The Kootenai herald. [volume] (Kootenai, Idaho) 1891-1904, 1892-06-10

nut cltllOFef arc Il SiSub . AIouDiS.
II s'pose they be"
"Cap'n Seba Brown was a clever sort
o. Teller, " said Mrs. Emmons. Il lnowed
him when he was boy. Ho married
pretty black eyed girl up Edinburgh
way. How bad they would % felt if
they'd knowed their little boy was on
the town."
Il guess likely they would" said
Eliphalet, slowly rising. II think,
Sarah, I'll go down to the store a spell.
It's sort o. lonesome here.
A sort of pang pierced Mrs. Emmons'
heart as she watched him stride slowly
down the hill
1T is lonesome" she thought, and
him. | wonder if he'd be more con-
tented if we had lively little fell
Ter around like Bonnie Brown. / won
der how far the child's got2 Two miles
is pretty consid'ab spell for q little
creetur' like that. P'raps he's got most
as far as the quarry road My good
ness alivel" she cried, jumping sudden
ly from her chair as CHASTITY recollec-
ton presented itself to her mind; II
never once thought he might stray into
that old quarry road, where false
step might pitch him down fifty feet
among the sharp rocks. And such a
pretty little chap as he is, tool won
der never thought O that!"
She caught her gingham sunbonnet
from its pegs and ran out into the pur-
pie softness of the dewy twilight.
At the end of the lane she saw her
husband leaning over the bars and
staring at the pale crescent of the new
moon.
"Eliphalet," said she, I'm mortal
'fraid the little boy'll stray into that
quarry road"
Jerusalem" uttered Mr.. Emmons.
Let's go arter himl Or stay-you're
better walker than be- You go down
the road as fast as ever you can, and
I'll wait here"
''And s'pose find him, what1l dor
why, bring him back herel"
"Eh2''
Bring him back here" reiterated
Mrs. Emmons. Hes a pretty, frank
spoken boy. | guess we can manage
some way"
She stood in the path. watching and
waiting.
Parson Barrett had always preached
how merciful the good Lord was. Surely
he would not allow am innocent child
like that to wander to his own destruc-
| ton!
But" thought Mrs. Emmons, wiring
ing her hands, IF he has strayed into
that old road-and the fences are down
1 in more places than one-I shall always
feel as if had sent linn to his death Y
She could not stand there prey to
those rernorseful thoughts. She hur-
ried back to the house, lighted the
cheerful lamps set out bread and milk
and loaf of election cake on the table
and kindled a fire to make the kettle
! boil
"Eliphalet's right" she said. THE
old house would be different house if
there was a child running around it, [
do-hope"-
Here we be, mother!" called a loud
hearty voice, and once more Mrs. EN-
mons indurated heart leaped up in an
swer TO tho words Me and little
/ Benny He was settin' a-cryin' under
the ederberry bushes by the Methodist
buryin' ground. He'd lost his way,
poor little fellerl And wasn't he glad
to see me, thought Here we bel'
Where's the cat? joyfully cried
Benny, running into the room as if GER
tain of welcome.
Benny" said Mrs. Emmons color
fng, "do-do you think you could learn
to call me mother1 If you can I'll try
apd do the best can by you'll"
"Motherl'' spoke up the child, lifting
his rosy lips to kiss her And is he
my father, too2"
The middle aged couple looked at
each other; their herd faces softened
'Eliphalet," said Mrs. Emmons,
wen keep the child
1T shall be as You say" acquiesced
Eliphalet
They kept him, and little Benny
revolutionized the whole house.
Sister Emmons comes far moro
regularly to church Of late, said the
parson. "She's SO interested in the
progress that child makes in Sunday
school, And it seems as if her soul
had, somehow, woke up"
'Our house is different house, said
Eliphalet, "Sarah's left OF frcttin'