Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1885-09-24

tu6lls
And yet, although these shabby premises
were their own, it seemed as il in this
spring Of 1884 the house had never seemed
quite SO small and quite SO sickly. Both
, Tom and Annie were down with low fevers.
Baby Bum was Grossly cutting some
double teeth, and series of long, hard
rains had interfered with hod-carrying to
such an extent that Mr.. Bum, in a tattered
rubber coat, had taken to looking for jobs
of wood-sawing. Dismal, indeed, was the
| outlook, and it required all the Bum forti-
tude TO eat suppers of corn-meal cakes and
black sirup contentedly, and to rise I'M
complainingly to breakfasts of corn-meal
mush and sky-blue milk.
"If we lived in the country" began Mrs.
Bum, and then checked herself. She was
In no mood to be laughed at. She went on
thinking, however, that if they lived in the
country on an acre of land, they could at
least have potatoes and turnips and fresh
eggs: an occasional chicken, and, perhaps
I-oh. mercy OF mercieS-they might keep
a cow, by letting the children lead her
along the roads to crop the free pasturage
there.
Probably Mrs. Bum was getting a little
| feverish herself, for whenever she closed
her ewes she seemed to see fair green fields
and dancing brooks, and whiteicow feed
| Ing upon the hillsideS, and happy children
gathering violets in the spring sunshine:
and she could hear the thrifty cackle of
| ambitious hens, and the carol of robbins
| on the tip-top branches of the budding
trees. She closed her eyes as often as her
| olon,np To- J.; r. FL - 81. -
wb.. comfortad I'D ohao..: a.: Nv, har .+,.an,r.
fanc;as ~ gu
| A river runs by the Flats, separating that
| locality very distinctly from the heights of
| Upper Lowell. Every spring it rises and
runs away with its usual petty iarcenies Of
| h,t in tb;s s,,r;rr nf ISL 49,. go
than natty Iarca5v II meant q hold and
| onJ da6.,t ia L. 80 ri;rso go
| almost rnochad tho 6;rJ f,rchad 6ridcras
aud Ire nsnaI ;,s;,rat?,,o ,,,,,r,,nr ~. :
| tnrnaj RI n ,nanac;ng roaS Rnt tho Flat
neonIe did NOT fear Il. and evan when n
crent mn 70 their hack Yards and Iannad
| hungriIv arounJ thar dnor-S.ans IL w.s
| still bnt now and refresb;pg exc;ta.
mensYthis big rise Of the neacsfn, ~ title
| WoIf.n The men and women living alone
the hanks looked after sncb small loose
| articles &c wara IiteIv m he CARRIED away
and the children made RATS and naddIcd
| about in the nooIs of back-water in great
| pIee Soma authorities roda over r. the
Flats and supgestei that the bouses alone
| the river had halter be vacated and the
| families living there ONLY laughed and
said tbey were not afraid: and every one
| went To he'd that nirbt feeIing entiraIy
| cleared and that there wouId he chances
| for going to work ON the morrow.
| Rut Sat midpigbt there was a crvD Mr.
| and Mrs. Bum did not hear IL. for Annie
and Tom were sIeepinp soundIv for tbe
| first night in n week. and the father and
deem in sIumber. They were all sIeeping
up stairs as the doctor had adyisedLTom
and Annie in their hunks near the window
where a breath of fresh air coulri touch
their fevered faces three small bovs in the
trundle-bed, Nelly, the eldest girl. on a
lounpe. and Baby Bum with his father
and mother
The cry came from some of the houses
along the river. and there was only time
for. the hewiIderad snatcbing of a IittIe
clothing and a frenzied esca6e to bipber
pronnd every one. in those first wild mo.
ments. thinking but of himself and those
heIonoing to him The Flats had NO. yat
achieved street Iamns and only the naIa
gliumer of the stars iiohted the terrible
SCENE
Tho little Runn bouse stood lo,vast of
any in the Flats. and the river had been
noSin1 about il for an bonr or mora before
If tool its final erin When If raaIlv S Set tie
laws together. Mr. and Mrs Rnnn were
awakaned bv tho onaar straining creat
and lar and thev now beard tie w;IJ
sboutS outside the Ian and swirl Of tho
watars aLont tban, and tnau ,,;tt 60,
inc beorts what If eli maant
with the instinct tb AT maIes oil ,vomor-
kind want TO die dacantIv Wrs RI,
d,sbe5 mt her e,own which buna, go thn
foot of the he'd aud even gavs her hair a |
swift tris. Then She csugbt mn ninL,-
Runn- who pave q slaanv crS at spcb lie,
tnrhanca and Che hreafbsd ths man,a 81
Cbr;st,s mother as sbe hold him tiahti1, 20
her braast Mr. RnnnN staar;n,r ,.,;tb
cra.t nrasenca Of mind tbronrh thss sa. e ~
=
Wa tbara., torch .Iigbt ,rocass;ona Al
baJ oil Tho Stars io;ns5 in IS To- tha |
iomns that wera now A. Sbin., ont IT,, ~
,ui,fon,s "a tha hr;nht stn, ~ 49, - ". |
oil mnv;,a in tbe soSa d;ract;on NJ -
was his own house that was movingEtiev
H. had ond dray, or bis trenSa,s ID foIt
oI,on. fo % b;s s,"cIinns aUd sa;d anu .eis
49, N.II;e tba oides, nh;Id - "a
a,.,ai-aS -. ~, - smnI' SO
,,,o.har', y, go &c bar n,other hi o,ueS |
mnon ,b.t otbar Socrsd nama ' .eo
.sRa hroSa d.rIin, amd dor,t ,.,
otbar cbiidreni Wa,ra Ill onin, toaathar
om,lhow e'iA ''e'noi'
HNavbe she'll hold topetherv said Mr.
Bum. who always found the hopefuI side |
of things. .sWe'u light the lamp and see |
where we are.n And soon ali the naonIe |
who were disinterested enouoh to he mera
siphtseers. noticed a plimmer ont on the
dark riyer-like the light of n will n, the |
wisp-pxcept that il was a little steadiar.
n Iipbt that moved farther end Farther |
awaS and was finally lost to sigbt
She did hold tofyether !" Tbro,ob oil |
those long bours of Terror the i;ttIa house
-reaIing and staggaring MT times anT
tbumneS and iam5ed by f,oating debr ~
baId to,,atbar and in III. col, daSs,-, 800
dong s:all there" az Mr. Rupn eYnrsssed
il. and ali the children. aycent NeIIy
slept peacefuIIy. as If lniled into daensr
slumber by the rocking of their one com
mon cradle. They appeared to be in the |
middle of the river, for there was pIentv of |