Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1884-12-26
RETURN OF A "FoRTY-NlNER."
A Transcript from Life.

RETURN OF A "FORTY-NlNER."
A Transcript from Life.
Yes, it wus in '49, l was Jest 10,
When we sot out fur Oregon, t see what
could be seen. go.
Iwus song and hearty then-hardship did
not dismay;.
Though the road was rough ana iong, we
reached the end one day.
wus it loncsum? do you ask, thet long, long
Journey through,
And ali the thirty years and more tibet I've
been gone from you?
Ny Godl think l should ha' died, and in the
ground ben laid;
Blu tougher than a hard-shell nut my sturdy
frame WIS made.
But i soon run out O. capital, less talkin'
with the men
there I'm right to hum;
-Convarsin' wi the women folks somehow
makes mt num-.
Ye see, the way of it WIS this: In the home
nest long ago
There were so many huddled up some one
So with three other fellcrs I bought out a
And started off fur Oregont to realize q dream.
1 tell ye, ! don't like to think, even at this
OF ali the per'ils of thet trip; not much of it
Many a man we passed stark mad. and many
Of men and horses both that lay mingled
with sand and stones.
But we kept up heart and worked along-we
BY and by we he'd the luck to make success
of it.
1wus MT long in Oregon before I found my
Nance, like me, was all alone. Twas the best
thing of my life.
Her father died and left her there. Icame
i'll nick of time.
We jined our luck, when, tell the truth, I was
not with a dime.
We settled on some fust-rate land. The
Lord, He has been good.
We both were thrifty, tough and well, and
did the best we could.
OF the straits we both lived through there
amt no use to tell.
Much there WuS we did without, and many
the drcary spell.
Our children came, one, two and three; we
taught them all to work.
to shirk.
My oldest son, he had no bent for working on
We found to try to keep him there wus only
workin' harm.
so we sent him OIL to college-they say he is
And Mirandy-;thet's my darter-she's a
teachin' school.
She's gittin' Jest a leetle mite heightened, I'm
But Zeke he's got the sand in him to make
And so / am Quite Satisfied with things upon
the whole;
There's silver in my pocket, and no crime
upon my soul.
When they put the railroad through I soon
made up my mind
That I would 1nnE INV Iind~nd I'm Of INV T
could find.
Mirandy thought twas better far tibet 1
should stay to hum.
depend upon it, dad" she said, they'll
count you only scum
Don't keer ef they do" seq I, I'll give the
And look upon, the old scenes agcn, jest once
before ] de-
A lot of fellers come along, and all as rough
as me,
tibet amt been home nigh forty years their
kith and kin to see.
And 7 must say I'm treated well, though l
ken see right plain
That I'm as different to you as weed from
golden grain;
But out in Oregon, you know, there was
precious leetle chance
Fur this higher dedication when I was young
There's nuthin' airthly would induce tibet
woman to leave hum;
10 take an Eastern trip like this / begged her
hard to come;
But she's ben away SO leetle she's shyer than
adoe,
And hard to git acquainted with an growing
old, you know.
Swan to gracious, wish she he'd a come along
with me,
1t seems to knock conceit from me, so much
there is to see.
1 always like to larn a leetle, wherever I may
But Nancy says it is too late-shc doesn't
want to know.
An 1 will soon go back again, %contented as
you please;
For, tell the truth, I've worked too long to
like n life Of ease.
4 will often think of you an I'll have much
to tell
OF all your pleasant homes and ways, al
though you are so-swell.
An when you come to Oregon, though Nance
is naugh for show,
She'll do her best to make returns for kind
ness to old Joe.
Wore proud and independent, the bin is
always full;
And we've larned to give a welcome though
we've never been to school.
But there's that boy in college-he ken put
AM Mirandy knows exactly how things
should be done.
For the men there is prime bunting; Zcke's
q master shot,
SO come, between us all, we kin suit you to q
dot.
Robin Wood, in Chicago Inter Ocean.
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