The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1888-08-18
HOLLO!"
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Mrs. Jane Graham was not very at
tractive looking woman, nor was She
considered very amiable one. She
lived quite alone by herself in a tiny
cottage on the outskirts OF the town
She had lived there some ten years, moi
caringto make acquaintances. She went
regularly to church in pleasant weather
and once year the good old minister
called upon her. He always spoke oi
her as "Nliss Graham" The few neigh
bors called her "NIiss Jane" il. distant
sort OF manner, but the saucy boys and
girls in the neighborhood used to cal
her "Old Miss Jane
| Now Miss Jane was by no means old
To be sure, her hair was beginning to
show little gray, but then Miss Jane
had had the blacklist ofblack hair in her
girlhOod, and that often turns before the
age OF thirty. Some front teeth, too,
were missing-whether from lack OF
care or from an accident no one knew
or cared to ask. Her face expressed ir-
ritability. She looked as il things went
wrong, and ! rather think her appear
ance expressed the truth.
But with all her sour looks, Miss Jane
had two soft spots in her heart. The
first spot was the bigger, and was filled
by Dolly, the COW. Dolly was, on the
whole, rather less attractive than her
mistress.
Her expression was not kindly, and
she had broken horn; but Dolly's
looks belied her. She was really very
amiable COW, in spite OF one eye being
in black setting, and the other in u
white; but no one but Miss Jane knew
her gentleness, for no one but Miss Jane
ever went near her. Miss Jane MIXED
her and cared Tor herr put her in the
pasture in the morning, and took her
out at night, and led her into the little
shed, where she was MIXED and fed
with care. Ifanybody had listened, he
could have heard Miss Jane repeating
softly to her sometimes cOuplet from
Mother Goose which she remembered
from her childhood!
tCushiccow. bonuic, come let down y6Rr milk,
Aud will give you gown OF silk
And "cushie COW bonnie" would let
down the most surprising quantity OF
milk for Miss Jane, and turn her head
and look at her :out OF those great eyes
in most loving way. =.
Yes, Miss Jane did have a very soft
spot in her heart for Dolly, but nobody
knew il but Dolly, and Miss Jane hardly
knew it herself
The other soft place! No one guessed
that either. 1t was really very funny
thing. And this time neither Miss Jane
nor the object of her affections knew it.
This time it was boy!
He was sturdy, freckled-taced little
fellow, perhaps eleven years old. In
warm weather he went barefoot, which
Miss Jane hated, for she said it was "a
most dirty way OF doing things" In
colder weather he was fully dressed. lie
had no mittenS, to be sure; no earIaps,
no muller, but n warm jacket rather
faded, well-patched pair Of trousers, and
stockings that now were darned, and
now hada big hole in the knee.
1t was some time before Miss Jane saw
all this; but she did see it as time crept
on. At first she saw only the sturdy
little bare feet go by her cottage every
day. At last, to her surprise, one morn
ing, a rough, boyish voice called out,
"Hollow
1t was no quiet, polished, or concilia-
tory voice. 1t was loud call in mer-
ry, careless, happy-go-lucky voice. Miss
Jane was astonished. She looked ut the
boy sharply. He didn't seem to mind,
but trudged on, -,
The next day he called out "Hollo!
again when he saw her, and again the
next day. Still the same CHEEKY, hearty
voice, as il he were saluting another boy
as sturdy as himself. Her surprise be-
gan to give way to quiet interest in the
little fellow, and one morning, to heI
own establishment, orshe had no thought
of it the second before, she answered
back, "HollO"
1t wasn't very loud, nor very enthu
siastic, but the boy heard it, and gave Z
half nod, as il to say: "That's all right!
and trudged on the same as before,
From that time it was a settled thing
She always said "HolloW in answer tC
his "Holiow Hers grew little more
hearty and he always gave her that en-
couraging nod which meant, evidently;
ali you keep on trying, you'll get there
''if you had asked Miss Jane about the
boy, she would never have betrayed the
interest she began to feel in him. But
it was lust about the time that the
weather began to grow cold, and some
times a sharp frost and good cold nigh
made Miss Jane think about winter.
THAT boys hands do look awful cold,
she said to herself one day. lie can
seem to keep 'em warm. He's a-blowinI
and clapping OF 'em all the time" An,
Miss James little soft place grew LITTLE
bigger and little softer, till she rcmcm
bered n pair OF socks up in chest that
years ago, she had knitted for u brother
who had went away and had never beer
heard from. The socks were new.
She wondered il she couldn't rave
them and make that boy a pair OF init
tens. She did not even know the boy}
name. He was always that boy to her
lie still called out "Hollo!" when he wen
by, and though he couldn't hear her an
swer, he stilled nodded in his cheerl
way,
q Miss Jane set up the mittens. queer
" enough, she set the first one up sew
eral times. She guessed 1t was too BIZ
ut first. mo boy would want his han!
all webbing about in bag" she said
Then she set 1t up so small that she wa
ashamed OF herself not to "have NOR,
sense"
When the wrist was done she fell Il
thinking that shat boy was so kind o
CHEEKY that he'd like a red stripe il
ZEN" He should have n red stripe, AM
when Mr.. Collins called that day, t
take her butter to town, she asked hir
, to bring her back little skein OF re-
yarn.
After this the mittens grew, and it
well they did, for the cold winter ha
come, and the snow was growing deepe
4 and deeper.
I 81 guess he'll want them mittens no.
Z If he ever does, and I'll give 'em to hiI
right away" So the next morning
( when she heard his CHEEKY "Hollo!" sh
raped on the window pane so loud thu
: he came to full stop. But recoverin