Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-12-22

NSNaAA &c GgNii lIOill ltlt Nlll1rA
little speck of crude architecture, the
. smoke from which curlcd sometimes int
Nhe very sky. 1t was pointed out 10 Wis.
ors, who were told. without loss OF
1ne' OF the hermit, his civilization DEFY.
As habits and unspeakable appearances
But il was difficult to exhibit the man
himself. He came down to the VILLAGE
at infrequent intervals and then tarried
only long enough to procure some sinple
necessities and departed without hoIdino
speech with any one. The townsneonle
had tried to break into the privacy of his
homo without avail. They had been 70.
pulsed with looks and gestures which
inspired fear and helped to confirm the
opinion that ''Old Weaver was crazv and
Mad better be let alone"
and surely no man in his right mind
could live the life he lived. His hair and
whiskers showed no respect for the pre.
vailln. fashion in hirsute trimming. and
his clothes were q slap at all decent gar.
ments. He rarely spoke ct all, but when
he did his words were briefness itself.
In summer thew who went near his
cabin sometimes found him sitting ont
side reading the Bible, an occupation
from which they could not easily divert
him
This caused some to decide that he
was "a religious crank" and helped to
dlssIpate the theory that he had com.
United some terrible crime. HiIlsford
was full Of wonder about the herrnit's
past life and antecedents, but as there
was absolutely no way of finding out il
was obliged to remain in cruel Ignorance,
All 1t knew about him was that several
years before the time l speak of he had
arrived in the village, purchased piece
of land on the top of the mountain.
reared a cabin and begun life Of solitude
perfectly incomprehensible to the people
of the valley.
At last they mostly settled down To
the belief that "Old Weaver had been
crossed in love Everybody knew that
love, II it did not run smoothly, could
upset people completely. This gave him
exceptional interest in the eyes of the
young and sentimental. although the
most imaginative among them could not
picture him as having ever been a ner-
sonage capable of inspiring the divine
lunacy.
Never were they fully sensible of his
value as aromantic figure until after he
had been written up for New York
Journal. A newspaper correspondent.
On his summer vacation, wandered into
Hillsford, and, Of course, soon heard
about the hermit, since he was all there
was outside of the usual and uninterest-
ing in the place. He at once spun out a
column and half Of solid nonpareil,
mostly Speculation, tinged with senti-
ment, about the curious recluse.
This had good result. 1t dignifed
the old man in the minds of the Milford
ians. 1t lifted him from the rank of a
crazy old mOuntainoer to an eccentric
hermit with extraordinary sentimental
possibilities behind him.
r.
1t was often said that Weaver would
be found starved or frozen todeath some
time. So every wir,ter there was talk of
looking after him bv those in author
fty, but It ended in talk, as he was not
exactly the kind Of man TO dictate to.
In the vernacular of Simpsons grocery.
he was "a hard one to tackle
In the beginning of the hermit's last
winter on the mountain some hunters.
driven by cold to his cabin. entered and
found him moaning on his rude couch.
They spread the news in Milford, and
the authorities conferred together and
decided that it was time to act. But
what should they do with him? Nobody
could go up to his lodge on the mountain
to take care of him; his wretched dwell
ing contained no comforts. And nobody
wanted 10 take him into his home.
There was the county house, where all
paupers were sent, but that was near
the county seat, seven miles away.
They who were most outspoken in the
matter of having him looked after" and
who owned the largest and most com
Portable houses, "hemmed and hawed''
when 1t came to q question Of taking
him In. Some one, in moment of hu.
name feeling, suggested that the seven
miles journey to the poorhouse might
prove dangerous to the sick man, and
might even throw serious blame on those
who became responsible for it.
However, after much thought and
more talk had been put upon the subject,
the poorhouse faction prevailed, and the
fiat went forth that Old Weaver must be
taken charge os By the county, willing or
unwilling.
The expedition set forth the next
morning. 1t was principally composed
Of the authorities otherwise hard
headed and dictatorial personages. with
that degree of heartlessness peculiar to
the class known as prominent citizens. F"
A heavy snow lay upon the ground, and
the mountain roads were unbroken. A
big sled, generously supplied with straw
and l.nnh loclyr+, l..
The departure Of this hermit capturing
expedition was an event. The postoffice
loafers gazed upon the imposing specta-
Gle with envy in their hearts. though
they cheered the noble philanthropists
roundly. The people at the corner drug
store were all outside waving their hats
and making other demonstrations of
good will and interest. The yarn
spinners at Simpsons grocery held
their tobacco firmly between their teeth
and their hands in their trousers pockets
as the sled went by. This was their
manner of expressing a very warm in
terest. Women watched from doors,
windows and porches, as women always
do, and swarm Of enthusiastic small
boys hung on to the sled until driven
back when half mile out of town.
The philc-Ite- rocched Weayer's
caoln late IL the u.-y after digging their
way through great snowdrifts All this
heroic exertion made them feel more
dominant In spirit than ever. The very
first rap on the hermits door had the
sound Of authority in Il, delivered as it
was by the formidable fist of the town
marshal, backed by the appreciation of
the other prominent citizens who accom-
panied him.
There was no response
The expression Of decision on the mar
shals face decpened as he began to beat
upon the door with both fists and kick
1t with the thick soIes OF his tremendous
boots.
Still there was no answer.
While they were parleying about
whether it was tune to use the ak or
not the closed shutter Of the hermit's
single window opened, revealing his
haggard face, in which blazed a pair of
eyes whose wrathful lightning fairly an
initiated the prominent citizens.
What do you want?' he asked, after
moment of discomfting silence, as
they stood. wordless, under the spell of
his unspollen anger.
I'VE heard you were sick" said the
marshal.
"WellT'
We knew you would need help" said
the Justice of the peace, @and SO came
70 LILY 70 do s0psthing for YOU"