The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-02-09
THE ADVERTISERS DAILY SHORT STORY

ises, lest by his mere presence he might addle all the goose eggs, and sour all the milk It makes no difference what the poy may say; learning from his and any intellectual quality on his part Is attributed to trick of the evil one There, for instance, was Sam Tucker. In the log school house he had never been accused of being dull. He has mas tered his arithmetic and successfully thumbed his Caesar. and studied the English poets till he recited them in his sleep. but the blight fell upon him. To him the sound of sleet falling on the dry leaves was the sweetest of music. One night he awoke and heard the sleet rattling against the window. Out of bed he bounded. and dressing himself in his brown jeans. went to the woods near the house and sat down upon log. Shortly afterward his mother going intd his room to see that he had cover enough. discovered that he was gone and spread name of his son. After . time there came . weak answer. The old man went into the woods and found Sam sitting on the log;
 here this time of night all by yourself a-settin on log in the sleet?"
 That's why am here, on account of the sleet: want to hear the music"
 'Music!"
 "Yes. sir, it's beautiful"
 "Well. you come on back to the house or you'll hear some music that may not sound so beautiful. but it will be good bit louder" -set
 The next day. in the presence of a neighbcr woman, the boys mother easu- ally referred to the fact that her son had gone out into the dark to hear the sleet fall. and the woman went home and Sam Tucker was half wit. Then she related what had happened and her hus- band said that there was no doubt of 1t. The news spread and 1t wasn't long be- fore Sam found the people avoided him in the road. One old woman, with . dozen eggs which she was carrying to . store to exchange for . few yards of high-colored calico, backed her horse up in corner of the fence and cried out: "Go on away befo' you spile these here who fun bled his way through the books of the Gospel, said that he was sorry to hear that the young fellows mind had given way, but that he didn't believe in him. For a time Sam's father was furious, but gradually he began to be- lieve that there was something wrong with the boy. Against hope and even makes a telling inroad. The boys mother prayed and wept, but Sam laugh cd But he couldn't laugh all the time; moreover. it needed defense. and often physical encounter. Finally he ceased to resent the gibes of the boys, and hopefully looked forward to the time when he might leave home and put the distasteful life behind him. One day he was at home with his books. having long since quit school when Kitty, daugh- ter of the woman who had spread the report, came to the house to borrow some meal. Sam was alone. Come in," he said. as she peeped through the door.
 SN0 I inst Wanted t0 see your mother a minute"
 'Well, come in. She'll be back after a while"
 She was adventurous and she entered hook. you've got?' she asked, curious to know the bent of his mind.
 Tt tells about great inventions"
 Does it? They told me you didn't read anything but child books
 They told you q lie."
 But do you understand what you
 of I didn't wouldn't read it."
 Why, you don't seem to have lost your mind. Can you count?"
 T guess can. up to ten. Did count fifteen yesterday. but the weather was clear.
 that Sam couldn't count but ten during cloudy weather. but that as soon as the sun came out he could jump up to. ff- teen Her mother grabbed her bonnet, ran over to neighbor's, and told an old granny. in the chimney corner with a cob pipe. that Sam couldn't count ex- eept when the sun was almost directly over his head, and then he could count ten, but that if cloud came along the numbers flew away from him like flock of blackbirds, and that his people were trying to get him into an asylum. The next day Sam met an old woman in the lane and she cried for mercy. and run ning away had declared that he had hran had kAl Af hAr A ally made the boy morose and his mother prayed the harder and the old man walked of shaking his head at his af- fiction. In the sunshine. in the clover at first, but when she saw that he was not going to hurt her she came up to him."
 'Can you count now that tn. sun is
 "No; I've got so I can't ecunt."
 'On. I'm so sorry. As mother would say. 1t must have been great comfort to you. What can you do now?'
 Nothing. I haven't any mind at all"
 Don't you reccliect what people say to your" she asked, as she walked alons with him.
 Then am going te tell yeu something never ean think of it again. I was sw- fully in love with you, and when I heard that you had lost your mind I went to bed and cried myself asleep"
 Then you don't love me newr'
 "Yes. but you don't know it. you see. If you did wouldn't tell you. But I am going to keep on loving you. pre- tending that you are in your right mind, and I never intend to marry-I will just dream all the time that am your wife"
 And after that the rascal let her talk love to him, sometimes at his home and once out in the woods, sitting on a log "Oh." she said. nestling close to him. T wish you dld know. It Is sweet to play, but how much sweeter to be in earnest Do you think you could ever learn te count agains
 T don't know" answered the rascal with his arm about her.
 T wish you could. Pap says as long anyhow. and I think If you cold count up to ten he'd let me marry you, and l would take such care of you, too, and we would sit out in the woods this way and love each other always. What about that man who came today. Didn't he come to take you to the asylumT'
 "No, to buy nv invocation"
 Your invention? Why. what did you iHvent?"
 something te increase the speed et railroad trains. It has been tried and found successful. and the man came to buy It.
 Did he give you money for itT'
 "Yes, a hundred thousand dollars"
 "Oh. don't l wish you could count
 Tt is. little heroine. I dreamed out the invention here in the sleet, sitting on this log, and you were in my heart as you are now in my arms-and you shall be rewarded. When you thought you were dreaming your marired life,