The Burke County news. [volume] (Morganton, N.C.) 1899-1901, 1899-03-03

Ialue abDUt tue weather. anu * oaAh
lie has suffered about as much down
mere as HI there, lut didn't suNtr long
at q tme-only = day Or Two, CUT uF
there il was several long weary months.
''Wnere | was raised, he SAID, eth.
mercury was far below zero tor a month
at a time. aud | remember n long.
weary night when II dronl ed &c 80 q
then 81 aud -. There was an old fash.
lOued box stove IN re ng room. Ii
was made OF Thick Ula;eaDie lrOu nnu on
bitter nights we crowded III wood and
pine until it was red hot all round.
On this particular night we boys had
TO turn rouad aud round to keep from
freezing on one side while We were
scorchlng on the other. About Md
night the mercurv dropped to 45, and
the house cracked aud popped like lit
tie guns. Father got alarmed, and,
being an old-iaShloned Christian man,
said. Come, children, let US oil kneel
down and pray After prayer We piled
more pine into the heater.
Father SAID to mother: "When Eli
sha Kent Kane was n the arctlcs he
said that he found that fatty matter was
better than fire and he made his crew
stuff themselves with whale bludder
and seal OIL AID grease and it saved
Their lives. And SO. mother, you had
better bring US all the grease in tho
pantry" Mother turned us all loose
on her lard and butter and fat meat
and we cralnmed it down aud it did do
us good. But the mercury kept on
dropping. Father had an old donkey
that brayed lncessantly all the fore
part of the night, but about 3 o'clock
1O oonro1 and f,tlO, ool SAT =
dren, the poor old donkey is dead. "
About 4 o'clock there was a fire in the
little village. but nobody went to it.
The family fed to the dearest housefor
refuge. Just before daybreak the mer-
curry began to rise a little and father
said: Come children, let us kneel
down and give thanks to God for His
mercy
'NelI, IT was glorious to see the big.
round, red sun rise aud shine in the
windows next morning. About this
time We heard o racket in the barn
winch a. pear by aud father SAID:
Boys, go out and see If that donhey is
alive And sure enough he was and
there he stood facing the door with an
iciclo sticking out of his mouth
three feet long and as big at
the base as q coffee pot. His
brays had frozen and frozen to q
sharp point and had stopped up his
mouth SO etf-ctually be couldn't brsv
ary more. That's what my fred told
me, but \. b. Re was a newspaper man.
Vel, I'm rot going 10 write q poem on
the the beautiful snow. for l don't like
IL, especially when l am the
boy-the oalv boy about the house. and
have to keep trotting to town or tho
~woodplle or coalhouSe. or somewhere.
But tao children like it, and there's
some comfort In that. and the other day
while WAS tramplpg slowl, to town
on the sllpnery walk / met a pretty
lady. a middle aged matroD, and lust
before she got to me her foot slipped
backward and the other extremity Ind
10 bend forward and she made me the
rrettlest little courtesy [ ever had made
to me. She never lost her p%erpendicu-
lar, but Just come down gracefully on
one Knee IKE have seen ciris DO IN
the parlor dance. OF course I tipped
my hat and said, "Thank YOU, madam
} ohe coloreu up and smiled and spoiled
IT all by saying, II didn't mean to- |
maven told my wife about it yet, for
our golden wedding IS near ut hand and
tt Is no time for these irregularities.
1t was the beautiful, tho slickery, trick
sry snow that did It,. had to shoyai
out of the pathway from nv house te
ne street $50 yards SO that my woner
tolks could walk without wettlnc tnel
'hoes aud stockings. but every one 0,
mem. even to my wife, prepared to
wade IN the beautiful snow, aud tne
girls found q ditch where it was knee
deep and waded IN that. That's the
way they impose on q poor old boy hike
me.
but there is not so much dlHcreuc.
. between heat Ard cold aftar oil Rnti