St. Landry democrat., 1885-09-12

which he and hundreds of others mad
settled, having bought and paid for it,
and holding, as they supposed, incon-
testable titles thereto.
When it first became known to them
that corporation would contest with
them the right to their homes and
farms, a pt rtion of the settlers threat
ened ven geance and declared they would
give up their own only with their lives;
but John loved peace better than con-
tention, and knew by experience the
difficulty of fighting bodies that have no
souls within them, and he had said to
his wife:
"It is no use, Marty. The Philistines
are upon us agin, and we have got to
git. It's hard, I know; harder fer you
ner for me, for you was brought up sort
O. tender like and ust to better things,
an you've worked hard and gone with
out much, and now when we was just
gettin' a start agin' after losin' what
your father Civ us an all we had added
to it, on the spot where you was born,
it's mighty tough, bu6 Wen have to
stand it.
They can't put us off the place for a
time, any way, for some of the fellers
are goin' to fight EN- with the law,
though 'tain't no use, for they'll take
everything they want in the end; and
they want it all. But while they are a
dom it I'll try an win enough to make
another home for you and the babies.
I'll go to California, Marty, and make
fortune, while you stay on the place
with the youngsters, and by the time
they git ready to turn you out OF this,
never fear but I'll come back with
enough to take you to another home
an better one. May be it is for the
best, after all. May be I'll sit rich
enough to 90 back East and buy the
old place where you was born.
And so John Parsons had got to-
gether what money he could by the sale
of their few head of cattle and sheep,
leaving the family with one COW to sup
ply them with milk, had kissed the
babies as they lay asleep in their cradle,
had kissed the wife who for long years
to como should only know such sleep
as comes to those worn with ceaSeless
labor and study of how to make the in
come meet the expenses which must be
met, and had crossed the plains and
mountains that lay between his home
and the Pacific Ocean, hoping to gather
enough gold to repay them for all their
past labor and sufferings.
AS John had anticipated, some of the
homesteaders had contested with the
railroad company the right to the land
for which they held deeds from the
United States Government, but only to
find by decision of the last court of re-
sort that individuals have no rights
which corporations are bound to. re-
spect, and in the end to be handed over
to the mercies of those whose tenderest
mercy is a cunning which led them to
move slowly on their prey, exhausting
the resources and hopes of the settlers
by slow degrees, and letting their first
fierce anger burn itself out or give place
to hopes born of tales of yet better
country to be found in some distant
State or Territory where they would be
free to again build themselves homes.
While in most cases the delay in
evicting the settlers was but robbing
them of so many more years of their
labor, in the case of John Parsons little
family it was, however little intended.
blessing; for from the land already
cleared Mrs. Parsons had been able to
make living for herself and children,
aided only by Erastus, an orphan boy
whom out of their native goodness of
heart John and Martha had taken to
their hearthstone and their affections
ten years before. He was now a robust
lad of fifteen, tanned by the sun, tough
ened by work, and with sturdy air of
independence, born. in part, of the
heavy responsibility which he had been
taught rested upon him as "the only
man about the place, = in part of nature
itself and showing itself in his eyes. and
through the childish words and actions
which had once led John Parsons to re-
mark to his wife that ''the little cub
weren't exactly lackin' in willingness to
claim what was his'n."
When Mrs. Parsons had finished read
| ing aloud the letter from her husband,
the little girls stood with hands crossed
upon their long gingham aprons silent
| ly gazing at their mother, who as silent
| ly arose, laid the letter upon the rude
mantel over the stone fireplace. and
took up her household work where she
had left it when neighbor, in passing,
had brought her the letter.
Her mind was too much occupied
with thoughts to which the letter had
given birth for her to be fully conscious
Of what she did, but force of habit, born
of the cruel necessity which compels
nine out of every ten of the wives of
laboring men, and especially of farmers
the world over, to be constantly ION
the 60" always busy, always at work
for others, held her to her usual round
81 duties. even while her mind was