Baxter Springs news. [volume] (Baxter Springs, Kan.) 1882-1919, 1893-02-11

hearing distance OF the young girl VINO
Auttered about among the somewhat
.disrcputable-lo looking display of fancy
goods inquired if Barry had any val
entines.
The merchant spread out on the
counter number of those inartistic
atrocities commonly called comic val
-entines. But Mr.. Shredder showed
them back contemptuously.
mot them things!" he said. ''Sump-
in" he lowered his voice and glanced
sheepishly AT the fiuttcrer near the
fancy goods, "sumpin' suitable for a
girl"
Because Mr. Shredder was Il bachelor
and forty-three years old. Barry felt
warranted in rallying him a little on
this evidence of sentimentality.
"Who are you trying to shine up to,
Dave--one of old man lIarper's girls?
Well"
ATS for Prim," interrupted Dave,
grufly.
"Prim?" said Barry, soberly. 'I'm
sorry. Dave, but haven't any but
these left"
There was nowhere else to seek
them, Barry's being the only store at
the crossroads.
Dave turned away regretfully.
"She'll be mighty disappoin ted Lit
tie Prim--"
"Who is little Primo"
The girl looking over the fancy
goods had come up. There seemed no
keeping Nell Estahrooke out of any
thing, as Barry had found when she
had invaded his store before she had
been at the crossroads an hour. What
2ittle her sharp ears had overheard of
the conversation between the two men
had interested her, and she had in
~aded their privacy as irresistibly as
she did everything else.
Before lie hardly knew it she had
drawn Dave Shredder into conversation.
''Dttle Primrose" he said. "She's
my-wal, my sort NV adopted daughter
mine an Simps Hicks"
There was no satisfying winsome Nell
without explaining farther, and pres
emily Dave had told her great deal of
little Primrose's story.
OuC hllcEuOOup dOOuO buICC years OC-
fore, Messrs. David Shredder AMI Simp-
son Hicks, the proprietors of adjoining
claims away out on the prairie, almost
a dozen miles from anywhere, it
seemed, were surprised ont of the
serenity that had hung over their bach
.elor establishment "a comfortable,
weather beaten house built across the
1irid lolf lnt nd
half on the other-ever since its foun-
.dation.
They were grinding corn knife in
the shade of the house when the pipe
of n childish voice caused the complain
ing screak of the old grindstone 10 stop
suddenly. A little figure, almost n
baby, with a thin, anxious face and
great, troubled eyes, stood before them.
please, misters," she piped. my
mamma is jest awful sick, and I'm lost
and don't know what to do The wag-
on is"
Mr.. Hicks released the handle of the
sgrindstone and Mr.. Shredder stuck the
knife in the ground-a very injudicious
way to treat n 1reshly-sharpened corn
knife, ind both interrupted her with a
great
Ivy aur?"
They followed her to the old wagon
that stood just outside of the pole
fence. Aglance into II sufficed to show
them that it was very sick woman
who lay moaning and babbling feebly
ON the rude bed of quilts in the vehicle.
With rough kindness, they did all
they could for her, but their care came
too late, and before sunset the poor
woman had brcathed her last without
telling anything of the sad story that
for her had ended ut the weather
beaten house Of the partners. No need
to tell how they buried her decently,
laying the poor, worn body to rest on
the sunny slope little way from the
house, comforted the orphan as best