Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1884-06-26
Written for THE GRANT COUNTY HERALD.l
LITTLE STORM.
BY COLBY.
CHAPTER TX

BY COLBY.
CHAPTER TX.
Tomorrow, we greet thee. Yester-
day thou vert tomorrow, and Hope
overlooked thine advancing horde of
Unknowns from the pinnacle of mid
night and shouted "Alrs welln' But
the sun illumines the east and the
shadows are creeping away to the west
ward, and as thou art newborn thy
name shall be To-day Mortal man
did seek to hurry thee with jogging and
with curses on thy hardness, for when
the word of ''All is well' passed along
the outposts they were feverish and eag-
er to bury the troublous corpse of yes
terday and longed to see thy hopeful face.
Smile thou, for it will cheer our sinking
hearts; let all the birds sing, for the
dirge of yesterday yet fingers in our
ears.
Yes, morning came and at an early
hour Jim Dane learned that the village
three miles from his place was about TO
be deserted. That it had been unfavor-
ably located and would never grow
from an influx of eastern Adventures
had come to be settled fact in the
minds of its inhabitants and projectors;
so its houses were about to be pulled
down, loaded on OK carts and carried
further west TO place near the Rocky
Mountains.
Jim aroused the house with roar
He did not propose to have the dust of
civilization thrown in his face. Every
thing and everybody must be got ready
| - In. r,ntry -.
head the moving town, Jim even forgot
| his marriage scheme and unlocked the
bedroom door, letting out Storm and
Sam, whom he ordered to prepare for
the move.
1t occupied the best part of two days
for Jim to get his goods and stock ready
for a start. The towns people were
one day on the road ahead of him the
best he could do. and it made whisky
Jim sweat and swear with no mean lib
erality when he thought of it.
Martha and the children were loaded
into the wagon along with the house
furnishings, and she tongue-lashed
everybody who was unfortunate enough
to come within ear-shot
Storm, together with the older chill
dren. rode good horse and helped
drive tho cattle. Such progress was
made that after being two days out they
caught up with the towns people. and
the first spectacle that met Storms anx-
ious gaze was that of Professor Cam |
seated in the hind end of an OK cart, his |
long legs dangling ont behind, his back |
braced against hair trunk filed with |
books-the Professors sole earthly eff |
fects. He was reading book and did |
not notice the new corners.
Jim would have passed them by, but |
his cattle had been Over-drove, so he |
was forced to bear his old enemies COM
pany.
1t was grand little company of hardy |
pioneers travelling over a free, wild |
prairie, and they sang songs and told |
tales of past adventures and spoke en-
Enthusiastically of the new haven of peace |
and plenty to which they were journey |
ing. AT night they cafnped by little |
wooded stream where the buffalo and |
antelope came to drink and cool their |
heated bodies, and from whose brakes
the partridge Numbered and the mild
eyed dove cooed goodbye to the retir-
ing sun.
been eaten and the horses and cattle |
we're safely correled, and the stars
looked out Of their gray blanket, Storm |
threaded her way slowly through the
camp among wagons, tents and fires. |
Under her arm.she carried a book, and
stopping at each little campfire she |
studied the faces of those grouped about |
it until satisfied that the one sought |
was not there she moved on to the next |
As she walked up to certain circles
containing young men they would rise |
up hastily at sight of her and ask: |
"Did you wish to see me?" and when |
she answered, timidly, mo, thank you,
| was looking for a friend,'' they would |
sink back with a disappointed face, and |
one good-natured fellow, having more |
candor than delicacy, remarked, Your |
friend is a lucky dog" The old men
Fanny, the orphan. How pretty! |
say, wife, she is likely lass" AYE,
John. she is likely to 60 to the bad with
Jim Dane to father her"
All unconscious of good or evil re-
portj Storm passed on from place to |
place. 1t was quite dark and no one
could recognize her outside of the
bright little circles made by the camps |
small and numerous fires. But there
was a shadow, darker than the night,
behind Storm; and it followed her from
point to point. 1t moved when she
moved it stood when she tarried, and
sometimes it crept through tall grass on
all tours like cunning fox. 1t was
quite substantial shadow, too, for
once when it was in the act of perform
ing some of its grass-creeping maneu-
vles large dog belonging to one of the
settlers, installing it for an intruder,
jumped on to it and endeavored to get
hold on the creeper's neck; but the
brute stopped growing so suddenly and
lay so still Immediately thereafter that
you would have declared teeth to be no
match against sharp knife.
AS Storm drew near fire on the out
er limits of the camp, her face bright
ened and her step quickened as she be-
held well-known form seated by the
fire bending over a book.
Professor Cam, | have brought YOU
back your book" Storm said, holding
out the volume she had been carving
under her arm.
''Ah, my little friend, it is you," the
teacher said pleasantly as he raised his
head a was afraid / had lost my lit
tie Indian girl" he continued as he rose
up and took the book and her hand also
in honest friendship. "You must be
tired with travelling so far; will you sit
down by my fire?"
II don't think / can stop long"
Storm answered II just wanted to
bring back your book and thank you
for it and tell you how pleased | was to
read it. think | learned more about
people and things out of it than | had
known in all my life put together be-
fore
Then 1 am glad said Cam
There was one thing / wished you to
learn from tiff a man live grandly.
nobly, truly, it is little matter how or
when he fall asleep in death; if he plant
a sunbeam he will not reap a storm of
violence: if he SOW to the devil he can
not reap an angel. Here is another
book you can take if you wish
THANK YOU" answered Storm, II
would like it very much. You have
been a good friend to me; and now |
must be going or Father Dane will miss
me-"
! The Shadow had ,rent mn varv naar