Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1889-01-31

ing sounds oil the
y prairie-night and
the faint odors OF
the sleeping wild flowers. 1t had gently
huttered the flame of the candle, that.
hour by hour, had sunk shorter, and il
softly waved long handful that hung
on nail above the foot OF the bed and
was gay with pictures of strange acts
and animals.
Bolt upright in splint bottomcd
chair by the bedside, a man had fallen
asleep again aud again, in spite OF his
determination to remain awake. But,
notwithstanding his weariness, he had
slept lightly, and had often awakened
at the sound of faint moan, or the
touch OF the night-wind as it softly
stirred the G. ect and unruly whisps Of
his mop OF tangled hair, and often
seemed to him, half waking, like the
soft carressing touch of childish fingers.
Every time he awoke with an anxious
start he saw the fever bright eyes OF the
sick child were fixed longingly on the
pictured hand bill upon the wall as it
huttered in the gentle night-wind. And,
each time, when the man had cooled the
parched lips with water, or patted the
scanty pillow, the child had piped:
"Iell me more bout the ole ele-
plant, pappyl"
And the man has told again OF the old
elephant-how he was almost as big as
the ''shack, and was dirt colored, and
had long white tusks and great big flap
Ply ears, and trunk that he swung
from side to side rs he walked.
can he likes little boys--don't he 2"
Likes em first ratel " the man
would answer. thinks heap OF 'eml"
And the fever-bright eyes of the child
would be bent more eagerly upon the
long bill that futteIed ON the wall, and
in spite of his loving anxiety, the man
would nod, his head would slowly sink
forward on his breast, and he would be
asleep from sheer WEAKNESS.
Presently, as the candle burned almost
out, the east grew gray, then lighter.
A turtle-dove, that had winged her way
through the misty half-darkness to
resting place upon the topmost strand
of the settlers piece of barbed-wire
fence, greeted the coming morning with
her soft, solemn "coowoo "
With his dim, half drowsy and half
delirious thoughts fixed on the poster,
the child paid no attention to the doves
call or the coming day, and the man,
sleeping, with his weary head bowed on
his breast, heard not the one and saw not
the other.
If they had looked from the window
of the "shack," and tho gray OF the
morning had turned little more to
gold, the settler and the sick child might !
have seen novel procession passing
along the section-road, quarter of n
mile away. There were queer, canvas
wrapped vehicles and queerer blanketed |
animals that looked strange enough in |
the coming light, but which, denuded of
their wrappings in the glare of the sun
light and on the main street of Range |
City, would blossom ont into the more /
or less gorgeous chariots, cages and |
curiosities of n us-paraae.
But neither the settler nor the sick |
boy beheld them, and the one slept on
in the splint- bottomed chair, and the |
other gazed with weak wistfulness at the |
futering bill ON the wall
The last crawling end of the process
sion was dimly discerned 10y a little
squad of broad hated, iangle-spurred
horsemen, whose galloplng caynse POI
MES had carried them swiftly across
the prairie in the direction in which the
circus was slowly taking its way.
"Thar ]" cried one of the cowboys, as
they reached the forks where the little
worn by-road that passed the settlers
cabin left the section-road. "Thar they
air Come on -
The squad seemed on the point OF
dashing along the section-road in the
wake of the circus.
"Bold on thar, Scotty 7" cried the
oldest man Of the group. "We've got
-"
"But thar's elephant, Slade," inter
rupted the first speaker, with an almost
boyish enthusiasm. "Ketched glimpse
nv him among the wagons, jist as"
Never mind the elephant, broke in
old Slade We've got other business
on hand jest now. Got to ketch a
glimpse NV a granger, stead of an ele-
plant, an sorto-"
''Scrto start a granger procession 7"
cried another of the road-hatted ones.
"Yes," growled Scotty, 'sit'll be a
procession thatll start quick and 90 a.
tesrin'. H'ain't got no time to progic
now"
'.You bet Specially when thar's a
elephant as big's house moyin down
the road away from u.s." said another.
's'Twon't take but little bit" said old
Slade. Eve kin"
"But sposen he shows fight7 Reckon
he'll cut up rusty, Or"
''Let him cut all he pleasesl' broke
in Scotty, savagely. Let him cut
We're able fer him, all the same. Gran
gers is grangersl"
Changers were grangers, and therefore