The Charles Mix new era. (Wagner, Charles Mix County, S.D.) 1???-1911, 1909-12-24
Why Grandmother
Could Not Write
., RUDOLF AAun0AH

Ill ~V0A0 AvO AAS0
D RUDOLF AAnn0AoH
eCopyrieht. ~ ahsst o1Gg1D O.. LAA) !.
In front q IL lAGG q IL iittlo
houses scattered alo1g ~ slge 6
the forest at . curly 10000 boy % :
stone bench drawing AnmoAaeke1 ~
ters o the slate which - holl a hie
knees. Every now A. tAsa - east :
longing glance toward - distant VI
lage green. WHARF his DonDna4es look
a IKE little coiorsl 60 runntng %
and fro. Then hs 1r0v . long sdsh
and hsld his slats po0on j1ly In his
hand TIL HI saas 9 1uty warned
him 70 resume hi hateA task. An oh
woman stepped out q - house. She
vas the cAfld's gran1notAer. she
leaned over his shoul1of and looked
pttytngiy at the scrtbbled letters.
~You poor littls follovis murmure0
sAs. stroking her granlooo's curly
head with her boay han4 they don't
give yos nv peace eve0 9 the LORDS
day II little fellow nals = dole
ful face and looked D1tsossly up Il his
g~randmotAsS.
They ask % musA g sAildrsn now
aAayu." continued tAo - voman. and
seated herself @ The saono beoch -
side the boy. 7 CO ne1uA0 rsaA ncr
write. yet l have always 1ssa respect
"a and have wen-beAAvo1 children
and grandchildren q what uDe -
learning 20 ~ pea1ant oulky" Her
words eoun1sl IKE soaos from angel
lips to ths youngstss.
Cant you write. GSan1motherg"
asked be.
no." said the old wo0an. with dig
nifty. and drew Asfsslf up. A long
pause followed
Were there no schoolmasters when
ron were little,' asked IL inQuisitive
grandchild. after . whilo.
-Oh. yes indeed!. answered grand
mother. We hal . ocAoolmaster;
and such . schoolmaeter! He
drummed the Ten Commandments and
whatever else We needed % know into
our heads. % that the parish priest
vas very proud Of u when he cate
chixed N. but he wasn't very particu-
lar about anything else. Oh, there
are no such men nowadays- But there
vas q very special rsason Why I did
cot learn to write. ana that II . very
remarkable story. I may thank my
nother-0od rest her soul-that I
never learned to write. She couldn't
write. either. and her not moving
how TO write saved her from . great
Danger. When my mother was irst
married. she and her husband had .
hard tine getting along. They worked
early ma late and stfIl hardly earned
their daily bread. One day my moth
er went out into the woods % get lit
ter for the goats. and her heart was
% full Of sorrow 0vee her poverty
that she sat down On he ground and
cried bitterly enough = melt the
heart OF q stone. Al q : sudden .
stately gentleman stood before
her,. dressed like . huntsman and
wearing 4 cocks feather n hls hat.
He asked my mother Why abe was
crying. and when she told him how
poor she was, be laughed and said:
win help you I will make yoa rich,
% that you WIN have enough - Iong
a. you live Then hs drew . little
red book out q his pocket and hAA6-
q e to my mother. ~ giving her
also 1 psncil. said: Write your name
IN that book. There are he names Of
. good many people whom I have
helped In there alrsa1y.'
Thea my mother. quite ovsS5oyed.
seized the book and the pencil to do
a. the gentleman had requested. but
~ shs did not know how to write. she
made . cross. In . moment the book
turned red hot In her hand. and she
threw Il away with . scream. and 4
burned up IN the twinkling of m eye.
When she looked up. the strange man
had disappeared and the whole 81
asx.st horribly a brimstons. Th0
nv ~Other felt her blood tuf1 cold
ana sr~ knew that the strange geo'
tleman mist hays bssa tAs dsvtl hi0'
sell. She r1c home heels over hse1.
and Il vas : Ions; 0ms before she got
over II. Her making . cross In the
devils book because she IL not know
how To write had saved Mr. s0l fro0
everlasting Asmnation and - she n
sisted that no chile q Asrs shouId
ever learn 10 write. n I Nd ny Ny.
you should Devsr learn ether. Dus
things are not - thsy 49, 70 - -