Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1889-10-02
THE HUNCHBACk.

Thirty years ago leading from the town
OF East s., in Ohio, to the ~neighboring
town OF Salem, was an old road that at that
time had been in disuse for several years,
only as an occasional farmer would use it
for making a shortcut ''some where" or
boys on a nutting or a berrying expedition.
- The road ran over such q rocky, billy
I, part OF the country, and was always wash
ing ont, making it dangerous, that q more
practicable road to Salem had been made.
One half mile below the town this old
road ran at the foot OF an ancient grave
ysrd, brier grown and abandoned long be-
fore the road had been. Here the road
ran shelving down into q long gulley, bOr-
dered on each side by massive trees, be-
longing to the finest piece oil timber land
in the state and owned by the richest man
near East s.. The place was said to be
haunted, not only by some of the inhabit-
ants OF the old graveyard, but by the
spirit of a man who had hanged himself
there long ago. But there was something
here feared more by the children than all
Ben, the hunehback," who lived in the
woods q short distance from
the road all alone in an old log
cabin. He had then dwelt there ten years
or more. Where he had come from or his
past history no one knew nor cared to
know, 'for never vas as cross or misshap-
pen an object seen." His only means OF
livelihood known was the gathering OF d
few berries and nuts in their season. He
always seemed to have plenty of money to
get what he needed when he made his
periodical visits to the store, which was
every two weeks, and this was all the in
tercourse he seemed to have with the out
side world. The children all feared hin
and the tow boys lost no chance of tor
menting him when they felt they could do
so with safety.
They all knew those woods contained the
finest nuts and berries that grew anywhere,
or thought SO. Some of them even went
SO far as to accuse Johnston, the owner OF
the woods, of bringing him there to annoy
them. Older people knew better than this.
though. Johnston was troubled greatly
by their inroads OIL his fruit and melons.
and laughed quietly t o himself hen "Old
Ben" got ahead OF the boys and gave Them
a good scare. s.
On the outskirts of the town lived q poor
widow by the name OF Gray. Her family
consisted OF three chiEiren-Jsmie and
| Amy, twins, 10 years old, n a little,
Il CANhAyS LA VI ~ 0AAON NOOAO ~ way
had q hard time to get along, taking in
| washing, sewing or any kind of work she
| could get to do. She was a good and sensi-
! BILE woman, and had taught her children
| to be kind and helpful, not only to herself,
| but to others. Already they were begin
ming to add their little mite towards the
/ expenses of the family. One day in the
fall, after the keen, frosty nights had come,
Jamie and Amy had gone nutting. Skirt.
So Ar 4~ur, Alawr .,-lo ~ n-H -1u
the old grave yard, and came out just
above Haunted Hollow. Down the hill
from town came Old Ben, with his sack of
| groceries on his back. Behind were some of
the town boys, intent ON the same BUSH
/ ness that the twins were.
When the boys caught sight of the Hunch- |
back, the stones began to fly thick and fast
at him. Once Or twice he put down his
sack, az though meditating a summary |
vengeance on them, but seeing the distance
whi. b they knew the value of keeping be- |
tween him and themselves, he only shook |
his fist, and muttering something between
his spiky looking teeth, he trudged on. The
boys seemed mainly to be aiming at the |
sack, but one unlucky stone missed it's aim
and struck the old fellow over the eye, |
making a nasty cut, closing his eye instant
ly, causing him to drop the sack which be-
came united in the fall.
The potatoes rolled in every direction,
and papers OF tea and sugar with other lit.
tie things burst from their wrappers. Jamie
drew away in a fright at the storm of oaths
which burst from "Old Ben" But Amy,
who was always the drawer OF the two,
sprang forward to help him. Her delft little
fingers, well used to such work, were soon
gathering the potatoes from behind stones
and in ruts, where they had fallen, and put
ting back sugar and coffee as best she could.
Jamie conquered his fear and helped g. lit
tie. When the sack was again tied securely, |
Old Ben" left off rubbing his swollen eye,
shouldered his burden and left the children
without a word.
A few days after, as Jamie and Amy
were returning from an unsuccessful hunt
after chestnuts, Jamie bewailing his hard
luck in not finding any to sell, with which
he Intended to get a long needed pair Of
boots, they came upon Old Ben sitting on
a log almost the color OF himself. The
twins were giving him q wide berth, when
he called after them to follow the path
they were on down to the old spring in the
woods, above which, on the hill, were more
chestnuts than they could gather, and
added that if he caught them telling the
town children of it he would ''day them
alive Jamie got more than his boots
with chestnuts that fall.
HS IN ACtCE pTc6uMEu Oh LIS Scu- i
erosity, though, beyond what he gave them
And once afteward, the following sum-
mer, they were making O. short cut through
the old graveyard home, with only b
meager supply of bla :kberries in their
buckets, when they almost stumbled over
him sitting by a grave smoking his old
pipe. He growled at them and GOT up to
go away then changed his mind and came
close enough to the twins-who were max
ing away as fast as possible-to tell Them
the finest berries were to be had.
The twins kept their wi counsel, a,nd
no one knew where they got such q fine lot
Of berries for sale.
The fall following was wet and sickl v.
and poor Mrs. Gray had a long spell Of
sickness, which, when che got over it, left
her untitled for much hard work, and little
Sadie had been more ailing than wa usual 1
fall, also. The winter came on cold and h
severe. After Christmas Mrs. Gray had to
the twins from school; not only be- v
cause their clothes were too poor and thin -
10 60. but to help her get wood and make a
living. :
There had been days and days that the
;Old never seemed to abate. As the snow
vas piled and drifted everywhere Jamie got
'ome jobs OF shoveling snow that helped
hem a little.
At this time one night, when Jamie cameI
n from his work, he said: Mother, Old
Ben did not come to the grocery last Sat-
that's the first time he has ever
missed. The groceryman said somethingI
be the matter with him."
Mrs. Gray was too full Of her own
roubles, and more to come which she saw
up surely in the future, to pay
much attention to his talk. Amy was too
Dung to take trouble seriously; so she took
keener interest in the fate of Old Ben, and
oaxed her mother to let Jamie and her 60
md see what was the matter. Her mother
would not give her consent for the old road
vas unbroken, and she thought the chill
lren too young for such q task.
Blu Saturday passed again, and no news
Ben. On Sunday the sun came out
promising to be- warmer, and Mrs. Gray
ave in to their entreaties, and let them 60.
t wa a terrible trip down the old rutty
Dad, drifted with snow, but the children
bravely ahead, sturdy Amy in the
When they got into where the old
abin stood, there were no signs OF life
and it was only after repeated
.nocks that the children thought they