Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-03-22
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Treasure of Laguna Cave
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smiled widely bland, the head wagged
three times TO the north. Jones shut
one eye as he wagged.
Horrors, what does the creature
mean?" said she.
HE means to hunt to the north. He
said that there are NO abalones to the
south"
Mercy, let's do 1t, and get out Of
his sight" she said; and went skim
ming the sand and leaping the rocks,
ne after, In the search for abalones.
After an hour, when she had been
felled by a billow, she poked her glow
Ing head up through its crest and be-
hold! the eye Of old Jones. Old Jones
was seated on a crag seventy feet
high.
Horrors" she said; "look at him."
Hatcher paused with a mammoth
yellow abalone in his hand, and stood
In four feet Of water, gazing I'D as
though Jones had been comet. Old
Jones' horrible head was thrust out
further over the uneven edge Of his
precipice, and wagged three times, ma
1estic, yet CHASTITY, to the north. He
shut one eye as he wagged.
What a lugubrious mortalp' said
she.
That night old Jones seemed feebler
as he sat In Mrs. Miggs' house, mum
bling over his tide-cards. Now and
then his old eye gazed at Jennie, sus
picious and uneasy. She was so alarm
ingly healthy, no wonder she got upon
the nerves Of anybody so near his
grave as old Jones. Mrs. Miggs was
stringing limpet shells from the hang
ing lamp. Mrs. Miggs had big. red
crawf1sh in a pan. Old Jones went I'D
to bed In ramshackle way; his head dis
appeared; his trunk; his legs. They
heard his rustling footballs grow faint
in the hall above.
The walls of that house were very
thin. In the night, Jennie hatcher
awoke from her vigorous sleep with a
sense Of queerness. But ell she heard
was old Jones in distant room mum
BILE and ramble in wakefulness,: and
say: 1.-TWO more days. Oh, me-"
Had Mrs. Hatcher not been one of
the most extraordinarily healthy wom-
en- that ever drew breath, she would
nave slept no more. But she did sleep
shades! how Mrs. Harrison Hatcher
could sleep!
The following afternoon, again In
bathing suit and gamboling beyond all
reason, she went over the rocks with
her husband, who grinned, half stupe-
fed at her vim. To the rear she saw
old Jones creeping out of the house
with his eye fastened on her.
Harrison" she whispered, where
Mr.. Hatcher stood poised on a crag,
and Rugged him in the sight Of gossip
ing seagullsfl that old thing yonder-
he's fooling us. see right through
him. Ugh! See his bad eyel I know
that there must be coolies of abalones
under those southern rocks, and what
that old specimen says is intended to
deceive. I'm going to slip down and
go to that very place"
And she rubbed her nose on Mr..
Ratcher's cheek, as though she were
whetting it, then charged down Jagged
places to the sea. When she was hid
down there she crept southwark to the
spot where the rocks end and tne
beach begins. Away across the sand
she flew.
Yonder across the gap the southern
rocks rose, and Hatcher saw her Gis-
appear among them; then perceived
old Jones, fifty yards behind him,
stare, wag his head, and grow agitated
OF sudden, down over the rocks and
out across the sand to the south, queer
Jones, with rickety haste eyes ablaze,
went toddling. And Hatcher sat down
on the rocks and shook with laughter,
but later followed Jones.
jennie, making flying leaps over in
credible CULTS between rocks, was f1nd-
ing quantities of abalones.
'tThat shameless old codger!' cried
she, aud stood gazing round at the
wild spot wherein she found herself,
or sticking her toe into the sea-ane-
mones to see them shut up round It and
squirt. Then she felt chill, and
turned quickly to look up. Over rock
thaA hung above her, projected the rag
ged head Of Jones. twelve feet distant,
against the unfathomable California
sky.
Mercy Get away" said Mrs. Rat
cher.
"Say, come out" rustled old Jones.