The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1891-02-14
A TRAGEDY.
Ono That Was Brought About by a Mis-
sent Message of Love.

Ono That Was Brought About by n MIS-
sent Message of Love.
am morally certain that there never
had been an excitement over Valen.
tines day in the Cubero section-house
before. There was no reason why
there should be. Away out on the At
lantic & Pacific railroad, seventy miles
from Albuquerque, with nothing in
sight but the igreous mesas, the scant
valley dotted with few Indi an farms,
and the tapering ladder of rails
that seemed to come from nowhere and
go to nothing-it was the last place in
the world for the little and brittle god
to waste any time on so busy day.
There were no neighbors to send val
| entines; nor dwellers in the ugly brown
house to send them to, save the senior
Mulcaheys and their five scions (the
| eldest aged six) and four very frowsy
Mexican laborers. AS for Petra, the
Indian dish-contester, she slept at home
in Casa Blanca, and was not counted as
one of the house at all.
But when No 8 went snuffiing west
ward that morning, and the worn
russell pouch came tumbling across the
snow, valentine had certainly arrived
in Cubero. 1t was the only mail-a
letter for MRS. Kate Mulcahey, Cubero
Section-house, N. M" and it ran thus;
ALBUQUERQUE, n. M, Feb. 10, 1sss.-My Dear
| est Kate: This is the day of hearts and arrows,
| but shall send you no other valentine except
| this little message, We need wait no longer
| to be happy. l have money enough saved up
now. Let us fly from this dreary land ana
make our nest in some more congenial cline.
| Never mind the children--et some one else
| look out for the little heathens. / can not bear
| to have you wasting your time with them
Come to me, sweetheart. Yours devotedly
| ROBERT.
To say that Mrs. Mulcahey was
dumfounded, outraged, paralyzed,
by this unexpected valentine, would
be an inadequacy so utter as to be
criminal or wilful fiction. Language
would fail to Craze the cuticle of her
sensations. When articulate speech
came back, two window-panes yielded
to the eXuberance of her:
"Dinnis! DINNIs An is it hittin' the
bed yees are, phwile the faceliss
divils insoolts the mother av yer child
her? Bang! Ia chair hits the bedroom
door. Come out, ye lowafer! Here's
blaggar-rd writes me his dearest
Ka-ate, an wull Oh floi wid' iml An
niver moind the childerAlit some wan
ilse tind the haythen brats! Hilpl
Mur-r-dher!"
But let us draw a vail. There are
some scenes too painful to be contem-
plated.
The same morning Miss Kate Mullen,
mission teacher of school of ragged
Mexican children at San Rafael, trudeed
to the post-office before school.
81 know Robert will send me a nice
valentine" she was saying to herself
'He wrote me not long ago that he
hoped soon to be able to leave Spicer &
Sanders-he hates book-keeping-and
set up for himself. And then" and
she blushed softly and walked the faster
One letter for Miss Mullen-yes, from
Robert. She walked down the road q
hit and tore it open shyly. And ther
she gave little scream, flung the letter
to the ground, and ran into the house
sobbing: "The horrid brute / ne0eI
will marry him"
Out in the road the mischievous bit o.
paper lay till CHANGED along and picked
it up. 1t was only this:
sPICER & SANDERS. GRoCERS.
ALBUQUERQUE, N. M, 2, 1a
DEAR MADAM:
We are Obliged 70 decline further dealings
with you until your account is settled. w,
have TO pay cash, and so will you.
Yours truly, SPICER & SANDERS.
myself think Robert must hav'
dropped stitch somewhere.-O. +
Lummis in Time.
A Tender Valentine.