The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1889-12-27


There was stillanother person pres
ent Mt our table,-sweet little Jennie
Roberts. She was our Georges
sweetheart; and if they would not tell
us all their affairs. we knew vel
enough that there would be a mar
riage with our family soon. George
was only twenty-onc years old, but
lie worked hard and thought himself
perfectly capable of looking out for
himself and one other person.
How We all loved pretty Jennie!
Her folks lived next door to ours,
and of course we were often at each
others homes, and it would be moth
ing surprising for Jennie to take din
ner at our house two or three times
in n week. We looked upon her us
one of the family; but whenever such
a thing was mentioned, Jennie would
blush quite red.
On this particular day, papa had
written a letter of great Importance
to u firm in Chicago with which he
was dealing largely. Among other
things in this letter was a check tor
one hundred dollars, all certified and
made out to bearer; oil a person
had to do would be to present it at
any bank, and it would be cashed on
sight. Papa came into the sit
ting-room with the letter in
his hand, and asked George if
he was going down town thateven-
ing, and if he would register the let
ter. Receiving an answer in the af-
firmative, he stepped along into the
hall and placed the letter in George, g
overcoat pocket, rs he thong ht.
Re-entering the sitting. room, he told
George that the letter was in his
overcoat pocket, and to be sure and
send it off that night.
Poor George thought no more of
the matter until he was down town,
and then, as it entered his head he
put his hand into the breatt pocket
OF his overcoat to get the letter
to post, but it was gone. Good grac-
ious! What was going to do about
it? He went through all the pockets
of the coat, but no letter came to
view. At last lie came to the con-
clusion that his father had changed
his mind about the letter going that
night, and had taken it from the
pocket of the coat; but, thought
George, he might have said as much
and did not give n fellow this start
about it. So home he went, not
letting the loss OF the letter bother
him any more, and had good
nights sleep withoutany bad dreams.
Next morning ut the breakfast
table papa asked George il he had
,, posted the letter that he had
placed in his overcoat pocket the
night before. George looked aston
ished ut papa, and told him that he
could find no letter in ispocket when
he looked for it at the post-otfice,
ind that lie had thought father had
changed his mind about the letter
and had removedit without warning
him Oft. Papa denied removing the
letter from Georges pocket, and &c.
cused George OF slackness and the
loss of the letter. Hot words passed
between them. and We thought once
that papa would strike George.
Mamma was crying her eyes out, and
the rest of us were keeping out of the
way behind the kitchen door. Fierce
words were spoken on both sides,
for George would only stick to it that
he had not seen the letter or any
thing pertaining to it.
At last the cloud burst. Papa &C.
cused George of taking the check for
his own account. George told father
that he lied. and father ended the
hot interview by ordering brother
George, the pet of all us children,
from his house. George quietly put
OH his coat and hat. kissed all us
children and mother, and quietly
turning to papa, bid him good-by,
stating that he hoped things would
come straight after q while. Will,
that he left the house.
Oh! that was day Of sadness fol-
that household. Mamma took to
her bed with IL sick headache, and
papa went to his work with q sulle1
look on his face that We had never
seen there before.
The saddest duty of all was break.
ing the bad news to little Jennie
She took it all kindly, and seemed a
little d0wn-llearted, but hoped il
would oil come right before long
We all expected to see George back
home again that night or the next
day at the least, but lie never came
Days run into weeks and weeks into
months, butnot aword from George
One day papa complained that thu
lining Of his ovcrcoat had been loose
for some time, and that he wished il
might be attended to. So mamm,
took it from the rack, and getting
her patches, thread, and needles
sat down by the sitting-room window
to mend it. She nended thelining Of
the sleeve and was about to hang it
back on the coat rack, when she no.
ticcd that the lining, down at the
bottom OF the coat, was worn out,
In ripping away the old stuff to re.
place it with new, she pulled out an
old letter addressed to firm in Chi.
cago.
Thinking nothing Of it, she laid it
on tho mantel-piece; and when papa
came home that evening. she gave
him the letter, and told him where
she had found it.
Good heavens, mother!" exclaim.
ed papa, "what shall l do? That IL
the very letter that l thought l put
into my boys pocket, and instead
put it into my own. OH! Lord
forgive me! 1t was over eight
months ago. Where can George
be now?"
Thelook that passed between moth.
er and father was perfectly under
stood by each other. Fathers eyes
plainly showed the sorrow he felt ut
the wrong lie had done his own son,
and the mothers eyes looked all the
sympathy she had FIR the poor ia
Their. who had been too hasty. Papa
was for starting out that very night
to ind big boy, as p! on on big = knees beg
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