Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1904-11-19

the prairies!" With the words old Con
Ion closed the door on his son.
From that moment the tale of the
twenty years was u cherries, sordid one,
taking Jim COnlon as hero, for he squan-
dered the last cent of the 100000 in
sprees that decreased in length and in
tensity as the capital dwindled. But tax
ing Wanna gan-tu, the Indian wife, as
heroine, it should he written that she
stuck TO the man as the nobest God
fearing women of the world have done
since tales like this have been. She was
never as whipped dog, either, licking
the hand that beat her, for Conlon kept
his love for her clean out of the middle
of his life; and she wore that love like
crown And the three half breed girls
that grew up in the changing camps Of
their shiftlcss father came to hold him
in open alteration. Once, when a neigh
Dor heard that the family had been living
on cornmcal and milk for a week, an offer
was made to take the eldest girl as
helper to the farmers wife. That was
when they lived in Missouri. 1t was a
kindly impulse that sent the man, the
offer half charity, and Conlon knew it.
Go get your slaves at another place,
was his quick answer, and the daughter
turned a ragged, disdainful back ON the
farmer.
Then there came to Conlon's ears the
tale of the breaking up Of the Sac and
Fox reservation in the Indian Territory.
He Judged that his wife and daughters
ought to share in any spoil5 that might
be saved out of the wreck The Indian
wife acquiesced, and the girls helped to
hitch the two ponies to the rickety old
wagon The end Of that migration was.
as has been told, when the wagon wheel
fell to pieces in front OF Mike Lannigan's
ranch house. And the tale of the twenty
years came ont in his first spree
Lanngan's bottom land was rich, the
old Irishman an indulgent landlord. At
the first harvest time Conlon had very
thin bundle of notes and thirst that
gnawed like Il famished wolf. He drove
with the Indian wife to the little terri
tory town, tried to buy whisky, but was
baked by the prohibition law. He sent
his wife home in the wagon, a bag of
-four and share of bacon with her, and
hurried 10 the nearest Missouri town to
buy the liquor that he craved. The In
dian woman and the half breed girls
waited for him, meeting the fresh in
quiries with a silent, chilling dignity that
left them clear CT troublesome question
crs.
AT the end of two weeks Conlon sent
notice of his return, and asked his wife
to come to the little town to meet him.
1t was raining on the day that his wife
drove i'll to- meet COnlon, a steady
drenching rain that dotted the prairies
with shallow lakes and raced down the
ravines in impetuous floods. Crossing
the Big Creek as she drove to town early
i'll the morning, the bottom of the wagon
was covered with water, and when the
two came back in the late afternoon it
was ten-feet-deep seething torrent that
crowded the banks. Wagons, saddle
horses and men cut off from their homes
were collected on the bank of the creek
when COnlon came up.
Reckon we won't drive across today,
Conlon," said LAnnigan, coming up to the
two i'll the wagon. "Yed best put back
to the town wild me, and wait for the
fall tomorrow"
No; the girls'll be waiting for me-" re-
piled Conlon, and the Indian wife made
no sound of protest.
Besides, Mike Lannigan," he went on.
argumentatively, the effect of the whisky
not yet worn off, Pm well able to man
age the two of us in the biggest flood
that ever started to the Mississippi"
"Ge're fool to say that, Jim Conlon,"
retorted Lannigan Come along back,
jim, and don't try anything foolhardy.''
I'm show ye it's not foohardy | ami"
Conlon sprang out of the wagon and
plunged into the yellow water before
word of protest reached him. He had
fought the surf too often in his summer
cruises along the east coast, when he
was a Harvard undergraduate, to dread
this puny current, and, numbered as he
was by his clothes, swan back and forth,
laughing at the men ashore. Coming to
land, he climbed to the wagon seat beside
his wife and turned his ponies to the
foods edge. But Lannigan made another
protest.
For the love o heaven. jim. don't
drown yer wife, even if the devil and the
whisky we've drunk VII presarve yerself!
Come, Mrs. Conlon, jump out" The old
ranchman knew the danger better than
did Conlon.
He's a cowardly fool my woman"
Conlon blurted out. I'VE must get along
to the girls"
IF Jim says it's safe. I will 90" She
g1ipped Conlon's arm as he dashed the
ponies into the water. Lannigan tur,ed
10 the men on the bank, shouting:
Get down stream. there. BOYS, and
stand ready to do what We can to help
| en-"
The underied ponies met the swirling
current with game struggle, but turned
tail to 1t pertorce, cramping the floating
wagon sharp about, unmindful of Con.
Ions frantic urging. The heavy wheels
sank 70 the creek bed. the wooden body
Of the wagon ioatcd off of the standards.
and. rs it twisted in the current can.
sized like an overweightcd. Baking row.
boat. Conlon seized his wife about ths
waist and lcaped clear of the wagon.
stu holding, mwittingly, the guiding
lines of the team. These wrapped them
selves around his ankles as he began To
swim away from the wreck. and SWING