Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1888-10-04

| M@Azs:..@lM;
| W. N DGs 992S VIZ
he MANAGED TO CONVEY THE UNcoN-
sCIOUS MAN TO THE LITTLE LOG HUT.
The preachers slight form stag.
| gered under the task, but, by a series
| OF heroic efforts, he managed to con.
vey the unconscious man to the little
log hut where he lived alone. It was
many days before the sufferer could do
| more than sit like a helpless child in
the old splint-bottomed rocker and
watch the preacher as he limped
back and forth attending to
the wants of his unexpected
guest The stranger had been
badly hurt. The blow on his head az
he came in contact with low-hanging
limb, had very nearly fractured his
skull, and the kick of the horse had
broken several ribs. However, he
bore his pains without murmur, and
did little but hold his peace and watch
every movement of the young preacher.
The latter wondered, as the days passed
by. why his guest gave not the least
account Of himself and expressed no
desire to see or send any message to
any one. He did not mention his name,
and the preacher, not given to prying
into the affairs of others, did not ask
it. Each day the preacher seemed to
work harder and grow paler. Night
~ he preached at one of several log
school-houses, and nightly he walked,
limpingly, to and from the place of
worship, unless one of the congrega-
ton furnished the means of transpor-
tation, and as they rarely did SO he
most generally walked.
During his absences the wounded
man busted himself with reading the
scanty literature of the house or
thought fiercely and often half aloud.
One day, there came a letter add
dressed in a dainty feminine hand, and
the preacher had almost completed its
answer when the hour arrived for him
to start for the little log church.
After he had gone, the invalid saw
that the letter and it's unfinished an
swer lay on the homemade table, and
without scruples proceeded to read
both.
'tFrum his sweetheart" the invalid
said aloud as he finished reading the
letter. ''Pore leetle gal, kin almost
seem to see her as read them lines.
Thar she is. way back East waitin' fer
the day when her lover kin send the
money to bring her out yere to him.
The time has ben mighty long one
already, she says, but she'll wait fer
him if hit takes half her life. Brave
leetle girl! Bids him keep up his cour-
age fer she is shore he'll soon git the
money, fer every body's so generous in
the West, and will pay him we'll for
his work, she is certain"
The invalid paused and shook one
hard fist at an imaginary auditor.
"Yas. hang We! Pay him wellp Vas,
you'll pay him well wen yer dad
blamed souls get bigger. If you was
white you'd pay more money an do
less gruntin' in church. Look at hitp'
he went on, with rising wrath. ''Yere's
a man an Christian a-workin' the
life outen his crippled body to save yer
souls, an in return you give him jest
enough to keep him from plumb starv-
in. All the whole kit Nv We air good
fer is to raise horses fer me to run of. F"
Again he shook his fist fiercely at
the imaginary auditor.
..Thar's dirt fer We, the dad-blamed-
est dirty dirt ever / seed worked on a
man. Look at hit! Yere, fer workin'
himself to death fer yer souls, ye pay
him so leetle that the time when he
kin bring his leetle waitin' sweet
heart West seems years OFF
Vas, an yere / am, a-doin'
We no good an stealth every one o. yer
horses kim git my hands on. In my
case, We club together an offer re-
ward Nv two hundred dollars jist to git
me. Give him starvation wages an
have him all the time, an offer two
hundred dollars jist to have me few
hours. That's reason, haint hitP'
Then he turned to the unfinished
answer to the letter. Though simply
told. it was story with a world OF
pathos in it, and the reader snuffied
suspiciously once or twice and rubbed
RUSTY sun-burned hand across his
ewes. 1t dwelt but lightly upon his
trials and spoke most hopefully of the
happy future when they should meet
AGAIN. There was pathos in his very
. ~ xuac auaiust almost