The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1890-08-10

HAS stAI the CLEMENTS OF Inc IS1cCureSCue
A few hundred yards from the eastern
bank there is range Of mighty bluffs,
sparsely clothed with oak and cedar, and
cleft in one place where road winds
down from the highlands beyond to cross
a bridge, rustic enough, but heavy and
strong to withstand the spring freshets.
A quarter of mile above the bridge a
dam has been built To turn the water
into the wheels of an old mil which,
lazily turning, grinds out its dole Of
flour and yellow meal.
On this bank of the river are also scat
tered few humble dwellings, each with
its garden patch, and in the summer its
dooryard filed with hCllyhocks, enor-
nous sunhowers and an underground of
annals which grow with riotous luxu-
rance in the rich black soil
On the western bank there is a stretch
of bottom land two miles wide, held by
nature as a private park. Here are
gently swelling mounds with just enough
trees, bright little ponds fringed with
purple IRIS, and glades SO blue with wild
violets in their season that they look hike
a piece ofthe sky.
1t Is IN late summer and autumn, hog
ever, that the scene Is at its best, for
then cardinal flowers, lobelia, villa as
tiers, goldenrod and many othez splen-
did blossoms make n mosaic of color
that would delight the soul O ( an artist.
if one could ever be found filing to face
mosquitoes and malaria nony enough to
transfer Il hint of It's tzautv to his can
vas; for nature IS jea Gus of her choicest
possessions, and pl<ces an angel with a
flaming sword a. the gate Of all earthly
edens.
Every sprng at the breaking up Of the
ice there IS a rise, as the ratives call it,
and for two or three weeks this valley is
subp4 erged; then the water subsidies,
le21cing an alluvial deposit rich as that
On the banks Of the Nile, and on it Is held
carnival Of flowers, malaria fever and
death
On a wild March night when the flood
was at its height a woman came down
the road and stood upon the bridge. The
moon was fl.l. ana although stormy
clouds were scurrying across the sky she
shone out now and then and lighted up
the weird scene and the face Of the fig
ur3 leaning U-28 the rail Of the bridge
md lo5A-lr down at the rushing food.
This is what the moon saw and heard.
4 girl Of 20 years, perhaps, with Il noble,
wom&nly form and a face not pretty
with any mere sensual beauty Of color
and Jintpies and curves, but one which
seemed 10 have had a toe early acquaint-
aIlcc with the hard problem Of hfe-and
yeta beautiful face, withils broad, white
to, sad, dar1 level brows and sensitive
soallth-
A large gray shawl was thrown over
her head and wrapped about her form,
and she seemed to be otherwise comfort
ably clad in plain dark garments
Il should not mind being down there"
she was SAYING TO herself, although l
haven't the least notion of jumping in.
There isn't much 70 1--we for. Ever since
can remember Is has been just the
;same-the long cold winters going to
tnat mean little school through the snow
and sitting among the rest with my feet
freezing; and they disgust me SO, al
though there is no reason why they
should. am no different from the rest,
only fec! a difference Then comes the
frashet- and after that fever and ague
and typaaid and not wretched nights
with millions of mosquitoes.
Il wonder how il would feel to be
among the drift? IsA9uld soon be down
20 the mouth OF the Sender. and there
are always men and boys padding
around there IN skis and du 5outA l
suppose that they would find me and
hook me Gus with their graphing irons.
Il shouldn't look pretty at all When
Clara Grantley died how beautiful she
was in her shroud Of white lacel And
there were flowers on heE breast and IN
her hands and they kept her three days.
wonder how they woUld dress me7
That's II they got me ouc Of tho water soon
enough To dress me At al suppose it
would be jusy cambria, and they couldn't
keep me; there Is 10 rsaan. When people
are poor ana i've IN TWO roone1 cabins
they have 10 make hasJe TO bury their
dead.
II have no notion Of jumping in. but
whatif should happen ofali IN. wouldit
matter MUCH? Poor mother! know
she would be sorry, but life has been
hard for her Perhaps she would think
was better OF. and father. who always
seems sad. would be sa3der then: and
the boys would cry Lttle, but they
would soon forget me-. and go fishing
and be IS happy CO ever.
When the neiEhbors are down with
fever they want me. but when they set
well they don't caro- for me. They say
that am proud believe that l am,
too, and that IS tie worst Of it. What
have to be proud OF? What will be
come of me? l am nearly 90. All of the
girls know marry before they are as
old as l am, bat l would rather die than
marry any one VINO VIII ever ask me.
s.TT7la-, ~ - N---~v with mother
70 buy calico and musTins and jeans
feel so poorly dressed and awkward.
Why was I born?"
She looked far out over the swirling.
rushing food. There were strange
shapes among the drift white logs which
looked like dead bodies: blackened stumps
with gnaTled and twisted roots bearing
the seInblance Of hideous monsters:
masses of foam spread out ike shostly
wings. and branch of s7sVaGlcre like a