The Wahpeton times., 1888-11-29
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1
~ Would they put lferin the asy-.
hum, she wondered, ..sif they caught
her?" ~ !.
Folks would surely think she was
crazy. She stopped at the stone wall
to rest, and looked back timorously.
Far behind her stretched the meadow,
q symphony of olive and green in the
late fall. Here and there by sunken
boulder stood soldierly golden-rod,
or berry bushes clothed now in scar.
let and gold. At intervals in lifelong
slope stood solitary trees, where flut-
tering, brittle leaves fell in the gen.
tie chill air. In summer time she re-
membered well the hay makers rested
in the shade, and the Jug with ginger
water she made for the men was kept
there to be cool. She seemed, as she
sat there to remember everything.
The house was all right, she was sure
of that; thekey was under the kitchen
door mat, the fire was out in the
stove, and the cat locked in the barn.
She held her work-hardened hand
to her side, painting a little, for it was
a good bit of a walk across the
meadow, and she was eighty years
old on her last bir rthday. The COWS
feeding looked home-like and pleas
ant.
"Good-by, Critters" she said aloud;
'smeny's the time I've drv' ye home
an MIXED ye, an I allus We eat by
the way, nor never hurried We as the
boys DONE"
With a farewell glance she went on
again, smoothing as she walked the
scattered looks of the gray hair fall
ing under the pumpkin hood, and
keeping her scant black gown out of
the reach of briars. Across another
field, then on through a leafy lane
where the wood was hauled in winter,
then out through gap in a stump
fence, with it's great branching arms
like Il petrified octopus, to the dusty
high road. Not a soul in sight in the
coming twilight. John, the children
and the scolding wife who made her
so unhappy would not be home for
an hour yet, for East Mills was q
long drive.
Down the steep hill went the brave
little figure, followed by anodd shad-
ow of itself in the waning light, and
by tiny stones that rolled so. swiftly
they passed her often and made her
look behind with q start to see, if a
pursuer were coming.
They'd put me in the asylum.
sure" she muttered wildly.
At the foot of the hill she sat down
upon on an old log and waited.
Across the road, guarded by big
sign, "Look out for the Engine" ran
two parallel iron rails, that were to
be her road when the big monster
should come painting around the
curve. Atlast the dull rumble sound
ed, a shrill whistle, and she hurried
to the track, waving her shawl to
signal. This, in the conductors ver-
nacular, was ga crossroads station"
where he was used to watch for peo-
pie waving articles frantically. The
train stopped, and this passenger
was helped aboad. He noticed she
was bright-eyed old lady, very
neat and precise.
GLOW fur?" he asked.
"Bostin."
"Git there in the mornin'' he said
kindly, waiting for the money, as she
opened a queer little retic ule, where,
under her knitting, wrapped in a
clean cotton handkerchief, was her
purse with her savings of long years
the little sums Sam had sent her
when he first began to prosper in the
west, and some money she had earn
ed herself by knitting and berry,
picking.
At a crossroads, as they went
swiftly on, she saw the old sorrel
horse, the rattling wagon, and John
with his family driving homeward.
She drew back with little cry, fear
ing he might see her and stop the
train, but they went on 80 fast that
could not be, and the old horse logged
into the woods, and John meyer
thought his old Aunt Hannah, his
charge for twenty long years was
running away. At Boston a kindly
conductor bought her q ticket for
Denver.
otis q long journey for an old lady
like you," he said.
"But I'm pert for my age," she
said anxiously; 81 never he'd q day g
sickness since 1 was a gal"
"Going all the way alone?"
"With Providence" she answered
brightly, alert and eager to help her.
self, but silent and thoughtful as the
train took her into strange land
scapes where the miles went SO swiftly
it seemed like the past years of her
life as she looked back on them.
''Thy works is marvellous" she lnur-
INJURED often, sitting with her hands
folded, and few idle days had there
been in her world where she had sat
and rested SO long. In the day
coach the people were kind and gem
erous, sharing their baskets with her
and seeing she changed cars right