Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1902-01-17


asked me to come in. She wears
shoes. She wears them every day."
Nancy's acquaintance with the wife
of the station-master grew. "She's
got box" Nancy told, another
evening, ga big, square black box
she keeps her fire IN, an door she
| opens an a hole to cook things in.''
| Pap laughed his big, silent laugh.
"Sho, Nanny" said he, "ain't you
never seen a stove afore?"
Nancy's ignorance did not abash
her. ''She's got everything mighty
red up an handy. Couldn't we uns
have shelf, too, pap, to set the dishes
along?'
Another day Nancy came home in
excitement. Granny, you make me
some O. your oak splint baskets she.
began; "the harnsomest ones you
| knows how-them little ones, granny,
an me and Hence an Grit we'll pick
the huclxleberries. I'm a-goin' to sell
them on the train. Their war lady
to-day she saw my basket of berries
I was takin' to baby an she asked
me fer tan then she gives this to
me-
| And Nancy handed her mother two
ten-cent pieces.
can the baby's nanny says she'll
| get her man to let me take 'em on
the cyars, and thet way I'm plum
sure to see the sun-haired lady"
/ On the next day Nancy had differ
ent tale. "Baby's nanny, Mis- Mark
ham, she's been tellin' me bout a
place at the junction, goin' on now,
where they'll larn you free. She say<
the days won't seem nothin' like SO
tejous if started in an went to larn-
in. I telled her I'd arsk pap
Pap shifted his quid. '"Taint no
call agin your goin,' I can see. My
gran'pap he 1arned onct to read from
man crossin' the mountings goin'
to Kaintuck, what stopped off here
| with a fever. That's how come we
uns to have our book, the onliest
Bible-on Lilly's mounting. I don't see
no call why Nanny shouldn't be a
readin' in it same as gran'pap read to
we uns when I war little as Grit here
Thus encouraged, Nancy one day
shyly made her appearance at the dis
trict school, which was open for the
three months of summer. The young
teacher, a girl student from the coun-
ty college, eking out expenses by
teaching in the summer, looked at
the new pupil; looked, then looked
again at a glittering, golden bauble
that hung upon a leather string
against the bosom of the faded little
dress.
Forgetting her shyness, Nancy eN-
planned.
"And that's how I'm here" she
| in, in, he
sun-haired lady to come"
| Tt was the last of August that Nan
cy, speeding along by the open win
dows of an evening train, saw in the
last coach a girlish, pink-fushed face
framed in glorious, FURNISHED, red
gold hair.
''And if it want to be the right
lady, she'd know as the luck-stone
wasn't hers" Nancy had often ar
gued, rehearsing this very scene to
herself.
Realizing but two things, that the
sun-haired lady was on the train and
that the time was passing, she
dropped her baskets, grasped the
ring in her little brown hand, strip
ping the leather string over her head
as she ran, and with a cry to the
|
knew her and her mission-she
bounded up the steps into the vesti-
bule and ran through the sleeping
car with it's wondering occupants, TIC
the sun-haired lady.
'Here!" said Nancy, and her smile
supplied those graces of speech and
department which education had
failed to give her
The sun-haired girl turned from
pink to white, caught the ring from
, the little brown hand and gasped and
: laughed and cried. For it was he1
| enga cement ring, and over its loss
, that summer she had cried as many
, tears as little Nancy had trudged
steps.
'You sensed it went in the creek
said Nancy. 81 been watchin' for you
sence.''
Then happened bewi1dering thing
a thing Unknown to Nancy, unless il
had come to her in baby days. A pail
5 of impulsive arms were about he1
neck, the lips of the sun-haired CIR
: on her cheek. Then before the great
= wave of emotion sweeping over Nancy
was gone the clutch of the colored
' porter was on her, and she was
dropped from the rear of the coach
which in another moment was speed
ing round the curve.
= 'Well," quavered granny, wher
} Nancy's tale was told, can you all
= sure it war her?"
, Nancy hadn't a doubt. She ha6
2 proof ''She took it," said Nancy, San
. I-an' she kissed me-
: The great wave swept over he1