Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1897-04-08
MILLY's RETURN.

door, intent on fixing broken harness.
He did not hear my footstep Or see me
until I was close upon him. Good
morning uncle" ! said. I knew how
friendly he was to every stranger and
did not fear his not answering me or
asking annoying questions about me.
"Mornin, stranger. Fine mornin thisl
From York;"
eyes, sir; just this morning. AT
what time does the train-I mean the
next one-leave the station going back?'
"Bout this afternoon. l wuz jist
tryin to fix up this ole harness, SOS to
meet the 1 o'clock train. It's jist about
played out. Lowed 'twould last as long
as me all the ole lady did, but seems
like it's jist fallin all to pieces all at
once. You see, stranger" and a glad
smile lit up his bearded, wrinkled face,
"you see, Milly's comm home today.
Milly-that's my darter-been gone
nigh OIL nine years. She wuz our only
child, all we ever had, 'cept Andy. He's
been with us since he wuz 8 years old.
Andy's a good boy, sir; good boy as
you ever seed, and most anybody'll tell
You the same.
eyes, she wrote me card. l got it
here in my blouse pocket. Mas just
wild fer joy. An, stranger, yer ought ter
see the good things she's got cooked.
Mas wonderful good cook. There
,,tt in l,n
that can beat her. She's been trapesing
round fixing up good things ever since
Andy bro't this card. Yes, it'll lift a
mighty heavy load from this ole heart
il Milly comes today, and it'll make me
ten years younger. These has been nine
of the most miserable long years ole
Uncle Ben Simlns ever put through
with.
"You see, stranger, it wuz this a
way" And Uncle Ben wiped his eyes
ON his checked blouse sleeve and let the
old harness down carefully. "Dick
Plummer, he us't often to come out here
in the summer fer visit, ever since he
war the same age as when we took
Andy to raise. He an Andy US t to have
| SIGH times a-fshin ali swimnin an hunt
in. He warn bad chap an didn't
mind his visits to our place-sorter liked
| to see him an Andy together. But when
| he growed up an begin to larn to be a
doctor, | sorter somehow turned ag in
| him. He us't to tell bout cuttin people
to pieces an all. 1t gave me the creeps
He us't to say 'twan't nothin to see
scholars where he studied play ball with
mans arm. Ugh, SILL men! In our
day it was very different, very different
| "Waal, one day wuz out i'll the
smokehouse shaTp'nin my sickle--an l
want in very good humor either, l
mind-when Dick came out thar an
told me he wanted to marry my Mllly
| mind, sir, I got so rilod I WIZ fairly
beside myself, for I'd sot MY heart on
her margin Andy, fer Andy WIZ good
huff fer any girl--wouldn' t hurt flea,
Andy wouldn't. Why, sir, I've seed
him pet an coax an work with our ole
black boss Chefs balky most all time),
an if 'twould been me I'd come blame
near KILN him. WAL, I ain SO much
that way now since Milly's gone. I've
sorter mastered my fiery temper, tween
thinkin of her an watchin Andy.
"But that mornin when Dick came
out thar an told me he wanted to marry
Milly--I told you wuz on high
hos, as old Parson Shockley used tel
say--an I wouldn't give in an inch, he
kept a-tellin me that he loved Milly al
she loved him, but it never made any
difference; I wanted her to marry Andy
but they went over to Roseville an wuz
married that afternoon.
'fWhen they came back-I can see he1
now come in a-laffin-an she came VI
to me an said, Pa, you amt mad, all
your mother she bust out a-cryin, fel
she knew 7 would act dern fool, fer
wuz in a terrible fit Of temper, fer thai
mornin old Dodson's boys had nigl
stripped my fine Bartlett pear trees a
the back Of the lott jist p'inted to thu
door an told her"-his voice agail
wavered and up went the checkeret
shirt sleeve-"she needn't ever com,
here ag'in even if she lived to be 10'
years old. An mind, too, Isaid, Som
/ day mebby you'll want ter come back
mebby to beg food fer yer children, bu
mind, I am not grandfather to any Q
, your children
"An so they left, but Milly says: Pa
! dear, let me kiss mother goodby. Please
please dot An she looked SO pitifully t
her maj can see it now; / couldn'
then--but I shut the door and left tn
house. I went over thar meath tina
sassafras hedge an threw myself on tn
ground an tho't of what I'd done, but
!, couldn't help it. The very devil Of
: temper wuz in me, an he would GRO
out at times.
Fool that wuz! Why can't a maj
see when he's actin dern fool? Al
Milly wuz SIGH good girl--sich a goo
i girl! Now, thinks I, WHO'LL comb ye
Q ole hair before ye ga & bed nights
Who'll get you cool 6nislN when yer 8
tagged out that yor caa'i ip il yerself
Milly was good ifl, sir she WI
: that. One thing ftr art. / thossy. wu
! ashamed to 60 intoShat house d. b N
face mother, fer ttar \ Hub many nse
/ as is got as good 4 wifi as I hev, Il
that's shore. She Euz purity as a peach,
i and his eyes frightened, when sh
n wuz Milly's age. Ius'tto like to watc
Milly working around, fer it seemed
3 wuz young ag'in, fer she wuz just lik
mother, gentle ar " patient, an whei
mother come In Tscould see what Mill
would be In year Ito come.