-how disease
had Frustrated the friend how Lainey
had wandered of in The desert IN the
night-how part of Lainey's fathers
property consisting mostly ot fine brood
uldTCS, WIS lelI OVeE Ill NeVduS, lelu-
porarily in charge of the Overland stage
company-in fact, how all this business
and this child and this friend needed a
man to look after 'em. So it came
about, one way with another, that /
married the lady, fathered the child
and got into the boss business.
(Which being just about what l
wanted to do, makes me free to say that
my wild peremtion in the desert was a
pretty lucky lay out"
Eyes. indeed, very lucky said.
"But now, after all, don't it seem to
you as if the black dog went off in the
night and stole that young 'unp" Here
the venerable Moasick had q slight
asthmatic paroXysm, and as we walked
toward the gate out of which Quien
Sabc and his rider had made their pictur-
esque departure, he finally succeeded in
wall! That brown colts yours for
Just what | told you. Say the word
and III hold him tor you for mos any
reasonable length Of time"
said the word. and I'll put up the
money, but I'm not going to be in any
hurry about taking THAT brown colt
away from the scenes of his childhood.
If l were a married nan it might he
diferent-but I've sot my eye on
Moasick's Presumption. Sabe?-Spirit
OF the Times.