Mower County transcript., 1903-11-18

Nys n Concord burytn' '-sround now
tight alongside Of shickshack; and
you know where he lays The new
grave's there. ~" 5ss
IT not believe you! Il not believe
you! I not believe you'll"
4 Antywine leaped from the doorsiil
and ran like q deer to the tavern, pass
ing the young men and the oxen with
out noticing or hearing them. Ann
Rutledge was sewing by an open
window with her back toward him.
The two young girls were in the garden
with their mother. He did not see
Peggy anywhere! A hush was upon
the house, and as Ann turned and saw
him with a frightened look on her
face, he could not ask any question,
but took the path down to Rock creek,
and ran to the stone where Peggy used
to hide her book for him. The sun
was down and ribbon of mist wavered
in front of the closed schoolhouse.
Nobody would ever wait for him at
| that rock again. He ran along the
ravine below the gardens and returned
| to his house, barring the door and
drawing the latch-string in. Lying on
the floor in the,.darkest corner, he hid
his weeping, and made no answer to
the young men, who called his name
through the window!
Sally was asleep in her own cabin
long before Antywine crept out of his
| and took the road to Concord burying-
ground. 1t was a long walk under
blurred stars, for the wind changed
after midnight belying the promise of
! a fair sunset - T. i
Antywine tried to bring, Peggy's face
before him, with it's many fitting ex-
pressions. Her eyes were hazel, or
black, or gray, by changeable turns,
swarming with points of light He
remembered drinking from the gourd
after her, on the very side where she
had drank, and the pleased trembling
of her lips when she noticed it. All the
ways and traits which went to the
making of the companion he called
sweetheart were present to his mind,
when cropping among saplings in the
thinly peopled burying-ground he came
to Shickshack's sunken grave which
he had himself helped to make, and
found fresh clay hillock beside it.
The latter part of the night rain
poured upon the chest of drawers
which Antywine had left standing in
front of the cabin and streamed down
it's polished sides. Rain beat upon
! Antywine. through sapling boughs, sat
urating his linsey hunting-shirt and
darkening his worn buckskins.
Drenched grass and a tangle of little
sodden and miserable daylight came.
BY the end of the afternoon some light
crept out from sunset, and there was
a clearing up in the west. Lincoln
| climbed the burying-groundf fence, and
found Antywine lying asleep across the
new-made grave. He was so CHASTITY
that Lincoln at once shook him, feel
ing relieved when he opened his eyes.
The boy looked up at the mole like
warm pulsing heart on his friends
| cheek. But his friends eyes twinkled.
"What are you doing here on old
Daddy Cameron's grave, Antywine?"
Antywine sprang ass from a rattle
! snake. He was exhausted, so that Lin
coin gave him both hands to help him
rise.
Daddy Cameron died last week and
they buried him in the same row with
Shickshack He was fine old man,
but if 1 were you l wouldn't lie out
all night and all day on his gravel
Sally have tell me this is where she
is bury'!"
who? Peggy"
Eyes, Sieur Abe. Where is she?'
"At the tavern"
"She Is not dead?"
mot a bit!''
But Sally have tell me-
Haven't you summered and wintered
Sally long enough to know when she
is paying you grudge?"
But l run to the tavern myself"
"And scare Ann, and run away again
without asking any questions I've
had long jaunt through the mud and
searched the better part of day for
YOU"
Antywine threw his arms around
Lincoln and sobbed and laughed like
woman. He swayed, and could
scarcely stand.
ia CT