The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1888-10-18


"You can have the horse If You want
him. replied Mr.. johnson. a. know
YOU won't hurt him; but YOU haven't
told us vet who is sick or dead
:Theres no one sick or dead, boys;
but Tn going. and going to start to-
night"
"Girl rSn away with another fellow9'
asked one OF the men, with grin.
NO. my girl hasn't run away with
another fellow" replied the young
man, with laugh that some way re-
minded him of what he had often called
the "giggling' Of the girls.
How could he help it when reminded
so forcibly Of what up to the moment,
he hardly realized; that instead OF rum
ming away with another fellow as he
had expected her to do. his girl had dis
missed the other fellow because of her
love for him.
The rough joke sounded irrcsistibly
funny. and withal brought such de-
lightfully warm feeling to his heart that
II is no wonder he laughed. or that the
laugh was just tr.fe hysterical.
What = terrible mistake there had
been. What wretch lie was for not
having spoken mp wien Anneisey first
came counting Lucy, aud % have saved
oil this suffering.
How tender his heart grew, thinking
OF her vino had suffered so-who must
have suffered so terribly al this time.
SUCH were the thoughts that passed
through the Young mans mind as he
walked rapidly towards his boarding
place.
But what il Uncle John was mis-.
! takeni
lie was halfway to the house when
this thought came to him. and he
stopped and stood perfectly still for
some seconds, but not stiiler than his
heart seemed 10 have become.
AT any rate III know the truth"
he said aloud, and then mentally: II
PLAYED the coward once, l II not do it
agan. Uncle John certainly meant
ME to understand that Lucy loved mo
well enough to be my wife, and would
be craven indeed not 10 ask herself
now
Going directly to the she'd where the
roam horse stood. he grcomed him
carefully. then went to the house and
to the low room upstairs where he
slept
Here he ba,hed and changed into his
best suit, beng careful to see that the
few dollars in money which he pos
secsed were in his pocket-book and in
his pocket.
Meantime Mr.. johnson had left the
ditch and gone to the little patch of
ground quarter of Il mile away, which
his wife cultivated as garden, where
| he knew her to be Mt work
When told that Erastus vas going on
a visit to his old home and would start
at once. Mrs. Johnson hurried to the
house and Logan preparing . meal to
tore he hould 60.
Neither of them asked the young man
any questions a. to the cause of hi, sud-
some way connected with a love affair
and were anAiou 10 assist him in every
way possible. Mr. John. on offered to
loan him al the money he had. which
wa, les than two dollars, and Mrs
John on futterca around, trying to get
something Il little extra for him to eat,
helping him with his necstie, and Offer
| in- to Go a dozen other things as if he
had suddenly become . child. or what
appeared more likely--was going to see
his sweetheart if not. indeed. 70 get
married. And all tho time he was try
ing not to say anything that would
! show how very anxious she was to have
him con'ide IN he-, yet hoping greatly
| that he would do %.
Erastus, in the fir-t flush IF his new
found Joy. was only restrained from
showing Mr.. Parsons letter ard making
a clean breast of the whole affair by a
lingering fear that Uncle John might
be mi taken.
It was really very hard for him to
keep from telling. Mr.. and Mrs. John
| son were the best friends he had here
at the Slough, and he knew they
thought . good deal of him, ard he
wanted to tell them what lovely girl
Lucy was. but could not quite BRING
himself to do so oven when Mis-. John
| SON remarked. rs she fixed his acktie,
that she supposed he would on have
some one else to do it for him now"
and SO he left them wholly in doubt,
and mounting the roam, rode away in
the direction of the foothills OF the
| Sierras.
He curbed his own impatience md
the desire of the spirited roam at the
start, we'll knowing that time would be
lost and not gained by fast riding for
the FIRST hour o. two.
The sun had long since SET when,
having put thirty-iiye miles between
himself and his starting place. lie dis
mounted, tethered his animal in spot
of wild oats little off the road, rubbed
him down with dry leaves and grass,
and rolling himself in . blanket lay
down upon the ground.
II his body was weary he was not
aware Of il, for his heart was filled
with the sweetest hopes; and what sus-
tains the physical powers like hope?
As no lay looking up at the stars. and
watching the full moon coming slowly
up from behind the distant hills and
climb ne a sky that had not known a
cloud for weeks and weeks, he recalled
every incident of his life from the time
Wien Mr.. and Mrs. Parsons had taken
him. a poor. outcast boy, to their home
and their hearts
! He thought upon every act Of Lucy's
which appeared in any degree to indi-
cate her feelings toward himself. and
tried to place one against another, the
unfayorakle against the favorable, in
such way as to enable him to strike a
balance aud determine just what his
chances were. But in this he was con-
scious of failing, for there were many
little instances-acts or words the
meaning of which he was utterly un-
able to determine, which he yet felt GER
tain had a meaning if only he knew
upon which side of his love account to
place them. Besides. it was so very
pleasant to fancy that the favorable
ones outnumbcred the others, if indeed
there were any Others, that he could
not avoid going off into blissful waking
dreams of the future, when he should
have 60. his place at the Slough irri-
gated, and set in fruits, and have q cot
tage built.
He would have cottage just like the
one in the foothills. where they had all
spent so many pleasant days, he
thought; the cottage now abandoned
and going to decay. Lucy would be by
his side always, and Uncle John and
Aunt Martha should bring Johnny and
I've with them, their honored and be-
| loved quests. and ell the misundar