Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-02-14
ing on, you can sleep in my barn
tonight"

The day after New Years dawned
with q calm that would have been
foreboding, had not unusual weather
SO far marked the winter in Wells
county.
Little Bessie johnson went to
school in the morning and she had
been gone from home an hour when
black cloud, rifted with wind, APP
peared in the northwest. Like a
great ominous banner, battle SCARED
and brushing it's ragged streamers
across the sky, the cloud came on
with racehorse speed.
The weather was cold, but grew
rapidly colder.
A fine, driving slcet was borne on
ahead of the cloud like gusty her.
aid armed with millions of torturing
needles.
And then came the blast in all it's
fury. Heller SHELTER, here and there.
blew the wild fakes; rushing around
the corner of Lawyer Johnson's house
with an angry roar, the bits of snow
played hide and seek among the
caves and then skurried away in the
mad gambols OF a whirlwind
The blizzard had set in for good
and the fakes that tumbled so play
fully In the air were likely to settle
to earth and form white shroud for
the luckless pioneer caught in their
confusing meshes.
Goodness me, Silas," said Mrs.
Johnson, turning from the window, II
can't see yard away. What will
become OF Bessie?"
"She'll be all right-don't worry
The teacher will not let the scholars
leave the school house until the
blizzard is over i"
But she might. Oh, silas, If she
should!"
But our teacher is sensible
young woman, Susan. I'd take my
oath that she'll keep the children in
the school house..
Fears, however, il long enough
persisted in, will shake the stoutest
confidence.
Thus it was with the lawyer, and
when, some moments later, his wife
suggested that Hans be sent to the
school house to see if Bessie was
there, he consented.
Lawyer Johnson knew that Hans
was imperiling his life-but what
significance was that when the
anxiety Of Mrs. Johnson was trem-
bling in the balance?
Hans was called in from the shed
and given his commission. He
bowed his head, buttoned his thin
coat tightly around him and laid his
hand on the door knob.
Hans"
He halted and turned back.
The lawyer was holding in his hands
great fur coat.
PUT this on ~
This offer might have been made
out Of kindness Of heart, awakened
in the eleventh hour; or it might
have been the result Of proper bust
ness precaution.
Hans did not stop to give the mat
ter thought.
Slipping into the coat he left
without u word.
He never returned.
Reaching the school house in safe
ty, he found it occupied by the
teacher and few frightened pupils.
But Bessie Johnson was no. there.
AT the first appearance of the cloud
in the northwest the girl had per-
sisted in determination to start
home The teacher had not made a
very serious attempt to thwart that
resolve, feeling, perhaps, that she
would have ample time to cover the
distance before the storm came.
Hans Brynjulson received the in
formation without comment, and
once more vanished into the storm.
OF what he did after this absolute
ly nothing is known. The lawyers
daughter could not tell. She started
home, she said. was overtaken by the
storm and finally grew bewildered.
Struggling vainly for what seemed
an unfortunately long time, she had
finally sunk senseless and exhausted
into the snow.
When found she was snugly
wrapped in the lawyers fur coat,
while pair of thin, rigid arms folded
her close as though to protect her
from the drifting faxes.
1t required strength to force asun-
der those stiff, protecting arms, and
when the snow was brushed from
Hans Brynjulson's icy face, con-
gcaled tears were found in the eye-
lashes and about the mouth-mys-
terry Observation-Disclosures lowered o
smile. Happiness crowned with tears
Perhaps they were tears of Joy
perhaps the boisterous winter winds
became summer zephyrs. in the ears
of Hans Brynjulson and whispered to
him the word, Christina, Christi
ma" perhaps this also was the bur-
den of the snowflakes as they rust
led down over him and wove their
spotless wool into the welt of his
life.
No one may know this, however.
1t is written down in no earthly
record and is not for mortal eyes.
But Lawyer Johnson caused it to
be duly known that Hans Brynjulson
had cancelled his mortgage and it
was Mrs. Johnson's own hand that
gave the document to the fire.