Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1909-04-08
CHATTER MY
A MYSTERY Is uNrAvELEp.

CHA II .Ik NV,
MYSTERY Is UNEAvELED.
n LIEUTENANT BURRELI was con-
sidernbly taken abach when n
Il quarter Of an hour after the
young lovers ecstatic return 10
his quarters Gale knocked at his door,
for the traders visit coupled with the
late hour and his somber countenance,
forecast new complications
Hes here to object. but it WON'T
CO. thought the lieutenant as he made
his visitor welcome
Meade swung his big reading chair
out beneath the hanging lamp and, 60
Ing TO the sidehoard. brought back a
lottle. some glasses and a pouch of
tobacco. Noting the old mans sigh of
fatigue as he sat himself down heavi-
". he remarked sympathetically:
Mr.. Gale, you've made a long tr,p
today and you must lie tired If this
talk is to be lengthy. why not have a
drink with me nov and postpone 1t I'M
Ill tomorrow"
1--WE been tired for eighteen years."
the other replied. Tonight | hope to
get rested"
"Well, let's get at It," the younger
nan finally said.
Il suppose you'll want to interrupt
and question me a heap, but I'll ask
you to let me tell this story the way
It comes to me till get 1t OFT. Like
wise you'll want to know what all
this has to do with you and Necia
Yes; she told me about you and her.
and that's why I'm here" He paused
You really think you love her. do
vou"
Burial removed his pipe and gazed
ut its coal impersonnily.
II love her so WELL Mr.. Gale, that
pothing you can say will affect me-
IL hcaItated ut first about asking her
to be my wife because-you'll appre-
ciate the unusual-wcll, her unusual
history. You see, l come from coun-
try where mixed blood is about the
only thing that can't be lived down or
overlooked, and I've been raised with
notions Of family honor and pride of
race and birth, and so forth, that
might seem preposterous and absurd
to you. But heap Of eonceits Ike
that have been bred into me from
generations back. They run in the
blood Of every old family in my coun
try, and SO. I'm ashamed to say,
hesitated and tried to reason myself
into giving her up, but I've had my
ewes opened. and see how little those
things amount TO. after all I'm going
TO marry Necia. Mr.. Gale. I'd like to
49, <<,,v do
but che isn't Of age yet, and if you OBJ
ject We'll have TO wait until Novem-
Der, Xhen she turns eighteen We'd
both like your consent, Of course. I'd
be sorry to marry her without it But
II you refuse we'll be forced to dis
please you" He looked up and met
the fathers gaze steadily.
The other mans lips framed a faint
smile.
We'll see. wish to God I'd had
your decision when l was your age.
This story would be different and cas-
Ter to tell" He waited Il moment
then settled to his self appointed task.
~ was mining at the time up in the
mother lode country Of California.
which was the frontier then, pretty
much as this is now, only we had bet
ter things TO eat. was one Of the first
mon into a camp named Chandon-
helped to build 1t. In fact-and got hold
Of some ground that looked real good.
1t WAS hard mining. however. and. be-
ing poor. l WIGS still gripping my drill
and hammer after the town had grown
up.
"A woman came out from the east
Vermont 1t was-and schoolteaching
was her line Of business, only she
hadn't been raised to 1t, and this was
her first clatter at the game. Her
folks died and left her up against 1t.
l gathered from what little she told
me-sort Of an old story. guess, and
usual, too, only for her. She was
plumb unusual"
BE seemed to ponder this a moment
and then resumed
1T don't make any difference to you
how first saw her and how began
to forget that anything else In the
world was worth having but her. I'd
lived In the woods all my life, as
said, and knew more about birds and
bugs and bees than did about wom-
en-. l hadn't been broke proper and
didn't know how to act with them. but
laid out to get this girl. and I did
fairly well. There's something wild IN
every woman that needs to DO tanned,
and It isn't like the wildness that runs
in wood critters. You can win that
over BY gentleness, but you have to
take It away from woman. Every
live thing that couldn't talk was my
friend. but I made tho mistake Of
counting my own kind the same way,
not knowing that when two of any
species mate the male must rule. I
was too gentle. Dven 90, reckon I'd
have won out only for another man.
Dan Bennett was bic naine-the Kind
that dumb animals hate and-well,
that takes his measure. HIS ranso
adjoinsd milne, and, though I'd never
seen him, heard stories now ana