Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1892-03-10
s.GRACIOUs''-As SOUTH AMERICAN
ROMANCE.

Mr.. Farlow was compact business mar,
bright, shrewd and kindly. He had seen
a good deal of life in his day, and it was
not commonplace life either. One even
ing, as we sat costly together, he told me
how he found his wife, for he knew
loved her as well almost as he did, and
his tone was trlhe more confidential than
usual. If | sin to repeat the story it must
regard to my friend, though there is
nothing that any man could be ashamed
of in it, except the paIading of ones heart
to the world But there is way in which
the sacred heart can be told about that
makes it remind us of our own sacred
hearts and the days Of our own courtships
and little affairs, which though we may
pretend to have forg them, are always
vivid enough If anything happens to call
them up.
But will let Mr.. Farlow tell his own
story for ne can tell it better than |
could:
you know my marriage all came out
of Southern American trip that | once
made, and that is the interesting part of
the romance. was only twenty-0ne,
and in the employ OF shipping company
III Dan TIduCltCD. udu DStn WIFI tUCu
about year and half, and think they
trusted me a good deal, in fact they must
have done so to have sent me on the ex-
petition they did. A captain and his
crew had ran away with ship belonging
to the company, and they wanted ne to
catch HIM He had started with his booty
toward Cape Horn, and if be once fairly
left the South American waters he was
Fo I InnrJoI tloo,
est schooner that sailed out of the Frisco
bay, and we stretched every inch of canvas
for the south. The runaway had a good
two days the start of us, and was nearly
as good sailor as we. But we resolved
to do our best and hope for luck. La any
kind of an enterprise man may always
hope for luck, though he cant really
count on it. Al any rate, it serves to
keep the courage up.
''ln FIVE days we sighted the islands off
Columbia and stopped to make inquiries.
The vessel we were after had been sight,
ed two DAYS and half before, and was
going straight for the Cape. The news
was rot encouraging but we set off again
with two days and half, instead OF two
days to gain. But we still hoped for luc&,
or some happy Thought. Ii was not luck
but a happy thought that finally decided
me to leave the ship at Valparaiso and
strike across the country to Buenos
Ayres, in hopes of heading of the robbers
before they cleared that port Sailing
round the Cape | knew to be hard work
and often SLOW, and with good luck | could
probably catch the yesSal, CT at least hsy6
gained IN the chase
The trip across the Andes and the
vogt ,NIyius bavOv,1 rua,z a No -, n
to me It took fortnight Of the hardest
tramping and riding ever did in my life
but saw some things | had never seen
since, and never will again. The guides
that we start with were crusty, mali
cry night vixen lay down to sleep on
the open ground whether l should not
wake up TO find my throat cut. Fortu-
nateiy that never happened; hut the erea-
son was that they had the better part OF
my money before we set out. Other
wise think my life would have been
held pretty cheap by life insurance
company.
Half way up the mountain we found
an old monastery and little chapel Al
first 1t seemed deserted, but when at last
we heard baby cry, we knew that there
were human qeings about. We peered in
at a little old kitchen and saw there lit
tie old woman, who seemed to have been
born about the time the kitchen was built,
say a hundred years ago. We asked for
food dng lodging In every language we
knew, but the only reply we got was a
grunt aad a gesture towards ann inner
door. We tried the door, but some one
was leaning against it on the other side
BY this time | was quite out of patience
and lifting the latch of the door gave it a
terrible push inward. Some glass thing
fell and broke IN thousand pieces on the
stone floor and as the door swung open we
saw a white old priest stagger backward
In little oratory of the chapel and on
the paving were the fragments of long
black bottle that had contained some black
liquid. The old fellow looked very much
frIghI ened and deprecatlug and FASTENED
to explain that at his age he found drop
now and then necessary. We made his
feelings all right ON that point by Offering
to drink some more with him, if he had
any. 1t appeared that there was num-
Der Of bottles In the cellar. The old priest
and even his wife, the old woman who
seemed unable to speak, proved very hos.
pltable III the end and we went on our way
early the next morning
'At last the mountains were passed.
and before us stretched a broad, level,
grassy plain, and twenty miles away,
though the distance seemed much less,
lay csty bali the size Of Boston, but
whose site was on map in exist ance.
and whose maine probably not ten edu-
Gated men in this country had ever
heard. But that was forty years ago.
OF course things have changed since
then.
Here my guides said they must leave
NE, and thought [ cntreated their com
pany TO the city, they utterly refused.
therefore set out alone.
You can imagine my desolation at be-
ing left, even by the desperate black
hued rAen who had been my companions
so far. Even they had come sense OF
humanity In them, some sympathy fol
my loneliness. though it was moody,
silent sympathy. But now | was alone,
strange city that did not know befol
NE, the Andes behind me. If | was ever
homesich IL my life it was on tfat morn
ing. If | ever wished ! were at home
with wife and children about me, that
was the time. AS | tramped on | dream
ed Of all these things. | CAREFUL, ra-
called all the young ladies CT my ac
quaintance. 10 see if any of theno would
do for a wife. Some were more or less at
Jr2ctlve, but there were many dificuttieS
n the way of really marrying one Of them.
After time | turned from a consideration
of the individual female TO a consideration
of the money question. That seemed less
doubtful, for | had begun to know my own
powers and trust them. | then and there
resolved that would work 10 longer fol