The Canton times. (Canton, Miss.) 1893-1906, 1896-07-10

sand If you'll let me have the use OF
your wagon" she went on, III 40 your
washing for as much longer as you see
fit"
you're freely welcome, Mis- Hart,
he said .without any further trouble
about 1t, and I'll take your beets to the
sugar factory for you If you wish"
"I'm certainly greatly obliged, MT.
Nordsen," she replied, "but / rather go
myself. I've ore or two esranos l "aA''
specially to no."
"As YOU please, ma'am, he said, as
YOU please. I'll be here tomorrow with
Il sure. Good day. Good-by, ANNE.
How's the kitten coming on that gave
YOU" ),
Nicely, thank you, SIR said Annie,
shyly. !,
He went cautiously down the steep
slope again. Mrs. Hart sat down IN her
snlint- bottom rocker, and dropped her
hands in her lap as though she were all
ha.t ont" as she would have expressed
it.
The water had meandered down the
hillside from leak in the big Hume
above. had trlcklcd under Ter "slat-and-
wire" fence and tried to make things
grow in her dusty dooryard. Without
thought of wrong she hal used IL al
summer to cke out the scanty pension
her husband had left her. and provide
for herself and her orphan niece by
growing bee's for the sugar factory at
the town of life Creek.
She had lived among the green Yer
mont hills. where water wa not bought
and sold, bu5 here. "$1O,0oo paid to this
one. that one, and the lawyers!
Annie was sitting with ono foot curled
nm under her, heuming dish towel.
Mrs. Hart watched her reaectively for
some time before she spoke.
annie" she said. finally, did you
hear what Mr.. Nordsen said?"
Annie pushed her hair hack over her
ear and looked up. About the waterf
she asked.
Eyes" said Mrs. Hart.
"That we are taking it without Mr..
Seymour's knowing about it?
Yes"
"But, aunty. that means we've
been" she uesitatcd.
Eyes, that we've been stealing 1t!
There's 10 ,ther word for 1t.
Annie looked awestrdck. But
aunty," she said, earnestly, I'VE didn't
know it,
81 ought ~ have known j." said Mrs
Hart. rocking gently, "if Ia stopped to
think" :.
"When yoa steal without knowing 1T,
said Annie, softly. sis it stealing just
the same?'
Eyes, it's virtually stenling; that Is
taking without the consent OF the own
| er what does not belong to you' SAID
Mrs. Hart. "A person ought to know.
But the water just came and ran into
the ground. We didn't fetch it, and we
| couldn't giv- it back"
| But we ought to have told the owner
| it was coming. It's same as If a neigh
boris hens lad been laying in our shed
and we'd kept the eggs"
'I3ut, auniy," said Annie, suddenly
sitting up and pulling her little ging-
ham skirt down over her rare feet, MI
Seymore should keep his fnme mended
| IL he didn't ant us TO have the water.
'"Just because Mr.. SeyInore's too lazy
to mend his ditch is no excuse to us for
stealing his water said hrs. Hart, re-
lentlessly. "Nobo3y's going to let OF
horsethief just because ne stole moth
ing but stray horses"
There was pause of few moments
broken only by the creating of Mrs
Harris rock,ngchair.
"Aunty," said Annie, finally, 'wha'
are you going to do about ii? We can
give him back the water"
mo, but we can give back all thu
good the water did lis. TIL. beets, sh
explained, in answer to Annies puzzles
look.
) But, aunty," she said, family, "yo'
don't mean 10 give him rack all on
beets?"
They amt ours at all, child" sal
Mrs. Hart. Its his water, that he PAL
fer, that made EN- grow, and he has
right to every blessed one of 'em. An
J I'm gcin' to take EN- to him the min
ute they're out of the ground"
d "But we bought the seed, aunty, pre-
: tested Annie. "aEd it was our land, an
t we took care of 'em, anyou're washin
for Mr.. Nordsen because he's going t
help us with EN-, ard lend us his team.
"Yes," said Mrs. Hart, "and the see
would have been no good, nor the lant
a either, If it wasn't for tn. water
h 1t was well nigh half OF Rife Cree
$ that went slipping quietly around tn
! hillside in John Seymore's big fun
n and wandered in a thousand tin
S streams about the roots oi his myria