The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1884-02-01
MAHALA DOOLITTLE,S DAUGHTER.

MAHALA DOOLITTLE'S DAUGHTER.
"No," said our quaint, garrulouS
CHEEKY old visitor, Aunt Dorcas Mason,
who came once a month to spend the
day with us, and was ever welcome
"No, she want Mahaly Doolittle'
own daughter; she want even blood
connexion o. any k nd; but ev'rybody
called Cicely Mahaly Doolittle's girl.
No; law bless you! Mahaly wa'n't
even married.
at did seem kind O. Gurus to folks al
first when little Cicely commenced to
toddle round. an lisp out mamma to
an old ma d ! Ike Mahaly. But us FL
derville folks got used to it. so that arr
ter awh lie it sounded as material as i
the hid had been Mahaly's own flesh
and blood.
.'Mahaly's not marvin, cheated
some man out of an amazin' good wife
fer she was sharper n lacks, an gritty
as ever they make EN-. An there
want a ry woman round Elderville
that could beat her housekeepin'. /
tell you, Mahaly d KEEP up her end o.
the ow long with airy man that ever
drawed the breath O. life. They was
many young Teller that d liked well
'nough to shine up to Mahaly; but it
want no use: she'd turn up her nose
at he best of 'em. Not that she was
fiirty an giddy like, for it didn't run in
the Doolittles to be that way.
You see. she'd give her heart away
once, an with h-r they was no takIa' it
ba *, not fer the best maa that went
a-sparkin'.
''Aiahaly was only twenty when her
an Dave Bascom promised themselves
To each other. Dave hadn't nothin' to
speak of, an was only turned of twenty
one, an they was sensible 'nough to
think that they could wait till they d
got a tile start. Tho n ahaly's folks
was willin' fer EN- to marry, an live
with them, Mahalv bein' the only child.
an the apple o old SIMON and Susan
Docijttle's eyes
Dave he was too high-sperr ted to
live off'n the old folks, an " ahaly
backed him up in it. They was proud
as peacocks, an that's where they was
simpletonS, 'cordin to my tn nkin'. fer
Dave could o more'n earned his board
any day on the big Doolittle farm, an
"OuAu V uOuc lncIc III tNO ulTeu nlIluS.
'Then, | reckon, he an Nahaly
thought folks d talk an CAB as folks
W II that a Mt moth n else to do but to
run down their betters; 50 Dave, std o.
marryin' 'Haly off hand, pac,s up the
few traps. he had, an puts off to ala
forny. An there he stayed, an STAYED,
I'M STAYED, an only one or two letters
come from him, an them right after he
got there.
81 hen there comes news o some aw-
full Injun massakers in the neighbor-
hood where ave was, an man who
nearly got his own skelp took writ to
some in Elderville that there wa mt hide
nor ha r left o airy man in the camp
Lave was in.
mo more letters come: an poor
'Haly had to think. bye n bye, that the
news was true; ant it vent hard with
her, / know. But she want the kind
% go blattin' round, calm herself "a
bird 'thout mate. like Tanner jim
kins did when her DO. Limie Jackson,
got kicked to Eieoes by his mule. But.
law mel Hammer wrote poetry, an
never was counted right smart She
was always q shin bout somethin'.
.'Hell, lore ave'd been gone year,
old Simon Doolitte fell dead with apo
plexy. an poor old Susan didn't live
but ten days afterwards: so there was
Mahaly, only twenty-one, alone in the
world. an owner o the best farm an
stock round Elderville.
.'But. bless your soul. that snip of
girl had head on her like bank pres
ident! She was sharper steel trap.
an fairly set back some O. the Elder
vile lawyers when it come to bizness
She didn't have no brassy or manniSh
ways bout her either, but was m dest
an nice as a Quaker.
"You can guess that there was plenty
O. young fellers. an old ones, too, fer
the matter o that, that'd liked right
well to O. managed Mahaly's affairs for
her; but none o them got the chance
''Some o. old S.mon's help. had been
with him for years. an they was faith
full as people could be to Mahaly Then
a great aunt o. hers. Hty Plumm. lost
her man, an didn't have no home nor
no children, so Mahalv took her in; but,
fore month. poor old Aunt Hitty was
fat on her back with the palsy, limp as
a rag, an not mite o use O. one hull
side O her.
''Mahaly tended that old woman
night an day like as if she'd been her
own daughter, an the poor mortal
hung on the hull winter an clean into
May.
1T must O. been a comfortto Mahaly
when Aunt Kitty died. But nobody
ever heerd her say so; an she had the
old lady laid out in as purity white
merino shroud with white satin ribbons.
an as purity coffin as ever you laid
eyes on.
Il rid to the funeral with Mahaly. an
comm home she cried quiet an pitiful
like, an said as how she felt so alone In
the world with even Aunt Kitty gone.