Lewiston evening teller. [volume] (Lewiston, Idaho) 1903-1911, 1907-04-20
A Simple Romance.

! tOriginall
! MARY, I'm sorry - very sorry - to
hear of your bereavement"
Eyes, MN; the poor mans gone"
81 suppose you will wear mourn
ing?"
"Yes, MN; black as crow"
81 have some mourning dresses. I'll
| give you what you require"
''Thank y, NM"
"You were very happy together, be-
neve, though you have lately been do
ing all the work"
NM There was-I don't know what
y call it, NINA somethin' or other
in the courin.'
"a romanceT
yes, MN; that's it. Y know Turn
mus-that's my mans name, or was
his name before he didn't need a name
| at all-was solger. He whit off to
4 the war with the dagos in Cuby an
extinguished himself there"
did he get promotedY
Yes, MIN. He was made a car
porel afther the battle of Gussymuss
an sergeant at San Joen hills. Y
see, the dagos was at the top firm
cannon balls. One of 'em KEN along
an took off Tummus' right leg. He
stood still'--
I Wounded as he was-stoodP'
That's just the secret, MN. All
the rest of his regiment run away, but
/ Tummus, havin' but the wan leg,
couldn't run. so he stayed where he
/ was. That's what he told me, but he
didn't tell it to the officers, an they,
thinkin' he stayed because he was
brave, made a sergeant ov i'm, But
/ it didn't do i'm no good, for he was dis
/ charged from the service an STINT
home. But that wasn't all of 1t. At
I Their the war they sent i'm a medal, q
! big round wan wild pictures on the both
/ sides of it. 1t was made out of a
cannon"
romance?"
"No, ma'am; not exactly, ma'am. Oh
( didn't see 'em for the matther ov Eve
years afther that. OF was workin' In a
| boardin' house for sailors an thin
kind down by the wharfs. One mornin'
| whin OF was dom the rooms OF whit
into wan room where OF seen some
thin stickin' out o. the bedclothes.
1 at first OF thought it was the handle
of a warmin' pan, but Oi recommem-
bered that they don't use warmin
| pans no more, at least in this country
/ Thin OF thought it moight be the han
! die o. wan O. thin things the min
workin' on the sthreet pound the dirt
/ with. We had sthreet workers in the
4 house. an OF thought one ov 'em
moight have taken his FOUNDER to bed
with i'm. Anyway Oh knew it was
somethin' that 'ud be soilin' the bed
clothes, an OF was very mad, thinkin'
Ord have the trouble O. goin' for clean
sheets So took hold ov it an give it
jerk wild all me stren'th.
1T come out aisy enough, an at
tother ind there wasn't bit o. iron at
all, but somethin' round. If you turned
the whole ov it upside down it would
! "a made good shtick for wan o. the
big altar candles if you wanted to put
the other ind o. the shtick in the
ground, for there wasn't amy bottom
for it to shtand on. Oh was lookin' at
the thing, wonderin' what 1t was, whin
Oh saw the bedclothes moovin', an pur-
ty soon up by the pliers a mans face
was a-blinkin' at me as had just woke
up. OF dropped the wooden thing on
the floor an was goin' out as fast as /
could whin a voice called:
"'Me leg! Don't go way widout Civ
In me me leg
"'What d'y' name? OF axed.
HE pointed to the wooden thing on
the floor.
Dye call that legP axed i'm.
ats all I've got exceptin' the 9TH
or wan of flesh an blood an bone
"'And that thing was stickin' out
from undther the bedclothes Is your
legr
"It's wan Of 'em.'
San didn't 1t git coldr
"'Divil bit. TIN stand a lot O.
cold, but It won't stand amy heat
"'Why notr
eth burrn.'
Thin took notice that he was
white lookin'. an I axed i'm II ora
hurried EN-
Shure,' he said. Dye suppose y
kin pull q mans leg or widout hurtin'
'irnT
"Tsn't It woodF / axed.
Yes. but the sthump isn't
well, Oh felt 80 sorry fer hurtin'
the poor man that OF told i'm to lie
still, an afther handin' i'm his leg OF
whit down sthairs an brought i'm M
his breakfast, him lynn propped up
wild pillars that Oh put under his head