Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1889-06-12

me around, and almost seemed to for
get my ugly face. And I.-Well, it's
all over now! I dreamed; that was all!
But If Sharpley--"
He did not finish the sentence, but
strobe along the wood-path.
Before the girl had reached the
house a small boy, mounted on a
wheezy horse, dashed up to the rickety
pole-fence and uttered a shrill whoop
that aroused old Jerry Pottle so sud-
denly that he nearly fell out of his tilted
chair. The old man hurried over to
the fence, the boy impaired his mes
sage, and the steed dashed wheezingly
away again, urged by the rain of kicks
that the bare heels of his rider be-
slowed upon his rusty sides. As the
girl reached the house, old Jerry
emerged hurriedly, bearing long
brown rife.
"Where are you goin', paw" the
girl asked.
Hammer" said the old man, sternly,
as he strobe away, "shet yo're mouth,
an don't you darst to stir often the
place twell to-mor'.
Some event of much moment must
be at hand. Hammer" was only used
| at such rare intervals that the girls
proper name had been almost forgotten.
Her father, kind in his shiftless way,
usually considered Han" sufficiently
comprehensive, and few called her
any thing else, excerpts Jacks. 1t
had been "Haunie' with him, and
then with Sharpley. just now the
girl did not remember but two previ-
GUS occasions upon which he had dig
nified her as Hammer" One was
| when his wife, her mother. had died.
The other was only last week, when
the Riggs "boys'' had been arrested,
and carried away on a journey that,
after some delays, ended at the peni-
Tertiary, the said boys having been
captured by United States marshal
and his posse while engaged in man.
ufacturing ''moonshine" whisky at a
cleverly-concealeds till-houso.
So, all things considered, the girl
felt sure that the news that little Sol
Bender had brought on the wheezy
horse had been of much moment.
Han stood looking after her father,
and wondering what was about to &C.
cur.
Must be somethin' right import
ant" she said. 'Well, it won't keep
me, spite O. his sayin', Don't you stir
often this place till to-mor'' To-mor'
Il-1m goin' to see it at last-the
great, big, bright world beyond the
timber!''
Old Jerry Pottle did not see Jacks
Hamlin as he turned from the path and
plunged into the timber. Now and
then, as the homely man trudged to-
ward his lonely home, he muttered,
half aloud, in a dreary, despairing
way: 1T is all over, now!' he groaned.
''Hannie-little HAMMER
Night found Hamlin in his small
house, bowed over his homemade ia,
BILE, seemingly savagely intent upon
devouring the contents of one of the
dry books. But the light of the splut-
tering candle could not dissipate the
shadow that seemed obscuring the
printed page-a shadow that in spite
OF his determination, kept resolving it.
self into the face of girl-a bright
face framed in a tangle of wavy hair.
He stared fiercely at the page before
him, and passed his hand across his
vision as if to brush away the shadow
that, in spite of his effort to think of ii
no more, his thoughts would keen
bringing up. And when, in angry
despair, he turned away from the book,
the face was before his vision still.
"Hannie! HAMMER he said, half aloud.
u"
There came n patter of footsteps
without in the darkness, and little
figure with frightened face and pant
ing breath staggered in at the open
door and sank into the first chair.
"Hannie!" cried the man, in aston
ishment.
''Oh, Jacks" gasped the girl. "save
him! Save him! They are goin' to kill
| llm, Ill.,
1t was evident that she was terribly
frightened about something.
They'll kill him-kill him. she
walled. "An'-an' he was goin' to
take me away from here an show me
all the great world, an make lady
Nv mean I'd never have to wear
these old ragged cloze no more. An.
an now they're goin' to kill him!
They drove me away when I tried to
plead with them-my ole father showed
me away an called him SPY. An
you'll save him! You can-you can!
You know so much, an--n
| O"Him? WhoP Sharpleyp"
Eyes. He was goin' to take me out
into the, big, bright world, an'-an'
now they are goin' to kill him"
WAS he going to make you his
WifeP" the man asked, sternly.