The Red Cloud chief., 1883-11-02

She spoke tn her husband. who opencd
. the window. Whats wanseit" be
asked. p.~ring out into the darkness.
"Prs.c,iIa's siek.S mcss~d the die
irrs-ei voice: awful sick. Sbe's
tainted. an ] can't bring Der IN. go
for the do~tor-quick' guick' 2~tei '
! The voice ended IN q shrek 90 The last
word and the speaker turned and NJ
lay \ pale. gauni woman. who bad not
stirred since she left IT, Immosable
through al her sisters agony. she Law
there. her features shaping Themselves
out more ard more from the shadows.
the b~i-clO.hes that covered her limb.
taking on an awful rgidI'y.
"She must have died in her .lcsp.'
the doctor .aid. when he came. with
out a struggle
When MARY Brown really UNDERWOOD
that her sister was dead. she lct; her -
the kindly ministrstions u the gueSt
women who are aIw Nv. ready in such
time. IN n country place. ard went and
at by the Kitchen window in the chair
which her si,r-r had occupied that after
Oon
: lbfff tHF NFfDsF lFsEfl nfF MN LBN
Last Offices mad been done for the dead.
Come home with me tonight one
said; Mo Green will stay with her,.
with a turn of her head toward the OPP
po-ite room. aud An emphasi. on the
pronOun which distinguished IL n onc
from one applied to a living person.
No" said Mar Brown; I'm
a-goin' 10 set here an listen She had
the window wide open. leaning her head
out into the chilly night air.
The women looked nj each other; one
tapped her head. another nodded hers.
Poor thing, said a third.
You see" went on Mary Brown,
.iill speaking with her head leaned out
81 the window, 81 was cross with her
this afternoon h~caus. she talked about
hearin' music. | wa, cross. an spoke
mp sharp 10 her. because | loved her.
but I don't think she knew. I didn't
want 10 think she was goin' To die. but
she Wa. An she heard the music. IL
was true. An now I'm a-goin' u set
here an list-n till I hear il. too. an
then I'll know he amt laid UP wha, I
said agin me. an that I'm a-goin TO die.
too
They found il impossible TO reason
with her; there she sat till morning.
with n pitying woman beside her. listen
ing all in vain for mccarthy mel DIV.
Next dav they sent for n widowed
niece Of the sisters. who came AT once.
bringing her little boy with her. She
was a kindly young and took
up her abode in the little cottage, and
did the best she could for her poor aunt,
who. il soon became evident, would
never be quite herself again. There
she would sit at the kitchen window
and listen day after day. She took n
great fancy 10 her niccc's lit'lc boy. and
used often 10 hold him IN her lap ~ she
sat there. Once in n while sac would
ask him IL b. beard any music. 4
innocent little thing like him nigh; hear
quicker than a hard unbelicyin' old
woman like me-" she told his mother
once.
She lived so for nearly a veal after
her sister died. II was ~cvi,i"n, iha, she
had failed gradually and surely. though
there was ~ apparent disease. IL
seemed 10 trouble her exceedingly that
she never heard the music she listened
Tor. ~l' Hau IN bi'i tnht Snf toNli not
die unless she did. and her whole soul
seemed filled with longing 20 DIN her
beloved twin sister. and ic assured ~
her forgiveness. Thi, -istcr-lnvc was all
she had ever felt, hcsi les her love Of
God. in any strong degree; all the pa
sion Of dcvot' on of which tbs homcly.
commonplace woman WAS capahlc wal
conferred in that, and the unsaiiS'icl
strength Of i was killing her. The
weaker She grew the more earnestly
: she listened. She WAS too feeble TO 81
up. but she would o consent Ia lie in
bed. and made them b"lster her up with
pillows in II r~ocking-chair by the win.
dow. 4, last she died. in the spring. n
week or two before her sister had the
wear before. The season was a Title
more advanced this year. AMI the apple
trees were bloS>omel out further than
they were then. She died about ten
o'clock in the morning. The day before
her niece had been Gale into tie room
by n shrll cry If rapture from her:
I've heard it, I've heard IT," she
cried: "A faint sound % muse. like the
dyin' away Of a bell. - Mary. +. Hk
kiRs, in KdyT~T'S BaZIr.