The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1888-02-09

gaunt New England hill-sides 90 not study
| The lofuer trait OF manhood when they
have done their day's work; and as for
honorable instinct, every man Will allow
that is not inherent in woman.
Then she was very lonely; and now that
Joha's gray horses were hitched every day
in front of Mrs. Carter's house she saw less
than ever not only Of John, but of the hired
man, Hiram, who had double duty to do il
the masters absence, and went from his
supper TO his bed quite too tired TO talk.
There was a certain social consolation
on Mondays when black Dinah came tC
wash; but even Dinah had little 20 tell,
| since her old shanty was nestled down in a
warn hollow on the south side OF Huckle
| berry Hill, quite OF the high road. Yet
she was some one to speak to; an item not
to be disregarded in SUCH solitude.
II is not, after all. very strange that Miss
Sophronla, limited to five minutes CONVEX
sation with the few friends in Stanton who
had telephones, should amuse herself oy
| hearing the conversations OF the two Nil.
lers. the growls OF Aaron, the sEarls Of 10
seph. and now and then the shrill inferno
cations of Lyddy Ann Granger, the objec-
| tionable housekeeper.
Shocked reader! did you ever live in the
deep country on an isolated farm!
If not, you do not know what silence ard
solitude are. Imagine clean, sparsely
furnished house, where the ticking Of the
old clock rasps your ear like 4 continuous
ilnell, where not one fly is allowed to buzz
his assiduous life out on the sunny panes
where the very cocks and hens are abroad
all day il the far fields, and the dog lies
asleep just inside the barn door; where the
air is still as MINDLESS lake, and the
chirr OF a suddenly reused cricket makes
You jump; or the swift, ambiguous scurry
OF a mouse somewhere in wall or wainscot
seems Ike the rush of a troop Of horse to
he strained and apprehensive sense; and
the rustic of your own garments sounds
ike the trailing OF ghostly robes TO the
tense ear: the shadow of Il waving bouCh
sta-tles the alert eve. and the roll of pass
ing wagon. the rash of Tutoring swallows
in he chimney, sound like peals OF thunder
and constriage the heart with that elemen-
tai dread.
Yes: this telephone was 4 real social Cos
pei to Sophronia, sniverinC and trembling
N her nervous loneliness; if she had been
reared IN such place, use and want per-
hapS, would have strengthened her against
It's terrors, but until Johns mother died
she had always lived in her brothers fam
lly, ana IN his great house where ten chill
drcn and busting wife made noise enough
through the round year to brighten the
very ghosts out of the garnet, or The mice
out of the wal and where the nci ghbOrs
were abundant aad much given to visiting,
Sophronia had never been conscious of
nerves; nor did she know these terror5
now as the result of nerves; she only con
tided TO Hiram as she dealt out to him he
boiled dinner which he shoveled down IL
grim silence after the fashion OF his kind:
Il do set a sight by that telephone thing:
it's real company. l hev been gettin' real
pernclity along back, it is so dreadful
lonesome here; but now l do sense that
the is people pretty nigh, seein' l can cal
to 'em; it's foiksy to hear that little bell
90, 'pingp every now and then as though
somebody was there. Dinah, she is almost
scared to death with it; she says it is like
hearin' of q sperit talk; same as JOB says
in Scrip,er, when the hair of his head
stood up and he heard voice. But then
he see the sperit first, and that is more
fearsome. Dinah won't bark to it noway.
| can tell who Ills every time. My! l can
hear Aaron Miller snap, just as plain! and
Lvddy Granger bawl"'
BEN a-talllin' 10 'em, hev ye'" CURLY
asked Hiram.
mo, l haven't and 1 amt agoin' to-"
responded Sophronia, sharply; but they
spend the hull o. their time a-gabbin to and
fro | shouldn't think there'd be no grist
ground, never, to that mill l can't take
the horn down to speak to nobody but what
they've got hold o. the wire first, and !
can't help a-hearin' of 'em holler."
Hiram shot a keen glance at her from
under his busy. grlZzled eyebrows: he had
long ago taken her measure, and lie knew
very well now how she had been amusing
herself; but as he always said of himself
that he 'was one who made fortin' mind
in his own business" he offered no re-
marks.
Shortly after this conversation John
King went away from home to attend q
sale of cattle In New Jersey; he expected
to be gone a week, as he meant to drive
home what animals he bought himself,
rather than send them by boat or railway,
which he considered was too great a risk.
The day he left a severe northeast storm
set in. and Hiram set himself to do some
work in the further barn, which he had
kept to do in ''spell of weather." so that
Miss Sophronia had not even the relief OF
his occasional appearance in kitchen or
shed to beguile her solitude, her knitting
had stopped for want OF yarn. and she had
'.pieced up" the last bit of calico she could
find.
As she sat in the dull light OF the kitchen
window, listening to the heavy rush of
rain against the house and the wild moan
ot the wind shrieking in the spout, she
heard the telephone ring; it was joyful
sound to her tired and lonely soul; she
hurried to the instrument, took down the
listener, and heard Joseph Mills say:
s'Say, Aaron! has he ben doin' of it
lg'ini'
You bet!" growled Aaron.
'sWell, l sha'n't come out o-night; the
orookl be up 'crost the road, presume
likely, and you won't grind none in this
high water"
"No; the amt nc use Of your comin'."
"Say, has she gomez
"Went this mornin'."
''Good! you c.u fix him nowp'
~ guess so, by Jmlls!'
Then the collOquY ceased.
Sophronja uug up the listener; thrill |
Il horror run down her spine; what was |
bout TO happen at the Mills!
She had read great many ''story-pa- |
,ers,n such as crowd our country post |
,fices and are scattered far and wide in |
arms and villages; papers full of sensa-
ion, of crime and adventure, of secret hor- |
'ors suddenly revealed, of murders that |
will out," regardless of the unities so |
lear 20 Mr.. Vincent Crummles, and her |
weak brain had been fired with vague, |
yet dreadful hope of experience |
ne some such reality. Here was her |
hanceI 1t did occur to her once that she |
ught to interfere, to try and prevent a |
but 1t rained hard, the horses |
we're gone, and what could she say to any |
egal Official, even if she should reach one! |