Rural Retreat times. [volume] (Rural Retreat, Va.) 1892-1918, 1903-10-30

which want eatin up?"
Sir!p commended Sadie, as she
drew herself UP, want you to I'M
derstand that have a gum"
Just SO. little one."s
And it's loaded
ePersactly. A gun is as harmless as
a rag doll when it isn't loaded I'd ike
to change places with the gun for an
ehour or two
Il YOU do not at once go away,
continued Sadie in trembling tones, Il
shall be under the painful necessity of
shooting you
By ginger, but what heroine said
the tramp.
He understood the situation. He
I Knew that she was alone and ready
to be scared into y fit, but was making
la brave bluff against her womanly
weakness. There was a strain of chiv-
Ialry in his composition topping back
land lifting his greasy old hat from his
Etousled hair he bowed Low and said
Fair miss please observe. that I
gracefully retire and give you the VIC
tory
When ne had disappeared down the
lroad Miss Sadie congratulated herself,
and sat down on the yeranda to look
I for a mad dog, Aunt Dinah had said
that a mad dog would come next.
There was a slip somewhere for it was
( a robber That showed up about forty
minutes after The tramp's broad back
Ihad, become only a dot against the sky
lline. The robber came from the west.
walking in the middle of the highway.
/ AS he reached the Barn few rods be-
low the house, he turne4 in and was
=
/ beating heart for ten minutes to. see if
/ he intended to advance on the house
from the barn and take her by surprise
! but as time went on she made up her
mind that ne had come to steal hay
iand straw aad not household effects.
lille must be driven away at any rate
and she was the only one to drive him.
Aunt Deborah depended on her.
I II was ten minutes more before the
! girl could work up courage enough to
lgo after the old shot gun and draw it
forth by the muzzle. But once armed
+ she felt Drawer and made her way
along the path to the barn, whose door
STOOD wide open to the summer sun
shine and wind. She approached them
cautiously fearing the stranger was
Tin ambush ana ready to spring forth;
4 but as she finally stood and looked in
/ the door she was considerably reliev-
I ed to ind the man lying full length on
a scant bed OF hay. Robbers do not gem
terally take a daylight nap before rob-
+ bling and though the man looked way
iworn and somewhat disreputable his
face as far as she could see was not
levil looking. Perhaps he was not a rob-
iber.
Are you robber or only common
Iman?I inquired the girl at last as she
Rugged the shot gun.
The man sat up and smiled in sick
lily way and looked around in bewil-
ldered way, and it was minute before
he vaguely replied:
Il guess / am common man but
want to rest-I'm tired-a and feel
1T will be my duty o shoot you,
you know, if you don't move on.
i es. Well | don't care much
i But I'll only shoot you in the legs
land give you chance to reform. Do
you think you could reform after being
/ shot in the legs.
81 dunno, but I'll try my hardest"
isaid the trespasser as he struggled to.
his feet. However think I'd~ rather
have doctor than a dose of bird shot
/ Is your father or any one else about
about
He lurched and staggered and col
lapsed and Sadie let the gun fall and
bent over him. 1t wasn't 4 moment be-
fore she discovered that ne was burn
ling with fever and shaking with a
Ichill at the same time and all other
thoughts of robbers and shooting had
left her head. She brought him water
and later on stopped farmer driving
by and got help to move the stranger
to the house and put him to bed.
He's no tramp" said the country
doctor who was called in.
He's some college fellow probably
with a rich dad behind him who was
making a walking tour. He probably
got soaked in that thunder storm yes
terday and hell be in bed four or five
days probably. Here's your little ro-
nance and if you don't make the best |
of it you are a queer girl.
That Miss Sadie Davis was not a
queer girl and that she did not make
the best of it was proved a year later.
The diagnosis of the doctor was
correct and the tourist with a rich
dad was taken in the house as a sum
mer boarder. He took advantage of the
opportunity to woo and, win and take
INTO himself a wife, and TO preserve
the old shot gun as a souvenir OF their
first meeting.
Jay. oF-an ofsaa Ton 10 cents pr day 4
and no notes TO sign Think it over
Get orr pfieas sstigaia our meth
eds. Factory BIZ house, Roanoke
susic Co., g 2 innings, Manager !
2 Salem Avenue