Walker Lake bulletin. (Hawthorne, Nev.) 1883-1926, 1889-02-20
A SHAPELESS CHILD.
Bertha's Adventure With Her
Carpet Rags.

at is too bad Jake Grant light have harm.
sssed has horse and taken the carret-rags
up to old Harrett's tonight. Ii they are not
there bright ;llid early in the morning, she
will go to weaving Mrs. Suratton's tirst,'
and Bertha Howe ceased her impatient
tramp across the floor, and peered anXiously
out of the window to see If any one were
going by with whom she might send the
huge bug of rags, reposng so quietly III the
corner, that night as she had promised.
No team was IN sight, anu sic b;,cSsan the
tramp again, SO exceedingly annoying to the
tall, soul-viSaged woman, who sat by the
open door, busily plying her knitting needles
in the last fading light of day.
She gave a sol rowful toss of the head, and
the fast-grewing stocking lay at rest IN her
lap as she said. irascibly: "Neice Bertha,
you arc consummate fool Do you suppose
That Jake Grant will be so accommodating
as to cart your rags to the weaver's, when
you refused to go to the picnic at Beech
Grove to-day with HIM. No, indeed, can
assure you
"Well, I'm not certain that it makes any
particular difference the girl retorted
coolly. "'Where there's will there's
way afavorite maxlm of yours, auntie, |
believe" an odd little twinkle in the dark
eyes, half hidden by their thlcket of lashes,
NJ abominate Jake Grant. He is regu-
lar clodhopper1-not tit to escort any pretty
girl to a picnic, much less the belle of Shad-
owville. Don't scold, auntiei I'll manage
to get the rags to old Harriets somehow.
II we didn't live on this dnlBy back street,
where no one ever comes, unless" and now
a bewitching smile flashed across her dark,
piquant face, Ian adlnircr OF mlnc, 1t would
be no difficult undertaking. Asitls, won
der if | couldn't shoulder that bag of rags
and go on my way rejoicing, asking no
odds of any one. What do you say, auntic!"
'That you've lost what little sense you
ever had,' snapped the irate woman, MAX
ing the needles cltck-clack llvelier tune
than usual Harriet Springbottom lives
nearly thl'ee-qunrters of a mile away, and IL
good part of the journey lies up steep,
stony hill, and you complain that you are so
tired every time you draw pail of water
from the well. You're bundle of contra
dictons,o
al suppose 500 resignedly.
She left the room abruptly as she spoke,
a bright idea striking her. A few moments
later she called out merrily:
There's a conveyance at the door to bear
aunt"
Charity Howe arose, frightened up her
Eyeglasses with piece of channels, put
away her knitting work in slow, methodi-
cal manner, that, to say the least, was sim
ply exasperating, and then went to the door.
Her glance roved up and down the road, but
no conveyance greeted 1t.
You are IL thoughtlcss girl, Bertha, but
IL 10 .x.,,lv la af In, iflx RI,
your aunt
i" But am not joking" replied the girl,
81 am in dead earnest. Behold my vehi-
cle!'' and she dragged before tnc astonished
woman an Old baby carriage that had been
lying perlt in the woodshed for years and
ycars-the identical carriage that Bertha
herselfhal ridden ia when chubby, bright
eyed baby,
1t was u sad-loolling, rickcty affair, the
top destroyed long ago, but it had two
wheels, something that answered for Il
seat, aud a crooked handle which had been
broken in the middle and tied together with
string. Not a word did Charity Howe
utter; she turned her back on her niece,
entered the room, and resumed her knit
ting, while, nothing daunted, the girl put
on her wide sun-hat, conveyed to the dilapi-
dated vehicle the bag of rags, and set it
partly on the scat, with the remark that,
"as it was twilight, the passcrs-by would
take it for a baby out for in airing. And
then-why, yes, not thought of it-they
will take me for its nurse. Wei, no mat
ter. If only the carriage don't give out Ii
is such Il sickly, superannuated thing. But
now I've started Eli have to take the risk. y
Taking hold OF the handle, she gave 1t d
pull that sent the thing on two wheels along
at a rapid rate, and made 1T give vent TO "
wheezc that was decidedly asthmatc. AS
she emerged into the front street she found
the sidewalk crowded with pedestrians the
road was alive with gay equpages in which
her little turnout looked shabby beyond de-
scripton; but tho lively scene that met her
gaze, the vexations she had to encounter,
did not deter her from venturing farther.
She pulled the hat low over her lace, and
dragged the wneezy carriage through the
crowd. The rag bag sitting bolt upright on
the seat, every body peering euriously at
her as she passed
As she mounted the steep hill that led
to Old Harrict's, she paused u moment to
take breath. and at thi2 iuncture two men