The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1905-07-28

Uncle Cy Bryant, who is kind oil
near sighted old poke, came hump
ing into the store one evening lit
tie later-it was in March, If I re-
member, about the time the crust got
hard and icy-and he said he believ-
ed the Sprague sugar orchard was
ha'nted. He was kind Of all up in a
heap about it, old Cy was. He said
he was coming along the road at the
foot of the slope and from away up
amongst the trees came sky-hooting
some kind of contraption that look
ed like-well, old Cy called it IAN
assitrich."
Ostrich, you mean don't ye?" ask
ed the storekeeper.
oval, the long-shanked bird with
a millinery store on his TAIL" said
Cy. Don't buther me when I'm tell
in story!" So we kept still.
He went on to say that this thing
seemed to be letting the blue yells
out Of him or her for all him or her
was able. He explained that some
of the yells were way up squawky-
like and some were down gruff, and
so he couldn't say as to whether it
was him or her. Anyway there was
a terrible to-do on, according to his
tell. First 1t would scoot one way
and then the other, and finally some
thing, he couldn't tell what, shot off
away from it, and then whilst he
stood there in the road the ostrich
thing came whoop! over the stone
wall, ker-whish across the road, ker-
WOW over the opposite stone wall,
and down into the meadow. And by
that time he was so fused up that
he didn't stop to see any more and
came along full pelt to the store. He
said that the yells of the thing when
it crossed the road were too much for
his nerves. He didn't have any grit
left to chase it.
Just as we were getting up bee
to go and investigate, the store door
slammed open and in stomped Silas
Sprague, the Wilder Spragues nine
teen-year-old boy. Where's Consta-
Bile Britt?" he yelled.
Right here" said Britt, shifting
his chaw.
The Sprague boy was big. larrup-
ing chap, and he cracked his fists
together and hollered: I've found
out that can lick him. and I've lick
ed MIN good and plenty; but that
amt all there's going to be to this.
l want him arrested now, and sent
to States prison for his whole ding
blamed life!"
He was tearing out of the store.
motioning for US to follow him; but
Britt bumped along and grabbed him.
you amt told me whether it's Ma
poleon Bonyparte or King George you
want arrested yit," yelled Britt. do
We think l can work without any
clues?'
Its Gale Allen!" howled young
Sprague. "And l want him put into
States prison where he belongs"
And then as near as we could get
at it from him, it seems that Gale had
come around to the Sprague house
that evening with a new kind OF a
sled that he had tinkered together,
and made Wilder s.. bundle up and
come out, and he put her on board
and sat on behind and started down
through the sugar orchard. spite of
all that could be said. Sprague boy
said that the hill was one glare of
ice with snow bumped around each
tree, the way it does. and all frozen
smooth, and that the sled got to
whee-jigging around and Gale fell off,
and there was the wilder, bundled all
up and left on board and no way to
steer.
The sled would dodge straight for
tree, strike a glary hump and
whoosh around and make for another
tree, and whoosh again, and there
that woman went peility-whoop for
half mile, just missing each tree by
an eyelash, and off down across the
road and over the meadow and
whong-bunt into a haystack.
"And I started after her." said the
Sprague boy, land on the way l came
across Gale Allen, where he'd been
wrapped around a tree, and there and
then I found out that l could lick
him; and done it to the queens
taste. And I got my mother back
home, and there she's settin' on the
bed, grabbing the foot-board and hoi-
lering SOS you can hear her a mile,
and thinkin' all the time that she's
sliding down hill and missin' trees.
and the neighbors say that near's
they can tell she's li'be to be slidin'
uOWu Hill III uSI IHliu loi oil Iuc hCoI
of her life. and hollerin' like that,
and he's broke up our happy home,
and now I want him put into States
prison!"
After he got it all out of him we
had to put snow down the back of
his neck to bring him out of his hys-
terics.
Well. for a fact that was sad
story to hear about our genius. OF
course. genius has good many
rights that the ordinary man doesn't
have; but it really did seem that this
was a matter to be looked into. So
delegation headed by the constable
started off to investigate and proceed
in matters as the case should war
rant.
AS the coroners say, we first took
look at the remains. The Wilder
| Sprague's house was full of neigh
bors, and she was stfll sitting on the
bed with her muffler round her head,
hanging to the foot-board. her mouth
| wide omen and hollering: 'Oh. my