The Bad Lands cow boy. [volume] (Little Missouri, Dakota [i.e. N.D.]) 1884-1886, 1886-01-21

favor Of piqnancy to the gossip, aad
gave q wide play Of fancy for conjsc
ture, The shoemaker entertained "a
knot Of loungers in his shop with the
opinion that the scandal was that the,
Widowhad caused her hrsb band 8 death
by petrlfying him by d look and one 81
the listeners, after the laugh had died
away had shazarded the guess that
twas that the widow or Almira So
phia was going to be narried X, q wit;
tlcism which ELECTED another roar.
Nearly every one held a different
opinion, and each held to his owr
with the greatest tenacity, SO that;
disputes we've nor only numerous and
frequent, but were carried to such
heights that Mrs. Slee and Miss Crumt.
did not speak to each other for sia
months, md Parse ns & Whit beck, the
butchers, became SO angry that they
dissolved their business connection or:
the spot. tjii
In one thing, however, all agreed
that it must be decide eddy grave and
affecting the moral character of the
accused. As to the accuser, that was
equally difficult to fix upon. Suspii.
lcion rested upon several, who in turn
resented the imput ation angrily,
while the feeling of. nistrust pervadine
the Dir, and likely to fall at any time
on no one knew. whom gave to the
community q general sense Of restless
suspicion. III
There is no knowing how long the
mysterious Islander would have con.
tinued to disturb Algonac, or in what
further complicatio ns its people would
have become involved because oft,
had it not been for Aunt Parnel Bias.
sit, who was won't to boast that she
5"meant to seeTas fur into a nlilstunas
any bod y could ,n and who had sithe
courage and perseverance, to probe the
matter to the bottom.
.'Well," she triumphantly an
nounced one day, stopping on he,
homeWard way where Deacon Hal
and his wife sat on their porch, I've
found out what there is to that scan
dal business. 2i,,t. Vt Il 4 Il
"You have2 Do tell usl they both
exclaimed: III !. t;.{3 at
i ''That's just what I stopped for,
though l ought to be hum this minute
skimmin' the milk for the calves; but
/ knew you d be proper glad to hear
it. Well, Igot tired OF hearin' folks
say first one thing an then ano ther,
and TOLD Benajah I was goin' to
know the rights Of the story; so after
done up my dinner work and baked
some pies for supper and breakfast
clapped on my things an run over to
Mis- Matches an says /: a$
well, sister Hatch, I'm glad to see
you around. I hadn't seen you nor
Almira3 Sophia to mettin' lately, an
I didn't know but you might be hav.
in q spell OF your rheumatism. Al
I'm we'll enough, says she, pretty
short like. !,
.Almira Sophia hain't been havin'
another touch Of that weakness in her
back? y says l.. 4 "
. No, she HASN'T says she.
WELL then, if you amt sick, i hope
you ain fell from grace, or are havin'
doubts in your mind about the doc.
.trine?' 81 IS 3t,5 N.
as I don't think we've fallen from
grace as much as soma other people,
says she, as stiff as steel-yards, an 4
you want to know why Almira So
phia and I haven't been to meetin'
can tell you; it's because we don't
care to 20 where we've been slandered
as We have by our own church mem
bers. .8. II .5 i%55ti
'slandered!' says I, what hev they
been q sayin' s
II shouldn't thinkyou'd need to ask,
says she; I'VE couldn't 60 on the stree,
without bein' stared at so, that we'v
had our mail sent to Honeda,e.'
But what hev they said? I've beer
to hum pretty stiddy lately, an
haven't heard anything, AN that
was gospel truth. i:Ss
i don t know as care to repeat it.
says she. but if people don't stoI
talkin' about US they may get into
trouble. s$S;.
And she shut her mouth as if to say
that's all$you'll find out by me;' but
land alive, I've known Mis- Hatch
ever since she was Hester Miggs, an
her an ME sat on the front seat in the
old red deestrict schoolhouse; and
can't scare me by puckerin' her lips
an rollin' the whites Of her eyes.
& But what is it that's been said2'
KEEP sayin'.
TO think that people should put
on us because we air widowed and
fatherless,' says she, san' we've al
ways tried to live as respectable vim
men should. If Almira Sophia had
acted like some girls could mention
shouldn't wonder; but leave it tc
you if you ever saw any unbecomin9
conduct on her part.
An she wiped her eyes an looked
out the winder where Almira Sophia
was picki1{|some posey seeds in the
I liked to have laughed right out at
the ldee, for Almira Sophia was an
old maid before she was out of baby
close, almost as stiff an prim as she
is now, an I don't believe would know
how to act improper if she wanted to-
But i stuck to the pint, an she told
me; and what do you suppose it is?'
and Aunt Parnel paused to heigthen
the dramatic effect of her narrative.
II can't imagine!s T., exclaimed both o.
her listeners, as they bent forward
with eager interest. DO tell u.s.
i;;5#"Well, slowly and impressively-
"she said that Lavonia Pool, who
was her husband Is cousin, told her
that Arista Blair told her. that she
heard Fidelia Waters say that Alnira
Sophia had been to. church so steady
lately she guessed she must have set
her cap for the new nlinisterl''