Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1889-10-04

DO you hHoW YOUR BTdnupd . ndlue'
Eyes. sir. it is Reuben Thayer."
"What town does he live in?'
"He lives in Ohio, but l forget the
town"
Cant you remember it?"
"Im afraid not. But l have it on a
slip of paper here. Do you want it?'
Eyes, l do. What were you going to
do with it2'
"I-you won't never tell, will your"
"Indeed won't"
II was going to write to him and tell
him everything, but l was afraid to
write, and didn't"
Look here. I've thought up little
scheme, Can you keep a secret
Eyes, sir if ought to, can"
well, you ought to this time and you
must. Now we'll go in together and put
up a little job on your pa and ma.
Well write to Mr.. What s-his-name-
your grandpa, l mean-we'll write to
him and tell him all about this land
trouble, and I'll bet you anything it
turns out all right. If it don't why there
won't be any harm done, and nobody
but you and l will be disappointed.
Now what do you say to that
IL don't know. Do you think it
would be right
"Why, of course. There couldn't be
any harm in it, could there?"
mo, sir; and l think it would be
very good idea"
Then III write the letter when | get
back, and you must keep perfectly still
about it.
Il will, and if it all comes around
right pa and ma will be happy. Won
der what the agent would think"
"Why, he'd be as glad as he could be.
The buggy rolled back across the prai-
rie, and after Jenny had waited few
moments to listen to the Gathering of
the horses feet she went into the house.
You were so late, Jennie" the mo-
Their said, that l began to feel uneasy
about you. | was afraid you had lost
the way"
Jennie then told about her experience
of the night and her meeting with the
stranger who had brought her home.
"What was his name?" the mother
asked
"Oh, l never once thought to ask him.
He was a good, kind man, though, and
wish he was the agent instead of Mr..
Babcock. Don't you, mother
81 wish some one who has more heart
than Mr.. Babcock was agent"
1.-The gentleman said Mr.. Babcock was
not TO blame, though, and that the people
judge him wrong"
That's all very well to say, but people
whose homes are taken away don't see
it SO well. What does Mr.. Babcock care
if we are turned out of doors without
dollar i'll the world? People who are not
robbed don't know"
a week passed and, though the doc
tors visits had been regular, Mrs.
Skaggs' condition had not improved, and
the doctor thought it likely not to i'm
prove while her mind was so burdened
with care and anxiety. Jennie had
been kept close to the house since the
night she met the stranger, and during
all the week she had seen no more of
him.
1t was late in the afternoon of Satur-
day and the doctor had made his visit
and departed. Jennie came out to the
fence to watch him as he rode away, and
was still looking after him when she saw
across the prairie a moving object so dis
tant as to be almost indiscernible. After
a while the object passed out of sight be-
hind a rise, and when it came into
view again, ten minutes later, she could
distinctly see that it was buggy.
"The stranger coming back" she
thought, land now l shall know about
grandpa. All, if he writes good letter,
or says something good for ma, won't l
be happy? There's two people in the
buggy Wonder who the other can be-"
Within half hour the buggy drove up
to the gate, and Jennie, still waiting, saw
that she was right, and that the driver
was indeed the man with whom she rode
home that night. But there was a
stranger, too, a tall, pleasant looking
man with gray hair and beard, and the
horses had hardly stopped when he came
tumbling out, and, without waiting for
his companion, tore away towards the
house and entered without word to any
one
Jennie stood staring after the strange
man and wondering at his actions when
the other approached and taking her in
his arms kissed her, saying:
"Our little scheme worked out splen-
didly, didn't it?''
els that him?"
That's your grandpa, and he's going
to help your pa and ma out, and"-
"Mr. Babcock can't hurt them, can
he? You're SO good and kind"
Don't you think Mr.. Babcock would
have done as much as have doneY'
mo, sir, I'm sure he wouldn't. You
seem to like him, but I'm afraid you
don't know him as well as we do He
hasn't taken your home from YOU"
"No, he hasn't, and he hasn't taken
yours of his own choice. l know him
quite well, little girl, and though he is
not as good as he ought to be, he is far
from the sort Of man you think he is,
aud he's just as glad as you are at what
has happened to you and your parents.
Don't you believe thatp'
There was twinkle in the mans eyes
Ia .