Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1888-01-12
Back 10 the old Place.

Grand Trunk depot, in Lewiston, sat
gray whskeyed old fellow in broad
trimmed hat lie had been studying q
timetable with some perplcHity, ana
had just laid it aside. Aquestion from
him, relative to the starting Of the
Grains for oxford county, was intro
duction enough. His voice was
hoarse, but not unpleasant. His m
Election was odd. Being a "down
easter" it was safe for the writer to
guess that the stranger was from the
west.
From the westP'
.'You bet, was the reply.
Going to Oxford county,"
That's where I'm going"
Conversation vas desultOry until the
westerner opened up.
Said he: ats thirty-two year since
/ see the hills of Maine. | was raised
up in Oxford county. reckon / ant
thought o these hills since ! were a
boy in copper-toed boots, with a good
old daddy-too good, God bless him,
for nary such youngster as / were.
j left home when | were l6 and went
out west; then came back and went
TO sea. coasted eight years, and in
'55 went on Il deep sea voyage and
brought up in California. I've been
there ever since, Have come back
now"
"Alonop"
"Alone? Yea, alone That's the
bother Of it my boy. Nary a darned
soul there nor here as ! knows of, that
cares whether ] get here or not--a
lonesome old man. Don't you do it,
Take my word for it, it's awful. For
thirty-GYe year nothing to think of but
work and dig and dive No wife.
Never had none. No friends except
the boys in the diggins when | first
went there, and in town whore I've
been runnn' little business of my
own for the past eight years. Nothing
ahead of me for the past twenty years
but getting rich No letters from any
body as | knows Of. Nothing in my
dreams but money. Nothing else in
the visions of the mountain peaks
nothing else in the changing surface Of
the Pacific whenever I've caught Il
glimpse of it, I've been n sordid,
mean, low-lived skiuilint part Of the
time and roisterin'. cll-of-a-poor
fellow tho rest of it. Lookin' back, it
makes a lump in my throat, boy, lido,
honest, and agree that wasted life
is the awfulest thing beneath the
canopy of blue. 1t makes me sick.
] don't like TO think of it, | like 10
talk, ye see, t. keep away from think
ing of it."
Coin back to the old placoP'
THE old place? Eli Yes, the old
place Lcastwise that's what lrcckon
on What do You suppose made me?
Hadn't thought O. home for forty-lve
years. Hadn't been to church any to
speak of. 1t were only just song as
did it,. A little old-fashioned song
that | heard in the evening, three
months ago, bout mother that wanted
to know whore her wandering boy
was. 1t came up out O the night way
off thoro beyond the mountains and |
thought of my old mother, God bless
her, and of the old place. ! couldn't
sleep for cent, that night. | turned
and twisted and sweat great drops.
kept thinkin' about home and about all
I'D ever read or heard about it. Seems
as though | could see the old lady
face looking into mine, with eyes full
Of love. as good rs she did when were
kid, | thought it over for Il day or
two, Lifo didn't look half SO rosy out
there. Fact is, / wanted to so home,
Just home, nowhere else, and you bet
started when made up my mind,
think | only kind O want to see the
grave of my mother and fix up the
family lot, you know, and do you
know, my boy, / have been sort o
holdin' ON to have n good cryD some
thing | amt known for thirty Year,,
and when I'm done with that, aud
when I've shiod around and seen all
want to OF the old place, I'm goh1 to
Boston and see brother of mine and
20 back again beyond the Rockies and
die there with my face toward the east.
could afford TO do it, and amt the
sort to be ashamed of it. lie me tell
YOU one thing, though, all Of life and
all its gold amt worth the loss of you
mothers love. Put that down to keep.
For if YOU was me YOU would be able
TO prove it, and you wouldn't run any
risk Of being lured away from it by
any of the other things of earth, Its
the best thing the Lord giyes us, ant
the last thing, Pm thinking, lie ough
40 take away"
- Go