Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1890-01-24

home by many cares ANA httle stamina to
to grapple With them.
His daughter Mcnsic seemed east in
in "a different mould; doubtless one of
those Temperatures Of the best in a race
which usually presages turn of the
tide From Tatter's account she was a
handsome, high-spiritei girl, with plenty
VI sense. plenty Of pluck, and Il loving
heart of her own, to all OF which the
neighbors were willing to testify. After
| the death of her ''slacktwisted' mother,
a couple of years before, she had taken
the family in charge and upheld them to
the best of her ability.
That Mensie had lover goes almost
without telling, for, if woman he tender
hearted and loyal To her own, some man
is sure to find il out and seek to appro-
priate.the treasure. Ted Holly, the like
liest fellow" in the district, according To
Sam Tatters, had watched the girl at her
! gallant task and conceived the notion
that it would be pleasant thing to help
her.
/ lbuA tu " ~ IL i'tl - u hi'Nhi-ath
field, such patrimony As might have ac-
crded to him, having been converted into
liquor and poured down the throat of
vagabond father long ere he attained to
manhood. He owned horse. however,
aud stalwhrt pair of arms, all of which
he placed at his sweetheart's disposal.
Mensie engaged herself right willingly,
for she loved him well; but for that very
reason she steadily refused Ia aecede to
his proposal to marry him straight ont Of
hand The man who should wed with
her must assume the burden of her lam
| lily, she said, and there were so many of
them. She could not bring her mind 10
| il all at once. After a while the children
would be larger and could help themselves
a little They had better wait awhile.
Among their scanty possessions the
Vanes owned a colt now three years old
and being broken by Ted to harness. Its
dam had died soon after its birth, and
| Mensie had reared it on bottle like a
foundling infant. 1t was "A sturdy, we'll
grown brute. and with Ted's sorrel formed
as good team as man need want to
shake his lines over. Ii only they could
get wagon now, Ted said, and Mensie
would consent to marry him, their for
tanes would begin to mend.
| For with the opening of the ore banks
across in West Virginia there had come a
fine opportunity for making money. With
a wagon and his good team, Ted figured
out, he could made enough in a week, to
support the family for month. There
would be no necessity to wait until natme
should lift the children into selfsupport.
Ted could take care of them all as easy as
rolling off log.
He hesitated about going in debt for the
coveted vehicle; first, because he knew no
man who would trust him for the purchase
money, and then because he had observed
| that debts were prone to grow and devour
| u mans substance His sweetheart dread
ed debt, moreover, and held it sorry
foundation whereon to establish welded
| happiness.
| Then, just as their longing reached high
seemed fairly to thrust itself upon them,
this wagon of ours had come laundering
along, marked with Menses name, and ap
parently intended for no other human be
ing Sam Tatters, who of course knew all
about their plans and longings. being fond
of them both, and moreover the repository
for local gossip, was overjoyed at Mensie's
luck He sped messenger in haste to
summon the girl to behold this wonder, for
he had no mind to deliver the wagon to
any one else, and so lose the sight of her
face when she should read the label. But
Mensie had no grain of faith in n happen
ing so unprecedented. 1t was one OF Sam
Tatters's foolish jokes, she said, for Sam
was proverbial for jesting. She stuck to
her spinning, therefore, and sent Ted Holly,
who CHANGED to be on n visit to her, down
to tell Sam that she was too wary bird
to be trapped with chatf. Holly, in no
very crcdulous frame OF mind himself, step
| ped along TO the village with the message,
and there to his wonderment beheld in
Sans store yard strong new wagon. as
handsome as clean iron and paint could
make it, lie spelled out his sweetheart's
name on the card fastened to the tongue,
and then, with scarcely word to Sam,
leaped over the fence at the corner near
est the road and sped back through the
| Gap to fetch Mensie and the horscs.
He jumped up ther hill side like hop
| I,,J
bleeyc he fetched ground more'n every
six foot or such II matter. It's steep
hill side, too, an rough as the devil. Ted
didn't kccr. though. Lord bless youl he
never knowed whether twas grayels or
velvet under his boots, he was in such a
swiyet In little while he came back
ag'in, an Mensie with him. She was
trimblin all over like a wind shook saplin'
for Joy An whcnst she seed that thar
wagon standin' thar as natul as preachin',
AN read her name on ther tongue, an
| lowed for certain twas hern the tears
come right up in her pretty eyes, an she
laid her head down on the highest hind
wheel an cried like a baby, an maybe said
her prayrs over it, too, like women will
when anything goes all over 'em An
right then an thar she told Ted he mout
git the license as quick as he had q mind
to, bekase this here wagon was agwine to
haul the whole bilin' o 'em out the ditch"
Tatters paused in his story, and ga2ed
into the fire. followed his example, and
there was silence for a moment.
They'd fetched the chirm along, too;
all seven o 'em, stuck on the horses from
neck to tail Them leetle creeters lodged
about like pa'tridges, so pleased to have T.
frolic an ride home in the new wagon. |
lent Ted some harness to help out with
his'n, an helped him hitch up. Most all
| ther folks had come out to see 'em start
off, an to pass Judgment on the wagon, an
rej'ice with Mensie over her luck. She's
nightly thought of by the naybors Mensie
is Whenst they started off, Ted holdin
ther lines as proud as a candidate whar
have poled majority, an Mensie settin'
up beside him SO pretty an satisfied, an
that coopful o chipun stored in behind, l
lowed twas e'en-er-bout the happiest wag
onload I'd seed for month o Sundays
He sighed as he ended. II seemed
dreadful that this joy must be turned TO
mourning. | felt like brute, but tried TO
harden my heart After all. it was not n,g