Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1896-09-17

The Hired nan'S-~ 4;
TRIP TO THE HILLS! 4#|


thus engaged, ! heard the distant ruQ.bIiug Ut
thunder, and looking oil to the southeast soon
discovered a dark and ominous-looking cloud.
1t was approaching at a very rapid pace, and
/ began to look about me for a place to pull in
out of its reach. About a quarter OF a mile up
! the road ON which / was travelling, a farm house
and inviting barn seemed to offer me safe
cover, and / reached the haven in the nick of
time. The place was 1ninhabited, SO without
the ceremony of having to ask permission, i
| swung back the ponderous double doors, drove
in and closing them behind me again bid the
| storm come on, and, indeed, it did. 1t rained
a regular little delugo and hailed until the
ground about the place was white with icy
spheres, ranging la size from bird-shot to small
sized cannon-bails. The storm soon spent its
Fury and passed on, and once more / turned
the PROV of my schooner toward the city near
the "Jim." Se1ne little time had been lost on
account of the weather, and it was evident that
night would erertake me long before the city
was reached. The sun went down behind the
western horizon in a semi-halo of golden rich
ness twilight came on apace, aud, lingering
but a little while, it, too, passed on into the
shroud of night. More wrapt in thought than
attention as to where my team was taking me,
| discovered when too late to retrace my steps
that ] had left the main road and was follow
ing a sort of a blind trail that appeared to
lead up to a small farmhouse scarcely visible
ia the distance.
Talk OF the mistakes OF Moses and of Inger-
soil, If You viii, but my mistake in allowing
my team to wander from the main road on this
particular night beats all the etner mistakes
that | have been guilty of making ! / repeat,
that I was following a trail leading up to a
small farm-hous0,-und this was not al. l
further made out by aid OF the lesser light
afforded me the outlines of five human beings
rushing toward no from the house. Who
could they be, and what were their in.
~teations that thoy were rushing at me ia such
a manner ? were questions | asked myself on
this instant. However, ] rCsaILeG ~ Immediate
action and placed myself IN front of my team,
the better to defend myself and property from
the ~ruffians. On they came large and small,
aged and young | was for a moment dumb.
founded, speechless, paralyzed.-i was con,
fronted with an unlocked for prodIcamen t.
some people might call it a snap As they
came nearer, / made out the dim outline of the
leader. Gracious heyings! ii was a woman
Thought travels with lightning r%apidity, and
thus it served to remind me on the instant OF
the noted Bender family! which like this band
was led on by a woman! And wasI to fall by
the ruthless hand of a siren of sin and beauty I?
No, not yet. When the rush was on, / stood
my ground,-if / must say it,-nobly. The
leader of the gang run in on me and grasped
nue. firmly about the neck. while two small as
~sistants caught me about the knees, holding
me with a viccIike grip. j struggled heroic
ally to free myself, while the leader struggled
a trife harder las / then thought,-in order to
bite off my ear. Finally she broke out in a
torrent of words: "Oh, you dear old uncle
John! l am so glad you have come. We have
been looking for you for days aud days. What
kept you so long on the road?' But at this
j~uncture
The pale NOON rose up slowly,
And peered, thro' a rift in the cloud,
On the scene of the farmer daughter
A huggin the Hired Man.
To say that / was very indignant at receiving
such an unusual and violent greeting is putting
the fact but mildly, and were I to be similarly
situated again, methinks i would hug my fair
assailant until she would wish her uncle John
had remained back in Wisconsin. Yes, / would
surely squash every rib of her anatomy into
pulp! As soon as | could recover speech, |
assured them that my name wasn't John, nor
had l been long on the road. At this stage OF
the play, the father of this enthusiastic family
came near and at once discovered that a great
mistake had been made, and taat 1 was not
his much-looked-for brother whom he expected
on from the Badger State with a craft similar
to mine. Apologies were in order, followed by
an invitation to accept of their hospitality
until morning. las it would be very late before
| could reach town" Howeser, | was rolled,
aud moreover Disguised With myself for not
allowing the young lady to walk off with a
section of one ear. or partake of a morsel of
my check, so bidding them adieu | took to the
highway again and at ten O'Clock was eating
my supper in a Redield restaurant.
The remaining sections of narrative relative
to my tour of the Hills is on ice, and will keep
until you hear again from
THE HIRED MAN.