Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1888-12-13
OUR LITTLE WITCH.
How We Found Her and the Bless
ing She Was to Us.

ing She was to Us.
She was an indescribably lean, little
brown creature, with elf locks hanging
around her preternatura1ly old face,
where the eyes, all olive and awake,
looked out of their places" bright as
those OF Browning's gypsy witch:
AS IL she could double and quadruple
Atpleasure the play OF either pupil
The tan of all the sun in the sky and
all the sheen of the sea was on her
skin, and a melancholy like that of the
sphinx seemed to have turned the face
to stone. She sat in q little hut by the
shore, whose door was open; and she
had little dead child across her
knees.
OF course we looked in, and then we
went in.
'-You poor child" I said Tell me,
what is this? What does it meanP
How terrible for you to be here all
alone. Is there nobody"
That's just it, she said, in low,
hollow tone, as if talking to herself,
nobody"
at the little dead three-y ld-baby
just our Elites age-putting my arm
around the elder one as did so.
''You can kiss her if you want to,
said the child, with a sort of gasp.
':She was so sweet"
/ didn't want to, but I kissed her,
and then l kissed the little mother
hi hoh he,
She looked at me again moment with
those fevered eyes. and then she leaned
forward and rested her head on my
shoulder.
There's nobody to kiss me-" she
said, family. ''since the day the wave
tumbled over father and he never came
up. And the baby had fever, and he'd
gone up to town for some medicine, and
was looking out for him. and I saw
him and the wave. It's stormed
week since. OF course. it's stormed.
The sun couldn't shine if it would.
There's nobody here. And there's
been nothing to eat. And"
''And what are you going to do?" /
interrupted.
I'm sitting here till 1 die. too.
Twon't be long, you see." she said,
family, looking up and leaning back in
her chair again. I'm so little it won't
take so long to starve as it does some
times. don't feel so bad, you know,
because l shall see them SO soon now"
.'Starve!' 1 cried. "My dear child!
What do you think of such thing
for?''
ssThere's nothing to eat," she re-
piled, in a dull tone. There hasn't
been this two days. What else shall
dop And I'm-rm glad of it. It's the
only way can have my dear people
againp" she said, with a little dry sob.
Sand of course God meant that /
should, or He would have sent some
thing. / couldn't leave the baby"
He has sent something" | said,
crying myself. He has sent my hus-
band and me. You shall go home with
u.s." and took the poor baby and laid
it on the bed. while the other child
looked at me with half-bewildered
eyes. / proceeded to unpack our lunch
basket and light the spirit lamp, for
Ralph and l had strolled down the
beach for an Old-time picnic by our
selves, and to heat some milk and
water, which / made her drink. Its
too late for the baby" she said, hold
ing it off for moment. L sat beside
her, and in little while made her
drink some more. And then, as she
seemed falling asleep, I went to the
door, where Ralph waited, for a whis-
~ lzrl>
mo, no." she said. quickly, all alert
again; ..baby can be buried where her
father was, in the middle of a wave.
We can row out there in a boat-the
boat came ashore, you know. Baby
would like that best" She said then.
quickly: ..She might, you know, she
might sink and find her fathers arms
he loved her So" How wizened and
old and preternatural she looked as
she was saying this in her thin and
feeble voice! But of course we could
not think of any such burial as she
proposed, and the baby had a little
funeral that outraged none of the pro-
prieties. And as no one in the region
roundabout knew any thing more about
the children and their father than that
they had come there and lived some
months in that lonesome hut, out OF
sight of any but the sea gulls, when we
went away, which was in couple OF
days, we took the little lean, brown
creature home with US.
..For what else is there to do?" l
said.
ST don't know as there is any thing"
said Ralph, obviously. ..And the lit
tie wretch relies on us so that don't
suppose we can put her off into any in
stitution. as aunt Juliet suggests.
mo; it would not do. Don't you see
the child is full of certain sort OF re-.
finement and of strange idealitiesP
Didn't you see her rocking Effie in the