Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1883-05-11
THE BAR LIGnT.nOrSE.

Government had for several Years
been sadly ncglccting job If mcnding
w tho case 1T the Ear Lighthouse
bridge. Here and there boards had be-
gun to spring suSpiciously beneath I'M
wary footsteps; then the wind had be-
gun Ia tear them Oh. and the rain 10 rot
aud mOldcr them down. What was
every mans business was nObCdy's. and
NO individual was disposed tD interfere
with the province IT that abstract mil
NOnairc. the United States Government.
To be- SUR. the Keeper of the Bar Light.
Jackson Reed. who was naturally more
solicitouS concerning the holding ont Of
the structure than any one else. had
wildly and friitlesSly patched some of
The worst places, oil and ON, after n
hard "northcastcr." when he awoke
more kccnly To the cNigcncics Of the
ease, and the hopeless lilntorine.s of
his task-mastcr. but IL had amounted
To very little. Long neglect had made
something more than mere patching
necessary. Now the puarter-mle bridge
leading To the bar Lighthouse. il not
IN IN absolutely unsafe condition, was
not calculated To inspire any degree Of
confidence in the unarCustOmcd crosSer
NJ least. " was not quite 50 bad nj low
tide. or ON mild. still day. There
was not So much IT, fear then beyond a
little fall and tlucking: that +. II ono
cleared one Of those ragged apcrtmts
successfully. But ON u dark NIGHT.
with tho winds bowling OVER IL. and the
ucran Numbering beneath il. il was the
sort Of " bridge that only disrmbodicd
spirit could be- supposed To cross with
any degree If nOnchalanCc.
The lighthouse itself was only am or
binary dwclling-huusc. strongly built.
with tower for the light. II stood ON
massive pile Of rocks. With little tufts
ot coarse vcgrtatiOuin the clCfis. Jack
son Reed, who had nm unfortunate love
and longing for garden spot. had nc
tually wheeled enough earth over from
the mainland for n little patch few
yards SQUARE. and when ne was not IN
gagged in fruitlcss struggle with a.
broken bridge he was engaged i'm fv,rt-
lose struggle with his garden. Apotter-
iug old man was Jackson Reed. lacking
IN nervous force anil qnirkncss Of intel,
lcrt; but he he'd never let the lirht 90
out' au,l The only thing that j. absolutely
required Of lighthouse keeper i To-.
Keep the light burning for the sailors
whu steer hv IT,
The wpndvr vas that his wife Sarah
should have bocn his wife. She was n
person not of different mold merely.
but Of adiiicrcnt Kind; not Of n different
species, sbut different genus Nervous
and alert. whit her husband accented I'm
pHticni silence She received with shrill
rcmOnstrance and questioning. Her
husband patched the bridge. crawling
over its long reach on his old knees:
she rallied, rs shc watched lrim. Al fhe
AA.Hleet- al IlsoverRment. La -alnoonl-
elalhingly brushed the sand from his
little, puny, struggling plants. and She
set her thin face against D tlp, Nviu,li thai
east II there.
ID In. both, The religious -elemsnt-oHeo.,
Of MUD was strongly predominant. blIi
jackson Reel simply looked ont ON
Nature and into his own soul. and took
IN ~ plain incOntrovertiblc facts tho
broken bridge, the tossing sen, his little
wind-swcpt, sand-strcwn garden-patch.
and God in Hcayen. Neither proved
the other or nullided The other thee
we're simply hen. But Sarah Reed.
looking out ON the frail. unsafe bridge
which connected them with the main
land, and the mighty. senseless sea
which had swallowed up her father and
q brother whom she had idolizcd. and
the poor little tender green things irving
To hive under her window. had seen iTi
them 50 many dumb denials of either
Gods love and mercy or Ills existence.
She was n rheumatic old woman now.
almost helpless, in fact. unable to stem
without the help of her husband. And
she SAT- day in and day out. M one of
the sea-vindOws of her sittinO-room.
knitting. and holding her defiant old
heart persistently against the pricks.
The minister ut Rye, Jealous vouno
man, with an innocent confidence In his
powers OF holy argument, had visited
her repeatedly, with the view of improv-
ing her state Of mind. She had Joined
the church over which no presided. in
her youth; indeed, IL was the church
nearest 10 the lighthouse. and that was
three miles distant The minister had
heard from one of his parishionerS. Who
was a connection of hers. that Mis- Rcd
haa lost her faith, and straightway he
was hred with holy ardor TO do some
tnlng Tor spiritual benefit. But even,
ms tonguey confidence and ineenuous-.
ness could CLEAN but little saiisfaction
from his interviews with the rhe,umafic
and unbelieying old woman. -
"No,Mr. Pendleton." she used 10 saw.
shaking thin Rheumatic hand. with an
impressiveness which her hearrr rniobt.
have copied advantagcously I'M the pnl-
pu. III amt no use. You Mn t-ik
ABOUT seem with the sPirih an wos-