Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1888-03-23
E0WELLS' B0YH00D.

second winter. which lOUnl ~ 81 II thert.
ialt % WAS Justly thoug't ~ ! .Aou'i 'cuve
ta.se vain delights and 20 10 earn mt
money IN a printing oAiccin ". Twas
thcuAh 81 young. IA good composition, swift
and clean. and when the foreman Of the
printing Office appeared one day at ow
cabin. ana asked il | could come and take
the place Of a delinquent hand. there was
no question with any one but myself Tat ]
must 20. For me, a terrible homesick ness
fell Instantly upon me-a homcsick less
that already, IN tine mere prospect o: No
sencc, pierced my heart, and filled ny
throat. and blinded me with tears.
The foreman wanted me 10 90 back with
him in his buggy. but q days grace was
granted me, and then my Older brother
took me 10 IL. where he was To meet
uy father at The railroad station on his re
surn from Cincinnati. 1t had been
iug. in the soft. southern Ohio fashion,
out the clouds had broken away aud The
.veuing fell in a clear sky, apple-grcen
along the horizon. as We drove on. 1his
color of the sky must always he associated
for me with the despair that then hlled my
soul. and which | was constant y swallow
ing down with great gulps. We Jokcd.
aud 1ot some miserable laughter out of the
efforts Of the horse 10 free himself fron
the snow that balled in his hoofs. but |
suffered all the time an anguish of home
sickness that now seems incredible. All
the time ! bad every fact Of the cabin Life
before me, what each Of the children wa
doing, especially the younger ones, and
what. above oil. my mother WAS doing,
and bow at every moment she was look
ing. | saw the wptched little phantusm OF
myself moving about there.
The editor 70 whom my brother deliv.
cred me over could not conceive OF me n;
tragedy; he received me as il woru the
meTest commonplace, and delivered zoe in
turn 10 the good man with whom ! vas &c
board. There were half a dozen school
girls boarding there, too. aud their gayety
when they came ID added 70 NY d,soia
ton.
The man said supper was about r.sdy.
and he rcckooed | would get something &c
sat if | 10 ked out for myself. Upon re
lection. | answered that ! thought ] did
DOT want any supper. aod that ! muS go
10 and ind NY brother, whom ! d t1
tell something. ] touLi him at the station
aud told him that ! was going bore With
him. lie tried TO reason with me- oI
rather with my frenzy al homesicAness,
and ! agreed 20 leave the question open IT'D
NV father came. but 10 my own ~. ~
was closed.
Ny father uSc eeted. bowe,n some
thing thai had not occurred 20 tiiher Of
us, We should both stay This somc5
possible for noe, but not az that boarding
bouse-not within the sound Of the laugh
,r Of those girls, We went 10 tho hotel,
where We had hcefsteak and ham and eggs
and hot biscuit every mosning for break
fast, and where We poid e. apiece for The
Ecek We stayed. Al tho end Of this time
the editor had found another hand, and
NC went bone. where ! was welcomed a.
from q years absence.
Again | was called 70 suffer this rial
tie chief trial Of my b~oybood-hut Il can.,
10 "A milder form, and was lighteued ~ %"
DOT only 10y the experience Of survival frou
il but by various circumstances. This
time | went TO D.. where one of nv
uncles was still living. and he somehow
lGlrued the misery | was in. and bude mt
come and stay with him while | rmaincG
in D.. was very fond OF him AMI OF
,he gentle creature, bis wifc. who STOOL to
me for all that wa, naturally and tonven
tionally refined, a type Of gracious lowell
ness and worldly splendor.
They had 81 only child. u whom bel
cousins presence was n con tapt Joy
Over them all hung the shRl nw Of fragile
health. and | look hack NJ them througi
tue halo OF tbcir earthly death hut The re-.
mCmbranCe can nI make them kiudc
than they really vero. With all that
was bomcsick etill. ! fell asleep with III,
radiant image Of our log cabin before m
eyes. and | awCke with NY heart ike lea,
IN my breast.
| did not -cc bow | could Get ,hroucl
the day. aud | began 10 fcol i: with UiSci
able tears. ! had found that by driukiu
u good deal Of water al my Meals ] coul
keep down the eobS io< the time bein.
and ! prscticcd TIM device 10 the surpris
Ind alarm Of my relatives, who wer
uouhled with the spectacle Of MY uupl,
Iral thirS.
Sometimes I left the table and ran ou'
or a burst OF tears behind the house
very night after dark | cried there alone
Bui ! could not wholly hide nv suffering
md / suppose that after awhile the sight o.
u became intolcrablc. At any rate. 1
blessed evening came, when. rctur inc
from work, ! found my brother waiting
Tor me at my uDcle's house; aud the DeXl
morning we set out ont foe home in tb'
keen, silent dark before the November
dawn.
We were both mounted on the italic
footed mare, | behind my brother with
my arms around him 10 keep him on better
lud 50 We rode ont Of the sleeping towr
and into the lifting shallow of The woods
Ihey might have swarrped with ghosts OF
indians, | should not have cared; / VIZ.
going home.
By.and by. 40 we rodo on, the birds bc
Ean 10 call one another from their dreams.
ne quails whistled from the stubble fields
and the crows clamored from the tops Of
the deadoning. The SQUIRRELS raced along
the fence. rails. aud in the woods thel
stopped half way up The holes 10 bark al
u, the iays aruttcd down the fhivering
branches 70 Offer a passing insult aud det
ance.
Presently, at |. little clearing, we came
TO u log cabin; tic blue smoke curledN from
lis chimney. and through the closed dooi
came the soft, low hum Of n spinning
wheel. The red and yellow leaves, heavy
with the cold dew. drippcd around us; and
was profoundly at peace. The homesicb
will understand how it was that ! was y,