The Republican. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1903-1909, 1906-07-17
A Couple of
ScarecrOWS
By PHILIP VERRILL MICHELS
Copyright, by Joseph b. Bowles.

the ample folds of his yellow pajamas
He lay in his bed rejecting, letter
in his hand, and his knees upheaving
the coverlet to form two rival fugi-
yamas.
Your uncle James is dead, and you
are his heir to the Black Oaks farm
was all he had read of the letter.
Visions of meadow and stream, OF
hillsides cool beneath majestic trees
the gray of Aforementioned wall,
o'ergrown with berry brambes, me
wide-spreading house, outstretching
arms of hospitality, and the curving
path that skirted the ancient we'll on
its way to the veteran gate-that never
shut but merely stood knee-deep in
the grass-came over his mind from
barefoot" time of long ago.
This mood was merely reminiscent
however, and not at all to be con-
strued as a consent to become the own
er OF farm.
"On the whole" he ruminated,
scratching at the bottom of his loot,
and thereby causing a fearsOme COM
motion among the coverlet fugiyamas,
"the place is good to have, if only
for home-a sort of retreat. And then
if ever | should get married. Well,
let's see what the rest of it says"
He resumed his letter:
Heir to the Black Oak farm, includ-
in the Hilltop addition and legacy of
5000, provided you marry Abigail
Umatilla Smeethers, much-removed
family connection, In the event of your
refusal to wed the said Abigail, etc.
you to inherit the Black Oaks and she
to have the Hilltop addition and leg
aey--
Now, hang Abigail Utility Smither-
eens!" calculated Forrest, bounding
out of bed and sweeping the coverlet
fugiyamas into space in a tidal wave
of blankets and sheets TITS perfectly
idiotic It's the kind of stuff you read
about! Abigail Curlpapers Giddy-
green's! No, you don't, uncle Jeems,
not on your daguerrotype. She can
have the Hilltop addition, and Now
why in thunder did he have to give
her the whole bank? twenty-five
thou | think I'd like-but no!-not
with Abigail, No, Abby, go thy
Smeethers ways, in peace and curl
papers,"
He danced the prelude of marvel
Gus snakentine gyration, and sat him
down on the edge of the bed to scratch
at the bottom of his foot again. The
rebellion WAS started and working
well.
"HeighO!" he mused as with hands
on his knees, he looked with winkiess
eyes on the common design of the car
pet. It's just the luck-it always goes
low is actually taking an interest in
the loveiest girl in the universe, and
begins to think he'd like to settle
down.
and retrospective as is possible to any
man in pajamas
Wasn't she charming" he ex-
claimed, in delight. Such dear brown
eyes, Such hair-it looked like what
like raven -colored skeins of silk.
Such spirit and genius of expressing
herself. And yet touch of sadness,
too. wonder why she wouldn't
q n cb 70 CHI yalI
perhaps we made better progress at
getting acquainted as it was"
He was silent a moment
Miss Rockland-rather fine | won,
der what her first name is? And
don't know where she lives, or any
thing about her. That's the trouble
with formal introduction at non,
anyway"
Slowly investing himself in conven-
tional attire, and fluctuating between
rhapsodies on his unknown queen, and
railleries on Abigail, Forrest went off
to his breakfast at last. Later he took
the boat for Cornfield and the Black
Oaks farm.
IN look the place over for a couple
of weeks said he, land then I'm gcing
to hunt Miss Rockland up, or squander
my youth and fortune in the effort"
Three large crows were stalking
about and cawing in a field that be-
longed to the Hilltop addition one
morning as Forrest came forth from
his farmhouse. He saw them out o.
the corner OF his eyes, the same way
that he saw the woman who walked
about the place from time to time.
That Abigail would come to fetch him
away, or, maybe, that he should mad |
vertently wander down through the
vale into her possessions and there be
trapped and wed in spite of himself,
was a constant fear with Forrest.
Abigail, ne reflected, appeared ag-
gressive, progressive and acqusitive.
She walked about her acres on the on