Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1886-11-25

y
splkyus Nowadays 0ou'
guess we'K have tea A.hs,. ),
saiq her mother. I'm kinder no5 5,
hsshy; a cup o. hot tea'u do ne s a",s's
all round. - " ny US good
~ NJ p; meal over, santha Ann washed
wy a.shes IN silence. Seven. s q
: 1909 e,ocA struck, and still no sign OF the
Ae ~ Santha Ann went out. for the
twentieth time, and peered down az
moonlighted road. She was verv ~,
easy; but when she reflected that Ma
had good deal of business to attend
TO- and Achsa suggested that he had
on one or two occasions before sta;i
overnlght, she gave him up at II and
they al went to bed, the widow ~
Guided, who kept her own counsel
could they have seen not morath,,
two miles from home, in q seclnasd
hollow, the object of their sol;c;t,,da
i'lst asleep, the iaded horses asIeep
a. we'5 ana the moonlight falling
upon the ,portly figure OF the
9eaeoh, whose hat was pulled
down over his face, they wonld
hardly have dreamed OF midnicht as.
sass,ns, boarding house expenses. and
eattie iced, as did Santha Ann the
whole night long. '"o
All would have been well for che
deacon at least, if, as the SIM rose
ana he rose, too, he had not ennlIed
70 the bottle for comfort. Some wav
ne dreaded to meet Santha Ann. when
he realized that he had been ali nioht
coming home and his befogped brain
eraved more OF the stimu.an1 which
had so basely betrayed him.
At early sunrise the three wouao
sat down to breakfast, and that meal
over came the thud OF horses feet
ana a shriil voice beating about the
push TO the time OF 1--WE w-won't
VERY loudl go home till morning:
we w-won't" (still louder) ego home
tiil sunday morning, thic) ANYHOW. /"
sattha Ann looked at Achsa with
the heartbreak in her face.
Sanity (hiel. ole girl. come ont
here,--see up, Dob,-come out he,ei
I've brung We home (hlcl present
nail a dozen OF 'em-eome along. SAN
thy-long q long-upsy dumpsey, San.
Well the dlsgraceful truth was ont
Santha, seeing the horror struck face
oil the widow, as well as the pity in her
eyes, Strengthened herself at once
Her pride took fiee.
"Aehsy," she said, with FLASHING
eyes, your fathers been miobty
lucky or he wouldn't "a took q single
glass o beer. shouldn't wonder EFF
he q made ~ thousand dollarsr'
Then they both went out. The
farmer was literally singing happy. He
sang as he shook hands, sang as he
unioaded, rodred when he saw the
widow, and wanted to dance with her;
and finally, after drinking a cup OF
strong tea, he sat down somewhat
snbdned, while the widow discreetly
left and went into the kitchen.
"Weil, Sanity" laughed her bus-
band, as the hired man took the horses
away, ''see if | haven't remembered
ye' An didn't tech no liquor; / only
took some beverage once or twice.
San.ha Ann gave him a look.
swell, didn't, Santha Ann; you
look for yerself. Them's the articles,
but ! don't know what they be-"
Then he sat back and sang:
Come, We dlsconsolate.
Seems il amt felt so musical in
clined for a year. See, there's a Gear.
pet-s-sweeper an cradle, an an ice
screamer. an lots more things"
Man alive?" exclaimed Santha Ann.
in dismay; what on earth do we want
OF a carpet sweeper? We havn't got a
carpet in this house,
cit some, then, Sanity Ann-git
lots OF EN-; they're Jest laying round
loose at that store. Git plenty, or
the carpet sweeper'll be kinder lone
some," he added with a maudlin grin.
"And what do we want of cradle?"
was the next question.
"Well, it sort O. reminded me Sanity
Ann, looking far BACKYARD into futer
years, that we was all babies once
all babies once, Sanity Ann, the re-
collection was kind o. subduin', an
sort o wanted that cradle to mediate
over. You krow it's from the cradle
to the grave. The good book tells us,
Sanity Ann, Beloved brethren, we're
all pilgrims an travellers; an even
Bunyan's Pilgrims Progress land its
infant head in a cradle. So / Jest got
it for a remembrance, Sanity Ann
from the cradle to the grave
He took out his handkerchief and
held it to his eyes. Achsa tiounced
out of the room, and with an exple-
tive not at all fiiial IAN up to her
own room.
''But what do you mean by an Ice
creamer?' tearfully urged his wife;
"that thing with the churn handled"
THAT is it, kchsy Ami mean San
thy Jane; you kin make gallons OF ice
cream for Achsy an me.
But we never see ice here, cried his
wife, at her wits end.
Hire Spot pond next winter, San
thy Ann; Jest hire Spot pond, the hull
of it, an we'll hev corner in ice our
selves an make 'nough ice cream to
last all winter.
"And what is this?" asked his vile,
picking up a large roll.
"I,ots 20 sheet music for Achsy;
'nough to last her as long as she lives.
Got it at a bargain, Sanity Ann-got
'em all at bargains, horseshoes an
ALL"
Santha Ann groaned. "But Achsy
hain't got no pianner." she said de-
spairingly. "Nor no organ, nor any
thing" -.
1--WE can buy 'em, Santhy-lot's OF
'em; they'll be handy to hev IN the
family" muttered the farmer, now
half asleep.
and this awful thingl" Santha
went on, picking up hideous steepie
crowned hat-"the awfulest thing l
ever saw, and the coarsest. It's a
mans straw hail"
"Tain't. i got it for Aschy, n l
got it cheap, too"
This was too much. The woman
threw the hat across the floor, Stun
bled over bundles and boxes and farm
ing implements, and made for tine
door. She turned around for final
question. :,
"Did YOU git something for q suit OF
clothes?" she asked, her facial muscles
contorted. -
~ did, Sanity Ami did," he an.
swered, solemnly, with a side wave Oh
his right hand. 81 got nifty yards.
Make 'em loose, Sanity Ann-mak q
zen, loose; there's plenty o material.
Between CRYING and crying the WON.
an went out OF the room, ana ssC
down in the kitchen, almost ready 10
despair. a. s
now wiping up the last OF the Dishes
mo one can't say but he's agood pro-
wider"
"Pd lust like to hear anyone say
anvthing about it'll" muttered Santha
Ann. Indignantly, and the widow
meekly subsidized. en- ...,o,,s
"Well, s'pose | must MI tne ,ainpsi;