The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1883-09-21
JACKS VIGIL.

Jack Barr settled his tarpaulin a t1iae
more jauntily on his head; took last
preparatory puff at his pipe; sonorouly
cleared his voice and began:
"Widys," he said retlectively, gazing
at the well filled bowl of the pipe;
"widys are a wonderful institution!
there's something about widy that
that amt about any other created woman.
To put it POLITICALLY, gentleman" look
ing from his pipe to his auditors, "the
widy is like a rose. In the rose you'd
call it a perfume, in the widy a charm.
You take the rose and smell of it, and
you can't, for the life oryou, say what
makes it the queen of flowers. You can
only say it's rose. A"
''Hear, hear!" shouted Jacks auditors
uproariously.
Jack raised his pipe to his lips with
serene satisfaction, indulging in placid
Whit till the noisy demonstration came
to an end.
Quiet restored, Jack resumed:
II repeat my last words. You can
only say it's rose, So, gentleman, it
is with the widy. That something
about her is nameless. Afar or a-near
you feel 1t, but you only say-its the
widy."
"Hi, hi!'' responded the audience.
Jack took another puff and somewhat
sadly continued.
Gentlemen, we have so far had the
widy in general; now we'll take the widy
IN particuar-my widv. Gentlemen,
she was as clean timbered craft as ever
Set sail for a husband. Her eyes were
as blue as the ocean, her lips like two
coral banks, and her teeth and skin like
the solid sea foam! not speck on the
whiteness ofeither. And the color OF
her cheek! Bless you! no rose ever
equalled it; while her chestnut brown
hair was enough to entangle the soul of
-ot-well, OF a sailor! 1t got me!
Well, the upshot of my ensnaring was
that took board with her. She kept a
neat, handy girl, and nobody ever had a
nicer home. The longer / stayed the
more swore it should be mine forever,
time, but set straight in to courting, and
with very good success. Mrs. Merrihew
soon acknowledged that was the man
for her and the thing was settled.
But, about two weeks before the banns
were to be published, began to notice
Mrs. Merrihew looked worried, and
little more worried every day. For ten
days or so she put me off At last she
told me all about her trouble"
I'm an orderly woman, you know,
Jack?" she said.
Such another don't live!" I cried.
well, Jack" she answered, "there's
chest, pointing to one across the room,
all done up fanciful in chintz-"there's
chest that won't stay in order one
night! First | accused Mary Ann (the
glrD of neddling with it She most left
me, she was 80 mad, and ! soon found l
was al! wrong But who was at my chest
every blessed night, and who is?-There
ain't thing in it but old bills and pa
pers; they are of no use to me, but l Of
ten look over them, and they amt OF
use to any other living soul! Jack, tell
you what think"
II think the chests bewitched! And
Mary Ann thinks so too, and threatens
to go ii don't burn it'll AS true as you
order every day. and every hight it's
turned topsv-turvy. ! lock il and put
the keys under my pillow, and lock and
bolt the door. and screw down the win
dows--it's all the same, tile chest is a
sight the next morningw
The widy first looked at me with eyes
as big as saucers and then she did some
thing better; she threw her arms around
my neck. Naturally we wandered of
from the chest then; but be fore bedtime
we got back to it, and we agreed that
was to sit there in the dark, keeping
close in a corner away from tho chest; ii
heard nothing was to do nothing; if
heard a rCstling among the papers
was to strike match and look into it;
that all fixed, the widy left me looking
as happy as an angel.
s3ut somehow l felt pretty queer when
she left me alone with the glim doused;
it wasn't a bit like knowing what you
were going to meet, and meeting it un-
der good light. l had my own ideas
about witches and they wasn't pleasant
ideas; began to see eyes glowering at
me through the dark and to feel Shiny
hands touching my neck; and to hear
whispering voices and soft kissing laughs
.tAfover the room. I stuck it out till the
clock struck twelve, and then gave in
to the witches. IwouldnE stayed in
that room another hour for two widys-
no, not for dozenl
With that in my mind started up to
run. But bless you, when I got up ]
souldn't run! Ny legs and my feet were
froZe stiff; there was no more run in me