Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1891-11-12
find a creek thar, an wood ter cook our
supper by. Well camp thar"

The prairies were covered with u car
pet of tender Green grass, enstarred
thickly with deer tongues and other wild
flowers which accompany the renewal Of
the year in Kansas. Yellow breasted
.L........ .rpln - - the now
conner, from some dead indigo or iron
weed hard by the roadside, While red
birds darted like fame across their
way, and perched on a last years sum
flower stalk, trilling notes Of silvery
sweetness Occasionally a hugo jack
rabbit would go leaping away with erect
ears across the rolling plain, and coyotes
might be seen lowering along the brow
of a ravine bowling disma!ly.
offs plumb wild lookiu' ont hyer in
Kansas. amt it, pap:' the girl remarked.
"Yes, I'm crfear1, too, yer xoin' ter
git powerful homesick out hyer," an
swered Adam l'ainlet.
"No, amt amin to git homesick,
pap. It'll be plumb different, know,
from livin' ermong friends; but we've
come out hyer to make us u home of our
own. an amt goin' to git honesick."
And she set her lips firmly, as was Nancy
Hamet's habit when summoning her
forces of resolution.
"God bless yer, Nancy! Yer brave
one, an don't know how I'd ever git
erlong without YER said Adam in a
fond tone.
"Jest see the posies an the purity birds!
! haint goin' to be without friends with
such company as them to cheer me out
hyer," she said in a cheerful voice.
That evening they encamped on the
banks of a small, thinly wooded stream.
While Hamlet attended to the tired
team Nancy gathered some dry twigs,
with which she soon had fire started.
Then she put on larger sticks, and when
she had secured a good bed of Goals she
went to the stream, filed the tea kettle
with water and fixed it to boil. This
DONE she went to the larder in the
wagon, cut several slices of bacon, pre-
pared large pan of fresh biscuits and
was fitting around her camp fire like a
veritable sylvan nymph of cookery.
Hamlet had picketed his animals to
Craze on the delicious grass along the
creek, and had just come back to the
wagon when horse1nan came riding to-
ward the camp.
In the rOseate tints of sunset Hamlet
saw that the stranger was u young man
of about tweuty-six, handsome and
straight as Il pine. He wore semi
Indian suit of fancifully fringed leather,
and his light curly hair reached to his
massive shoulders from under his wide
sonbrerO.
He rode up to the wagon and halted
before Adam.
Good evening, stranger!" he greeted
the mover.
Good evenin' sir" returned the hunch-
back, looking admiringly at the stran-
gers fine pony and tasteful equipments.
"What pint air yer admin fur. stran-
GER asked the horsemJn, his blue eyes
following the movements of Nancy as
she busted herself with the cooking over
the little camp fire, It beyond the spot
where he had reined in. He could not
help thinking Whit n pleasant picture
the girl made in l. dari; cal.co dress
and Largo checked UUn. while the aroma
Of tie coffee and frying bacon which rose
on the prairie ar WAS very alluring, in
dead, % rigorols, hungry man.
II DO aimln' fln Cnrolire county
answered Hamlet.
yer don't say.'
Yes; I've swapped fur claim down
ther."
"Wherbouts;"
son stream thet's called beer creek
NV Ill, I'm grad o that. live Nigh
Deer creek rlvs'it'
Tibet so:" and Hamlet regarded hi:
future neighbor wit. fresh Interest.
YES, nave cattle ranch near the
Ncosho river, bout five miles scurhW EST
o Deer creek. WAsr yer from, stra. ger::'
From lllinoy."
II understood yer ter say az yerC
swapped fur somebody's claim dow
Their, Who did yer swap with
ok Pender,'
"Gtreat Scott! Has TX left Their country
fur good an swappcl Of his claim"
Yes, there's no doubt about it, sir
FUR We made q fair M squIr trade, a
my dartet Nancy thar can testify"
Il amt a-doubtin' yer word, stranger
ut all. Only TX had Il mighty yal'abl'
piece o siIe ou Deer creek, and it d.dn'
never seem as ef he koered to part with
it,"
"Waal, Yer see Ponder come back t,
his folks putcy homesick, an hearin' o
LAY wantin' to g OUT 10 Kansas, he jes
up an offered to make . swap Of hi
claim for some stock had. $50 The land
yer say, is yai'able:"
Yes, TX Pender's claim is tho best o.
Deer crsrk. But yer hey no writn's t.
prove the claims yers, hey YER"
, "No.hin' only Tx Penler's own writiu
. to say ther swap is genywine, He sal
ne hadn't never contracted fer tn
claim"
mo, fur reckon Tx, ike some othe
chaps / know, wasn't keerin' to hoy tn
> land leaguers git up necktie social fu
9 nls special benefit"
y The land leaguers? What's them?"
t "Ther settlers who contend tibet cor
gress has no right to sell the lands te
I some ole monopolist. but thet they hev
plumb right to pre-empt any homestead