Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1909-02-06

"A week. says he.
She had queer way of doing every
| thing by jerks, like as if ,she was hung
| on wires and worked with a string.
| Now she Strengthened up out of her
| chair so sudden you almost expected
! to hear her snap
"A week." she sings out. "Ohi"
Then she looked at me.
'Oh, it's so, if he says so," says I,
resigned like.
Land sakes, A week. 1 never
| but it amt no use. What would be-
come of pa and the children
Couldn't you come over for the
days, at least?" asks Martin. You
| might go home nights. you know"
And that's the way it ended. finally.
| The Twins had made up their minds.
and when that happened, heaven and
earth wouldn't change 'em. At last
| Eureka said she'd talk it over with
her folks and Van Brunt said we
would come over to her house next
day and get the decision.
"Therei" says he, when the Sparrow
girl had gone Skipper. the cook
| question is settled
Maybe It's says 1. Looks to me
as if you'd settled it the way the Teller
settled the coffee, by upsetting it For
chaps that pinned for rest and quiet you
| two do queer things. Do you realize
what getting mixed up with that Spar
row gang is likely to mean?''
IF the whole flock is like the speci-
| men bird we've seen," he says, it'll
mean Joy. If there was one thing
| needed to make Ozone island a de-
light, a gem of purest ray serene, that
original would be the thing. She's a
circus in herself. 1 shall dream to-
night of pa and the doctor. Ho, no,
By the way. what's her Christian
name?"
1 told the name-the whole of it.
How them Heavenlies did laugh.
''Eureka," says Hartley. "-Splen-
did,
.'Eureka." says Van. 1--WE have
found it, Sol, let's have lunch"
got 'em something to eat and then
the three of us put in the afternoon
chasing the wild animals. The chick
ems was fairly easy to get hold of; 1 laid
a trail of corn up to the door of the hen
yard and trapped the most of 'em that
way. But the pig was a holy terror.
He'd had his experience with Ozone
islanders that morning and he didn't
blessed sand bar we chased him, get
ing upset and firing ourselves out. The
pig race over to Eastwich want in it.
1 did most of the chasing; the Heaven
lies superintendent, as usual, and gave
orders and laughed. They pretty nigh
laughed themselves sick. Finally the
critter bolted into the woodshed and
locked the door on him. 1t was six
o'clock when 1 dumped him into the
sly. OF all the Natural Life days I'd
had yet this one was the liyeliest and
most wearing. A week like it and my
natural place would have been the
burying ground. 1 cal'late 1 lost three
pound that afternoon. 1 was getting
SO thin that when 1 fell down my legs
made grooves in the sand.
The next forenoon me and Hartley
went over to close the cook trade.
Van wouldn't go. He said the garden
ing and the shipwreck and the steeple-
chase-meaning the pig hunt-had
given him sensations enough for
week or SO; he had some of 'em with
him yet. So Martin said he'd go, for
my sake. 1 borrowed a couple of spare
oars from Scudder, when he arrived
with the mornings dose OF skim
milk and cream and butter, and, as ]
took care to row the skiff this time, we
made the passage all right. Then
we walked up to the Sparrow's nest
Twas pretty shabby-looking shack.
now 1 tell you. Shingles dropping off.
and fence falling down, and general
shortage of mans work everywhere.
But there was bed of bachelor but
tons and old maids pinks under the
front window, and the windows them
selves was clean and bright. Eureka
had done her best to make the place
honey; you could see that
She let us in when we knocked at
the kitchen door. Her sleeves was
rolled up and there was a big basket
of clothes by the steaming washtub.
Editha, the 12-year-old, was grinding
at the wringer and Dewey, the baby.
was setting or the floor playing with
a rag doll. The rest of the tribe
except Lycurgus, who had gone, ped
ding clams--was off playing
Eureka, she apologized for things
being so upset, but there want any
need for apollo gies. The house was
plain and poor--you could see that it
took a mighty lot of stretching to
make both ends come in sight of each
other, let alone meet; but twas clean
as whistle. Even the baby was
clean, all except his face and hands,
and no healthy young one ought to
have them clean
Good morning says Hartley
Have you decided to cook for us?''
She bobbed her head over the wash
tub I've decided it, pa has,, says
she. He amt made up his mind yet
He wanted to sleep on it, he said