Iron County register., 1885-07-23
CHARfEh VII

Oh OF the SuScOt hancn, SAID John
Parsons to his wife one morning, as he
came under the rough porch that had
been put up in front of the shanty.
He had just finished helping Erastus
get ready to start to market with the
usual load of fruit which they were now
selling daily.
I'm sure fruit and poultry-raisin' is
a heap pleasanter than raisin' wheat,
and there's more money into it, too.
''Only think, we've been here less
than five years now, and we've got all
the fruit CROWN that we kin all of us
tend to, and the money is just q rollin'
in. If the rest of the crop pans out as
well as it has so fur, we kin build a
new house with a verander all around
it next year, and have money left to
send the girls down to Frisco to
school"
..Yes, we are getting along very nice
ly," replied his wife, '.and ought TO
be thankful, I'm sure"
'.As soon as we git a new house
built" continued Mr.. Parsons, ''we
must begin to save up money to buy q
ranch som'ers nigh about here for
Rastus, fer l s'pose we can't in reason
expect the boy to stay with US always.
Human natur' don't change much,
reckon; it's the same on the Pacific as
it is on the Atlantic coast, and hahn
forgot that was mighty anxious to get
a place of my own fore l was as old as
'Rastus is; specially after l got ac-
quainted with certain girl with cheeks
the color of them there peaches hang
in out there in the sun, and eyes that
sort of made me hot and cold by turns,
a-wonderin' whether they was encour-
agin' me, or takin' note of the size OF
my cow-hide boots, whenever they
looked my way.
Not" he continued, "as I've no.
ticed that 'Rastus seemed particularly
took with any of the girls round here
leastwise them as lives far around
here" he added. looking hard at his
wife, as if endeavoring to read her
thoughts.
If Mrs. Parsons understood what her
husband was thinking of, she made no
attempt to reply. and after waiting a
second or two. he began again:
Il don't see as 'Rastus appears to
take particular to any of the neighbor-
ing girls, but whether he does or not;
whether he takes wife from close by
or furder off, it's only fair that we help
him to a start. He's been true as steel
and as kind as if he was our own SON,
and I'm a reckonin' if he and one of
the girls should sometime take no.
ton to hitch up and work in double
harness. there wouldn't be any objec-
tions; eh, mother"
The girls are not old enough to get
T1l,r ~ Do
sons. Jennie is not sixteen yet and
Lucy is two years younger still. l hope
that neither of them viii think of such
a thing as marriage for a good while.
Erastus himself is not quite twenty-one,
and although many young men marry
as young as that, 1 do not think that
Erastus has any such intentions. Not
that he has ever said anything to me:
but as you say l have not noticed that
he appeared partial to any of the neigh
boring girls, although he is a favorite
with all; and as for Jennie and Lucy,
they probably seem to like him like sis
tiers: indeed, he seems like a son to me,
and whoever he may choose for a wife
when he does marry will get an honor
able man for husband and one who
will be kind and loving, am sure" p"
That's so,'' replied John, "'Rastus
amt fellow that will ever goto knock
in his wife and babies around, if he
ever has any. But 1 'spose it amt no
use to try to fix things up for the young
folks Well have to let 'em take their
own head, which'll be just as the heart
directs 'em, reckon. An / wouldn'
want 'em to do no other way, for unless
the heart goes with the hand it amt NO
use for to try to pull together. Well,
now, here's a youngster that ain
bothering his head about the girls, any
way, nor won't be for some years yet,
will you, Johnny? He'll be bossin' the
hull ranch, though, if his mother and ]
don't look out, afore he's big enough to
hunt hens eggs or tie up a grapevine. y
And reaching down he drew upon his
knee and gave great hug to a sun.
tanned. tow-headed boy that had just
entered; the child of their old age, born
the year the shanty had been put up
and the first grape-vines planted.
81 is bid 'nough to hunt edds now,
retorted the little fellow, sguirming to
release himself from his fathers arms.
II did found whole nes'ful out un-
der the roses bush, and you've broke
'em; see."
And he ran his hand into his pocket
and Withdrawing it covered with the
yolk of the eggs stood holding it up,
while the liquid dripped down over his
clothes.
"You shouldn't have put the eggs in
your pocket" said his father, laughing
at the spectacle which he presented
"You might have known they would
have got broken and spoil your new
pants
whats e use Of pantses if 'ou tan't
put edds In e pottits, I'd lite to know, '
replied the youngster as he waddled of
to his mother to be cleaned up and fit
ted for some new adventure. 'Des
tan put edds in my own potts if / 'ants
to" he added, by way of a clincher, as
his father playfully stopped to chuck
him with his finger as he passed out to
his work.
When the seasons fruit had all beer
gathered it was found that the last hal
of the crop had "pa1ned out all right
as compared with that marketed earlier
and it was decided to send the girls
away to school for the winter instead
of waiting until spring, when a new
house was to be begun, and when theil
services would be much more needed
by their mother. But instead of going
to San Francisco they would only go tx
Sacramento, where there was a very
good school under the charge of Prof
Cook, and being nearer they could be
the sooner reached in case they should
be taken sick.
Letting the girls go from her side wa;
the hardest thing Martha Parsons haG
been called upon to do since she lei
John take her arms from around hi:
neck and start on his long journey