Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1897-07-31

| DOalQ Out WHAT Was prime uSSu III
boat; or never a nail but what was
good, or the vanishing and paint but
what was all they ought to be? Steve
Hawkins, you've known me, boy and
man, goin' on nigh to seventy years;
did you ever know me to give the lie
to anyone by word or aet?"
NO, cap'n."
An you'd take my word for thing
sures you would the gospels"
"Ay ay, cap'n."
I Then" and he brought his large
fist down on the arm Of his chair, as
he piOnted to the magazine lying on
I top, Il say it's allie" His whole frame
! quiyered. and the blood rushed TO his
face. as he looked searchingly from
one to the other. Its a id lie he
roared, as he flung the book on the
/ floor
Father, father"
Why" he went on, not needing the
I interruption, his voice growing low
and gentle, as he fingered lovingly the
magazines. Don't / know? Amt l
been fOllowin' her ever since she was a
baby. a little mite of a soft thing-see
here It's. here tbs" He pulled out the
under book tremblingly from the pile,
AID it opened itself. The page was all
thumb-marked and creased from much
reading. a little soft thing, sweet
and smiling" he read aloud. "a baby,
sure of its welcome and its love" He
fitted the book back carefully, almost
reyerently, into its place. AN it was
all covered with dimples, too, he con-
A. i ~. 1iff1a rim
of golden hair all over its head-an'
its eyes were blue" He beamed con-
tentedly around the room. An it was
that fo'ard," he went on triumphantly;
"al'ers CROWN an laughin' an up to
some sort o. trick. BLOWN bubbles with
its lips or pattin' its little pink hands
together. But when she commenced
to grow Land! there want any
holdin' her back. If you'll believe it,
(and he looked slowly around the room,
as though expecting to have his state
meat cOntradicted) "she up an walks
right off one day. Yes, sir; without
ever havin' done any crawlin' afore-
hand; an her legs wuz ek'al to it
puficlysO." He seemed to have quite
forgotten that his listeners had also
read the story, and Tambled on uncon-
SCiOUs at times OF their presence, and
then again calling them by name to en-
force some point upon their minds. The
fire, which burst forth again into fit
full blaze, shOne of his face which was
one moment tnder, then stern, and on
those of his gympathizing listeners.
An so" he went on, softly patting
the books, "she was at last growed !
up He stopped and laughed gently to |
himself An how did she grow? Just |
as you'd expect such a baby would |
Tall an straight as one o my oars; an |
the gOldy in her hair turnin' to a soft, |
pretty brown, an her eyes just as blue |
as the first time she opened them an /
looked on Gods earth. A long pause |
, OliCwed, as smile after smile chased |
Itself across the speakers face. An !
then his voice sank reverently as he /
continued: AN then there comes the
time when she, bein' a woman grown. |
finds herself a-loyin an bein' loved, an
then He had been passing the
books from one knee to the other as
he outlined the story, reading little
here and there. Now the only one re-
naming was that lying on the floor by
his side. He had kept his face turned
reScOlutely from it. AN then, an
then" his voice trembled. 'they COM
menced to tell lies about her, an'-an'
Why, father, father, they didn't say
that she did very much Of anythin
You oughtn't to feel so about it" And
his wife hitched her chair slightly out
of the corner, a little nearer to him,
then stopped awkwaTdly as she looked
in a helpless way at the others.
The small man cleared his throat |
several times. and looked mediative, as
though Gazing about in his mind for |
to say appropriate to the oc- I
casion. Failing to find it, however, he |
simply muttered grufly, "Ay, ay, cap |
n. and relapsed into silence.
An So" went on the Old man, look !
ing absently into the fire and speaking |
half to himself, she cried herself to !
sleep. For they had hurried her bad
very bad" His face looked stern as he
said the last words, then changed to
gentle expression as he continued in a
still lower voice, Why sometimes when !
1 am at work on the boats l seem to see
her a-standin' alongside o me, with the
sunlight shinin' on her hair Some
times she's Just a little child with her
blue eyes shinin close to mine: and
then she seems to have grown up all Oh
a suddint; an her eyes look deep an
serious like; an can Almost hear her
voice a-talking to me-" He looked
down at his large knotty hands. They
amt never held one but once he muir
mured "an' that was for just one mite
of a minute-an' then the Lord took it
away. But she was just the same soft,
little thing; an the godly light was IN
her hair, an
He got up and went to the door,
which he opened wide, and then stood
for a moment looking out. The waves
rippled softly against the rocks. and
the moon cast long, bright light across
the water. The wind family rustled
the tall seagrass growing on the beach.
An so, you see" he added, gently
turning back into the room, that
there amt any use O. finishiH' The
story, as they've wrote it down."
The rumble of heavy carts, the
never-ceasing changing of bells On the
cable cars and the effect of the rest
less surging Of humanity in the mar
row streets penetrated everywhere. 1t
was impossible to get away from IL.
What one could not see one could near,
and what was not heard could be seer;
and. although the buildings reared
their heads higher ana higher. into the
heavens in self-dsielse, the noise was
still waited up 10 them, and the life Oh
the great city renamed theirs.
An so / lowed III drop in The