Bennington semi-weekly banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 1894-1902, 1895-02-15


meeting? l thought you turned Bap-
fist last week. The old governor just
says, See Marse Mont Stuart over there
across the road? An when Brother
Parish said yes he sava, 'Marse Mont
Stuart got rich tending to his own bus
mess, an that's what I'm ADDING
Some of the boys heard it an come
right up to tell. It's pretty hard to get
ahead of the old man, amt it,"
"He's an old nuisance, said Adams,
laughing slightly, but feeling more than
ever that Newton was unpleasantly as
well as dangerously dominated by Gov
ernor Brown.
On his way home, to add to his vex-
alton, Adams came across the governor
again. How the old man could have
got so far north of town when he
had lately heard his voice resounding
so far down the south road was hard to
understand. But it was useless to try
to explain the governors presence in
one place or another. He knew all the
short cuts and byways, and his long
legs carried him so swiftly over the
ground that sometimes his guard of
dogs despaired and submitted to be
dragged, fore legs in air, rather than to
follow him at such a steady trot. Peo-
pie said that he brought news from the
neighboring villages quicker than the
telegraph could.
''Storm a-cominl Storm a-comin!
Wild man loose! Wild man loose!"
was the refrain he shouted as Adams
passed Adams, noticing an unusual
eagerness in his manner, thought that
the coming storm was exciting him
dangerously and refined in his horse to
say:
"Don't come a step farther in this
direction, governor. You know I'll
have you locked up if ever catch you
on my farm, and I'm going to be on
the watch. Turn back, tell you.
Adams horse was a good one, and
Adams put it to it's best pace, yet they
did not gain very fast on the governor,
who, instead Of turning back, was press
ing forward almost at a run.
"Storm a.comin! Storm a.comin"
Adams kept hearing, and then more
family: wild man loosel Wild man
loo-oose!" until at last Il hill rose be-
hind him and shut out the sound.
The storm was coming fast. The
whole sky was overcast, but full of
dazzling, ditfused light. Under its
strange brightness the trees and grass,
the green crops in the fields and even
the brown earth seemed to shine with a
yellowish luster of their own. Behind
a broad stretch of forest that bordered
one side of the road the clouds were
gathering more densely, and one of
them which showed above the tree tops
was the only dark thing in the world
A moment after it first came in sight it
was moving fast up the sky-a broad
sinister bar of indigo, bordered with "a
flashing fringe of white.
Adams leaned forward, urging his
horse into run. The first gust of the
wind rushed past him as he sprang
down at his own gate, but he scarcely
felt it, for there, running down the
road through his orchard, came his wife
something he could not un-
derstand.
1.-The children! The childrenr' he
heard as he hurried to meet her. "We've
searched the whole place. Come back
to the Taylor woods"
Adams turned his horse and lifted his
wife into the wagon.
How long ago." he asked between
his teeth
II don't know how long 1 thought
Nanny Jane had them, and she
thought they were with me. When we
missed them, we called the men, and
we all searched high and low, through
the orchards, everywhere. The only
places NANNY ever takes them to are
Stuart's ana the Taylor woods. sent
the men across lots to the woods, and
gone to Stuart's. l thought
perhaps they might have come this way
to meet you"
The wind was upon them In the
open space that lay between their gate
and the Taylor woods the unbroken
of the gale almost lifted them
from the wagon. Standing up for mo-
ment to look around him, Adams saw
his gang Of workmen reach the edge of
the woods, pause a moment, listening
to the great roar through the trees, and
then to man turn and run back through
the open toward the farm. He shouted
tiercely at them, but the wind took the
words from his mouth.
A moment more, and Adams was in
the lee of the woods himself. He refined
in his horse. In the apparent lull made
by the shelter it was possible to think
in spite Of the turmoil among the
branches. Husband and wife looked
into each others eyes despairingly.
Only miracle could guide them to
their children through this wild storm,
in which they could hardly catch the
sound of their own voices. Yet they
must search.
They jumped to the ground, but be-
fore they could enter the woods a
strange rumbling, grinding sound rose
above the roar of thrashing branches
and creaking tree trunks. The new
sound grew louder and more dreadful
until Adams and his wife chung close
to each other in fear, while the fright
9ned horse wheeled suddenly, leaped
free from the harness and wagon and |