Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1900-02-27


him to put cream ON, an let the cat lick
| it off,"
1t seemed, as the summer wore on, that
Mrs. Snyder's prophecy was likely to
come true. Dick and Mamie got along
very well together. Up to the time in
which this story opens, the course of
true love- had run smoothly enougi, but
the old saying that it's long lane that
has no turning" was to prove rs trde in
this case us in many others.
Mamie taught the school. which lasted
six months in each year. in the little log
house which l have spoken of as being
one Of the two buildings at the cross
roads. From this you may infer that she
was what would be called an educated
young lady," at the present time. She
was nothing Of the kilgd. Before her
father came to Brownsville she had had
the advantages of the ordinary district
school only, but these she had made the
most of, and could write a fair hand,
with heavy tops TO her rs, and heavier
tails to her VS. and g's; she could spell
pretty WE'LL read as fast as the next one
and in those days the boy or the girl
who could read the fastest was consid-
cred the best reader, as expression was
of no account She could cipher" as
far into the 'rithmetic as the rule of
three, and parse all the sentences in the
grammar with parrot-iike precision, and
repeat a good share Of the geography.
What use was there of a more compre
hensive education in such a place as
Brownsville, .Nannie's mother wondered
"'Twan't as )ef she was out among
nj lie ba taI1 fhu nd
when she applied for her daughters APP
pointment to the position of school mis-
tress. IF twas where folks knew more,
'twould be diffrunt, but Mamie knows
enough TO teach any o the children in
that part O the kentry, an l don't say
it to brag up my own flesh and blood,
neither"
As teachers from clown below" did
not like to come into the woods to teach,
the school officers decided that Mamie
was properly qualified to fill the position
of teacher, and in that way she became
a schoolma'am.
Dick used to keep pretty close watch
of the road if he was at work anywhere
near it when he thought it was about
O'Clock. Curiously enough, it almost al
ways happened that his horses needed
rest when little pink sunbonnet came
in sight at the turn of the road. The
sight of that sunbonnet always seemed
to make Dick thirsty. | can't explain
why, but so it was; so much so that he
had to go to fence corner near the
turn in the road, where a cool spring
dubbed out from under the roots of an
old oak. And, strangely enough, it al
most always happened that the walk
from the school house had made Mamie
thirsty, too, and she was glad to sit
down under the shade of the old trees
spreading branches and drink the sweet
refreshing draught which Dick rendered
her in a cup fashioned from great bass
wood leaf. What they talked about at
such times | am not supposed TO know.
The weather and the crops, perhaps. |
know this, however, the horses got
good long resting spell on these occa-
sions, and Mamie reached home consid-
erably later than she might have done if
she had not played truant. Her mother
used to say, quite often:
There is one thing about Nannie's
teachin' that the folks can't complain of,
an that is that she allus keeps full
hours, an more, too. fer half the time
she don't get home till five or half-past
five, and it don't take more'n fifteen min
utes to walk from the school house up
The worthy woman made this remark
at the table more than once, and Dick,
at such times, would give a sly look
at Mamie, and she would blush like a
newly blossomed rose or be seized with
such severe fit OF coughing that she
had TO leave the table, when her mother
wOnlH hn bnd oil hot.
vittels the wrong way"
On the afternoon of the day on which
this story begins, Dick was blowing near
the road.
When he saw Mamie coming, he hitch
ed his horses to a hickory tree, where
they would get the benefit OF is shade,
and went to the road. Leaning over the
fence, he waited for her, watching her
trim-built figure with admiring eyes, as
she came up the hill When she came
near, he knew by her face that some
thing had happened.
''Oh, Dick" cried Mamie, as she came
up to the fence, guess what's going to
be! You can't, know; but try"
~ camp meeting" ventured Dick.
Camp meetings were considered TO be
the climax of all desirable events among
the Brownsyillians.
"Oh, better'n that" cried Mamie, with
sparkling eyes. Ever so much better.
It's a singing SCHOOL,
"A singing SCHOOL, Dick caught
some of Nannie's enthusiasm Mt once.
We'll, that viii be nice, won't ~ l
have attended two terms, and we always,
had lots of fun, il we didn't get much
musical benefit. But who's going to
teach it? Deacon Snyder?"
Deacon Snyderr exclaimed Mamie,
with a scornfui look of her pretty nose.
"0f course not! It's young man from
down below. He's going 10 have meet
ing at the school house tonight, to see
about organizing the school. and he wants
everybody to turn out. / hope they'll
have one Wouldn't it be nice? | never
went TO one, you know"
''0f course it will be nice" said Dick,
who was thinking more of prospective
summer night walks with Mamie than he
was of the singing school. 1T needs
something like that to make the neigh
borhood lively. The folks don't see half
enough of each other. tn take their
mind off their work and rest them NJ
little"
YES, that's fact" responded Mamie.
looking, however, as if she hardly COM
pretended what Dick had been saying,
on account of being busy with other
thoughts. "0h. Dick. he's just the hand
soonest man / ever saw! He is. Dick. for
a fact~
"It isn't always the handsomest ones
that turn out TO be the best ones" said
Dick, hardly relishing Nannie's admira-
tion for the singing teacher. He's some
fellow, most likely, who's too lazy to
work for living. so he goes round teach
ing singing school"
We'll" demanded Mamie, rather
sharply. III he teaches singing school. I'd
like TO know if he isn't working and
earning his money just as much as You
are by working on the farm? j don't see
any difference, Ii he can earn living
without working on a farm for it, don I
sees he's 10 blame for it,
NO. nor l." answered Dick. Il dom
blame any man for getting his living in
| the easiest possible way. il he does it
honorably. What / meant was that. per
haps. he might be one of those shiftiess,
I N !,