The Osceola times., 1886-08-07
A CLOUDY DAWN.
A Story Suggested by the Whistle
Of a Bird.

summer-llke of sounds came clearly
through the warm, still air this June
evening, mingling with the voices of
the children playing in the garden.
Mrs. Hartley listened, too, and look
came into her eyes as though she saw
some other scene than the sunny
garden and fair, green fields beyond,
and the lengthcning shadows cast by
the elms, their leaves glancing golden
in the setting sun. She was a huxom
dame, fresh complcxioncd, with soft.
gray eyes and brown hair; an excellent
housewife for was not the Mil Farm
renowned for lis buffers and cheescs?
Where else were eggs so plentiful. or
honey so deliciousP No wonder
Farmer Hartley was accounted lucky
man
] was sitting in the old-fashioncd par
lor. with its heavy oak beams across the
ceiling, lis dark, polished furniture, and
Old china bowl, full of dried rosc-lcaycs.
and wide-open latticcd windows through
which ilOatcd the scent of mignonetle
and pinks, while Mr, Hartley brought
ont the sweet homemade cake and
frothing new milk in quaint mug Of
old china
AYE, said Mrs. Hartley; "the corn
crake? SO it is, Miss Nelly; SO it is. -
Something in her voice struck me-
'Does it make YOU sad?' | asked. al
like to hear the bird, though it does
make such a strange noise; il always
reminds me of summer evenings when
the giass is long. "
"Yrs; that's when it comes. You
never hear it after the grass is cut Il
reminds me o my young days, Miss
Nelly"
And were they sad days, Mrs. Hart
lcy?n
Not always; but the oorncrake
brings a time O. trouble TO my mind
Run away, Bobby rs a curly-hcadcd.
rcd-checked little lad put his head in at
the door; "the parlor is not for YOU
children. Where is your fathcr?'
Fathers in III barn"
Every well, Run away and tell Sally
TO pick cut the browncst eggs for Miss
Darlington.
Bobby disappeared, and there was
short silence, broken by Mrs. Hartley.
who said:
Aye, mind well hearing the corn
crake that summer when my mother
! ed, and thought the sun would never
hne fair on me again, so full o trouble
md death was it-many a long year
ago now. Mother had been i'll a long
while, and was nigh dying; for her life
seemed 10 go as the graS, grew, and we
knew she would never b,de here ill the
fall o the leaf Father was a game
keeper and we lived in the cottage by
Northover woods Me and Tom Mars
den-hc was the blacksmith at North
over-had been court ng long while,
with fathers consent, for Tom was we'll
to-do, and the forge was his own.
thought a deal of hm, for he was good
10 look at, and strong; never a lad in
the village could come nigh him for
looks or strength. And when | first
knew him he was main steady and well
thought OF by all. But there was a bad
lot of fellows in Northoyer- poachcrs
and >uchlike-and, somehow. Tom got
in with EN-. Father, he spoke to Tom
about it, for he said: dts no good
thinkin' tha can pla' wi mud, and keep
thy own clothes clean; some on il will
stick for surc,'
Tom laughed and told father he could
take care of himself and A. for catching
stray rabbit or E.rd, it were n bit o
fun on dark night, and no harm in it
either.
SAYS father;
"Thou'lt not find it bit o fun il !
catch thee at it. y
SO they parted IN anger, and father
came home saying | must think no more
o Tom, for that he couldna let his lass
wed poachcr.
That evening when the dusk was fall
Ing, | sat by mothers bedside thinking
of it all. Father was out in the woods
and mother asleep, SO the house was
very still, and all the windows open, for
it was this time o. year. And ! heard
the corncrakc in the field nigh the cot
tagc as plain as now, sometimes quite
near and sometimes farther away, rs it
ran about in the long grass. Presently
II stopped croaking, as though some"
thing had startled u, and then there was
little rattle by the lattice like bits o
gravel thrown up. got up softly, not
10 disturb mother, and looked out, and
there stood Tom against the fence with
gun in his hand.
Il thought TO have seen thee at
sundown, Eunice, lass" he said; I've
been waitin' this half-hour by the
brook.
Il couldna leave mother" | says;
"shc's worse and weaker than a while
back, and father is gone into the
woods. He's main angered with thee,
Tom.
"Oh, aye" he says, ''its about the
birds; but it's naught."
shook my head.
Father SAYS he'll not have me wed
thee il thou dost not mend thy ways.
and leave going with them poachng
fellows. What dost thou want with
them? Thou never used to heed suck
like"
IT'S naught TO fret about. lass
they re none so bad as thy father
thinks. I'll get shut on 'em when we re
we'd
What art thou doing with gunT l
asked him.
Nay, lass. thou art getting too curl
Gus Maybe I'm going shooting filter
m &c, he says, laughing.
"fhou'it break my heart. Tom" !