The Portland daily press., 1883-12-25
A Christmas Eve in Nebraska,
BY LILLE DEvEREUx BLAKE.
Written for the Press

| storm was sweeping straight from the ice
fields of the north, the wind came cold, biting
furious, laden with frost, tearing on madly as
| If it would freeze everything with the stark
death of the arctic regions.
Above there was no sky, below there was no
earth; nothing anywhere but snow. Not level
reaches of snow or white banks of it as there
are in New. England, but snow blown and toss
cd into binding clouds by the chill breath of
the blast, rising, falling, whirling the fresh
flakes that were descending from the sky, and
the old drifts that were uptorn by the savage
SCOOP of the wind, mingling together in the
frantic dance; nothing to be seen anywhere
but the pale spray of wide ocean of snow
driven into writhing flight by the relentless
scourgt of the gale.
| Through the fury of the storm a man was
riding, his horse, powerful animal, staggered
as the blast struck it and painted as it labored
on almost blinded by the dashing snow. The
man was perhaps forty years old, broad should
cred and strongly built; his cheeks were red
dened with the intense cold, there were icicles
clinging to his beard, sometimes something
that looked like tears clouded his alert eyes.
/ 1t was amazing that he could keep on his
way at all; there was no vestige of a road !;
there was no fence anywhere; there were no
trees; still he pressed on in tolerably straight
course. There were certain faint changes in
what seemed the unbroken level OF the plain,
| which served to guide one who had been long
resident in that region. The distance he had
to travel was short, however, or he would
have been in great danger of losing his way.
1 PrnGnnflv oI;
of something like great grey wings, that
cleaned through the white mist of the whirl-
ing snow, and with an encouraging word he
| turned his horse's head in that direction A
| few moments later, tho great wings were
more clearly defined as the sails of wind
mill that stood above the artesiau we'll that
accompanies nearly every house In Nebraska,
and directly afterwards the house ITSELF came
into view. 1t was solidly built, rising up
| squarely from the prairie, with no fence about
it and no tree near it, so that the tall windmill
seemed to be standing sentinel over the
solitary dwelling; with its barns and Sheds as
it to ward off anything that might menace
them in that lonely land. The man when he
saw the house seemed moved to more eager
haste. He urged his horse into canter,
and even before his voice could possibly be
heard began to shout "Hallo, Halo! jackson!
Jackson''
He continued his cries until he rode up to
the porch, and by the time he reached it the
door was opened and a raddy faced, white
haired man appeared. AS soon as he saw him
the rider shouted"
"Follow me as quickly as you can, you and
o,o1 9TH
the love of God follow me home!'
rive will Newton; we will, of course, if you
are in trouble" replied Mr.. jackson. "But
what is it? What's the matter? Can't you
come in a moment outof this internal blizzard,
and get warm before you start back?'
Not moment, not a second!" replied New
ton quickly. "Anne is lost She went out
this morning to the barn to feed her pet
chickens and she never came back" with
gasp in his throat; ST have searched, the men
are searching now, but we must have more
help She will freeze to deathl'
He said the last words in a sort of groan as
il they were wrung from him as an utterance
OF horror that had lain coldly at his heart
"We will come, all of u.s. replied Mr.. Jack |
son heartily. every man can find; we will
ride afetr you as soon as we can harness up"
Newton had already turned his horses head |
"Thank you, jackson, and come quickly he
shouted as he plunged back into the storm
Before he was out of sight, Mr.. jackson had
gone to the stable calling as he went at the top
of his lungs, so that he had presently not only
all the men but all the women of the family
about him The venturesome old residents in
Al
tg Annie was lost in this wild tempest They
knew what it meant, in that land of no fences
and no trees, to become bewildsred in the |
snow. In the twenty years that they had
lived there they had heard many story Of |
men who were lost after leaving their own
doors aud found frozen stiff between the house |
and the barn. If Annie had been gone already |
some hours, and three men had searched for
her in vain, what chance could therelbe for her?
"And it's Christmas Eve!" said Mrs. Jack
son more than once. The good lady sent a |
bottle of blackberry cordial and big meat
pie. sThey won't feel like cooking much
whatever happens" she said, "and the mon
will be hungry anyway. Goodness knows
men are always hungry"
In few minutes Mr.. jackson and his mar
ried son Mark and his hired M Ia John, were |
IN the wagon ready to start. They were al !
ready pushing down the ROAD when they heard |
some one shouting after them, and pulling up |
little young man cams running lightly |
through the storm and jumped in beside John
This was Hugh Eaton, a nephew of Mr.. Jack |
sons, who had recently come home for the hoI-
idays. He was good looking, athletic young
fellow. He had seen Annie at church the last
Sunday,Fand brown and blue eyes had looked
more than once into each others depths He
came to help the search now not because it
was pretty girl that was lost but from real
kindness of heart. He would have come just
as soon had the person in trouble been some
humble old woman.
They drove as fast as stout team of horses
could draw Them horses who knew the road
well, and kept it by marvellous instinct 1t
was not SO bad going this way, as the wind
was at their backs but the cold was intense
and there was namelesS dread at every
they found the poor mother pale but quite
composed, for frontier women learn self-con-
troll early and she had seen the hardships of
pioneer life years ago. Annie was her only
daughter, but she had two boys younger, who
were both doing what they could, though their
eyes were red with weeping, and frankie, the
younger. who had been his sisters pet, said to
every newcomer pitifully, "You will find An
ME, WON'T you? Oh do try to find ANNIE
Each man was at once put upon the search.
Newton and his hired man were securing the
more distant country on horseback. The help
ers from Jacksons were each given a section
nearer the house. Mrs. Newton was to fire.
gun from one Of the upper windows as soon
as any one brought in news.
A l..