River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1881-05-12

ticles from the pack, making some into
light bundles for the children, and di-
viding the rest for their own backs.
Then they vent on, Jose dropping be.
hind to cut the horses throat with his
hunting knife. ''Poor beast" he said
cts al that can do for thee"
The packet of provisions was scant
enough, and they must needs use il
very sparingly; the children, who could
not understand why they were denied,
went crying with hunger. Even then
the basket was soon exhausted; on the
fifth day they had not "a morsel to eat,
and the children began to lag behind.
The father helped them as best he
could, but he had denied himself OF
food for their sakes, and his own steps
were faltering. As often happened
during the drouth, the mans strength
gave way before that of the tender little
ones. Already on the sixth day he
staggered from weakness, and often
rested by the roadside Maria and the
children begged at the few doors which
were not closed, and sometimes re-
ceived scraps of food, but Jose would
not touch it.
On the seventh evening, as they were
starting, he fell fainting to the ground F;
from that time he never rose, and
though Maria had bit of dried meat,
the remnant of the last aims, he could
not swallow it. With weak and trem-
bling hands the widow scooped out a
shallow grave by the roadside and bur-
led the body, putting a rude cross at
the head Then they wandered on.
1t was the old story-the story of the
great stampede, only here was one
party where before there had been
thousands. On the ninth day the
youngest child died, and the mother
dry-eyed and despairing, left It I'M
day the mother and her surviy ing
children reached an inhabited village
and were saved. Kind arms supported
their skeleton frames, and kind hands
gave them food, plying ears heard
the story Of suffering Beyond that
they could not ask for help where so
many thousands were as miserable as
they. Like the rest they were utterly
destitute; the last of their little treas
ures had been abandoned, and they
had no friends. In time their clothes
became so ragged that they could hard
ly cover themselves with decency.
After some days Maria took her
children to Fortaleza, where nearly
100000 refugees were gathered in rude
camps. The government fed them
literally but took little care for their
health, and in time great pestilence
came sweeping off hundreds every day;
the corpses lay rotting, for they could
not be buried fast enough. Then
Maria, with many others, went to
Baturite, where there was another
another camp of $4,000 or more. There,
through wise sanitary measures, the
pestilence had been stayed. The aid
commissioner, DR.. Comes Pereia, was
one of the kindest and best of men in
the province, and his camp was
model for all others.
One day DIR. Pereira rode through the
camp with an American gentleman
who was visiting him. The refugees
were sitting in rows, waiting for their
rations, Maria and her children with
the rest, utterly broken hearted and
hopeless. She was weeping quietly,
when DIR. Pereira noticed her. what
is the matter" he asked kindly.
Through sobs and tears the woman
told her stOry-a story common enough
there, but strangely terrible to the
American. The good doctor sighed.
"What can | do?' he said; "she is one
among thousands"
"At least | can do something" said
the American, feeling for his purse.
at will do no good; you cannot re-
store the woman's dead husband, nor
her lost home; she has food enough,
and | will give her some clothes for
herself and her children. There are
others who need your money more"
The gentleman coaxed little Nita to
his side; she came shyly, but by and by
gained confidence and submitted quiet
ly to his caresses. He wondered at the
beauty of her soft brown eyes and rip
Cling hair Perhaps it was the pleading
look in her face that made him ask:
"Would you like to go with me to
Mia looked frightened as it very
far there?' she asked.
every far; but it is beautiful coun-
try, with green trees and fine fields; and
people are hardly ever hungry there"
He spoke half in jest, but the child
had been trained to earnestness in a
terrible school, she could only take
him at his word. Looking up, trusting
ly, she said: 81 will go mamma Maria
will let me-"
The gentleman's eyes We're moist as
he turned away, AMI all that day he
was very thoughtful.
In the evening he spoke to the Com
about the woman. would
she let the child go?' he asked.
''Why not; there is nothing but pow
erty in store for her The farm was
only hired, and all she had has been
lost"
'Then," said the American, 81 will
take the child with me and try, God
helping me, to make the rest of her
fife happy"
So little Mia was brought to the
Commissioner house; the ladies put
a clean frock over her brown skin, and
she sat down to dinner with her new
friends, eating shyly and half inclined
to cry. Now that her rags were ex-
changed for decent clothes they could
see how beautiful she was; and she was
as we'll behaved as a child need be.
The Commissioner noticed this Her
family must have been a good one" he
said; "no peasant child could carry
herself so charmingly."
The American did not answer, for he
was thinking, and perhaps in his
thoughts he found that he had fallen in
love with those beautiful pleading eyes.
Well for him is it was so; such love
brings no sting.
So Nita's romance shall rest, for only
God knows the future. God grant that
years of happiness may ettace from
her mind the memory of that terrible
romance of famine.