Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1884-02-22
rag, an not a mite. o, use ., one hull

May. q" 'iean An'o
1T must O. been a comfortto Mahaly
wnen Aunt Kitty died. But nobody
oyer heerd her say so; an she had the
~ !aoy laid out in as purity a white
meflno STROUD with white satin ribbons,
an as purity a coffin as ever you laid
- ria to the funeral with Mahaly, an
Gu ~ nome she cried quiet an pitiful
IKE an, sad as how she felt so alone in
ene "ofld with even Aunt Kitty O.
ohe didn know Jest what she would do
1or comp'ny. She thought ONE, she
sald, o goin' to some big city where
there wa so many poor, homeless, help
less, sutferin' little souls tossin' an tum-
bin round in this wicked world with
no one to so much as lift a finger to save
'em from the sin an sorrer before 'em.
Mahaly thought O. gettin' a little boy or
glrl' OF mebbe both, an laisin' 'em as
her own. She said she'd never marry
now.
"Well, mind you, when we gothome,
there was a bundle on the front porch
man old red an yellow shawl; an
Clcely was in that bundle. She was
only, we lodged, bout three weeks old.
There want q thing in the world to
give us a hint O who her pam ma was,
no more'n if she'd.never had any. Ma
haly sad right there that she hoped she
never Would know more'n she knowed
then bout the ch:ld's kin. She 'dopted
her right off, namin' her Cicely Rose,
an was mother an father an sister
an brother to the forlorn little thing.
''lt was so out O. the common run O.
things to see that young girl o. twenty
one bendin' over that child's cradle,
an calm herself mammal an the
child her 'own dear baby an all that.
"The child was purity as n pink.
She'd eyes an cheeks like a chany doll.
She stood alone at nine months, an
begun to talk at a year. She had that
yallerish, reddish hair, kind O. curly
like, that not n in a thousand has;
an purity, nice, finicky little ways o.
sayin' an doin' things that showed she
want any common stock. Blood'll
tell every time; mind if it don't. Good
or bad, it'll crop out. All the trainin'
an %inf1ooence an example an teachin'
goes fer nothin' when they's bad blood
in a child. It'll show itself bye'n bye,
an away goes your child a-snappin' his
fingers at precepts, an all that.
"Well, the folks round Elderville,
they all took great int rest in little
Cicely, she was such q winnin' little
body!
Il mind me now, how I've passed by
Mahaly's a-many an a-manv time, an
seen Cicely a-standin' at the gate with
her nose stuck through the palms, and
her big eyes a-twinklin'. An she'd saw
the oldest things in the funniest way.
She was a powerful smart child.
can, my land! the store Mahaly
Doolittle set by that child. She couldn't
a thought more O. one O. her own, not
if she'd had twenty-five. She acted
as if the sur rose and set in that child!
give seen her cry an carry on like a
crazy person when Cicely was sick. 1t
beat all! Once the child got mighty low
with the hoopin' cough, an me an
Temperance Taft we set up there; an
'Haly walked the tioorthe blessed night,
'cept when she'd dump herself down
fore chairs an fall to prayer for her
child-her hearts treasure as she
called Cicely. When the child had a
spell of coughin' Mahaly'd wiring her
hands an sob out pitiful to hear.
They say she Rugged and kissed old
DR.. Wintergreen, when he said Ciccly'd
get we'll, an that Wintergreen he hug
ged an kissed back; and they was some
talk bout 'em maxim a match, him be-
in a widderwer, an half cracked to
marry agin. But, law me! l knew
better. Poor Mahaly was that grateful
ovo,. C;oo1Y o;t+;p ~ u.oIl cbo.1 ,,G-.J
an kissed q steer; an Wintergreen was
like any other crazy old widderwer,
tickled fit to kill if a looked at
'im-tho' you could O. heerd i'm heller
half a mile when Mis- Wintergreen was
buried. The Doctor he was allus get
ting up new kinds O. bitters an int
ments an tones an plasters, an tryin'
'em OF Mis- Wintergreen first, an she
was gump 'nough to let him do it; for
she thought the Doctor knowed more n
any other ten doctors in Sangamon
County. An there she'd go round
with plaster an intments all over her,
an gag over his drops an 'elixirs,'
when they want a thing under the
shinin' sun the matter with her. They
say she died O general debility, an l
recken she did. So would a boss. But
Wintergreen was a real good-hearted
cd body. He was as good as puddin'
to Mahdly when the poor woman's heart
was breakin'.
"Little Cicely was nearly ten years
old fore Mahaly told her that she
want her w mother. Folks knowed
that Mahaly wanted it KEEP as long as
she could from the child. But, Of
course, she had to know it some time,
fer children will ask questions, an there
was everybody calling Mahaly Miss
Mahaly,' you know, an a purity goose
of a child it'd be that wouldv't ask ques-
tons, eh?
$50 Cicely growed up to be sixteen,
an a purifier girl never danced to an
Eldcrville party. She did have the
sweetest eyes 1 ever looked into. They
was big an blue, with a.kind Of appeal
IN, trustful look in 'em that made one
love the girl. Her yaller baby-hair
stayed with her always. 1t was as silky
and yaller an bright when she was sew
enteen as when she was little more'n u
baby. She KEEP her inherent, baby
ia ca all throuUh her oir1hOOd DAYS. T