Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1894-06-07
ISOPHY CLARE'S FRIGHT.
now Plucky Little Schoolma'am
Was Frightened.

80 L AiBab0uCus
A schoolma'am in tho far west-a
haraworked, scantily paid little
drudge, who boarded 'round' at the
various farmhouses, log cabins and
one'storied shanties within an area of
ten miles, and consequently enjoyed a
PANORAMIC view of human nature in
pieaslng variety Of aspects-this was
not the sort of career that Sophy
clare had looked forward to when she
graduated with SO much ecyat from the
Massachusetts state normal school
and carried off her blue-ribboned di-
ploma! But she had come out west,
lured by glittering prospects and fair
promises, which had turned into mere
wiil-o'-the-wisps on nearer view, and
now twas either work or starve with
our courageous little Yankee.
so she had taken the West Athens
district school at twelve dollars
month and her board
After ALL" said Sophy, valiantly,
ITS rather fun to teach here in the
wilderness. One sees all sorts of char
acters boarding round And I'm sure,
II were novelist, could make my
fortune by pen-and-inlS sketches of
their strong points. To be sure, it's
long walk to the choolhouse-and
rather q lonely one-but the forest
path is SO lovely, now that it is all
carpeted with the gold and crimson of
fallen leaves, and the roar of the river
IN the glen below and the rush of the
wind through the treetops is grander
than any orchestra"
And involuntarily the little school
teacher broke out into the refrain of
song as she walked along with light,
elastic steps, her empty lunch-basket
on her arm, and the scarlet-frilled
hood tied around her fresh little face.
For the western sun had dipped below
the odge of the woods, and Sophy was
on her way home to Hosea narkins,
the miller's, where, just at present.
she was making her home. with Mrs
Harkins and the twelve little Har-
kinses-a seven-mile walk from the old,
red schoolhouse on the river shore.
But as the twilight. darkened, and
the purple shadows began to cluster,
like spectral figures, in the silent aisles
of the woods, Sophy Clare shrank with
in herself, and Involuntary quickened
her footsteps.
"They shot bear in these woods,
last spring." she thought within her
self, with little apprehensive thump of
her heart. "And Charles Harkins was
quite sure he saw panther stealing
through the underbrush in Dead Mans
glen, only week before last! wish
hadn't stayed in school so late, cor
recting those compositions"
And as Sophy fled swiftly along, her
scarlet hood cleaning like tropic
bird, through the dark aisles of the
forest, her overstrained imagination
converted every rustling leaf into the
stealthy tread of wild beast.
But suddenly, as she reached copse
of dark pines at the bend of the path,
the sound of low, muffled voices struck
upon her ears She paused with curl.
GUS sensation, as if every drop of blood
IN her veins were standing still.
1t was two men crouching by fall
en- log which lay in the pine copse,
mantled over with gold-green moss,
and half hidden with tall weeds. Evi
IDENTIFY, they were quite unaware OF the
approach of anyone and, as Sophy
shrank back into the shadows of 6
black-green laurel bush, she could heal
their muttercd words quite plainly.
but to kill her!" said one. "Ant
she's such little beauty, tooP
"Pshaw" growled the other. Don't
be fool, Hal Tucker It's only one
stroke of a sharp knife and the things
done. and can't be undone"
"But it seems SO cruelf'
"Stuff and nonsense! Amt 1t done
every dayP" -,
"But what will the children say?"
"They'll miss her, suppose, just a
first, but they'll soon get accustomed
to another one."
"Would you do 1T at night%" said tn
man called Hal Tucker.
"To-night will be the best time,
said the other. ''Harkins' folks are al
goinp out to singing school tonight
and the coast will be clear. You hav'
the wagon at the door to carry it away
and ri undertake to make clean jo'
of it with my new knife before she ha
time to cry out
al never hated to do thing SO in m,
life," said Hal Tucker.
1.-THE more fool you'll" gruffiy retort
al the other. And then the sound
their voices, receding through the dens
underprowth of the forest, grew indis
tinct. and finally died into silence
while Sophy Clare stood, pale ant
paralvzed, with one hand clinging u
the laurel branches and her chestnut
brown hair blowing about her fright
ared face. She knew Hal Tucker yer,
,yell--a qood.natured, shiftless, ne'er
do-weel. who lived on the proceeds
anv odd jobs he could get in the neigh
horbood. and had no more idea OF pre-
vidHng for the future than II he ha.
been the grasshopper in Lafontaine
tohlo And the voice of the other ma
mos also familiar to her as that OF on
,Iorsr,;ah Slocum, who bore no envla
nj. renutation among the simple sci
.,ars Of those wild western regions
And, with thrill of the heart, she , re
.n,au,obred that Jerry Slocum had bee
citing bv. the night before, when Mi
sar Hawkins, who was one of the schoC
tr.stees. had paid her her months sa
ary in blinking silver dollars.
sIts l they meant" cried sophy, gu
sloud .sThey mean to murder me- an
al for the sake Of that wretched paltr
silver One stroke of sharp knife
Pa AZ. things done and can't be ur