Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1912-10-03

NtltntT Ol the men tOileu mucn
as the canoe floated down the
stream. Very slight impulses
served to give their buoyant craft
a reasonably swift motion, and the
current itself was material
assistant. These circumstances
gave an opportunity for CONVEX
sation as the canoe glided on
ward.
.A'rter all" suddenly exclaimed
Warning, who had been examining
the pile of kegs for some time
in silence-"a'ter ! all, Bourbon,
your trade is an uncommon one (!
A most extr'ornary and uncommon
callin'm
more SO, think you, Gershom
than wallowing .whiskey. morn
ing, noon, and night?" answered
the bee-hunter. with quiet smile.
'Ay, but that's not rig'lar
CALM; only liking"l Now
man may have likin' to hum
dred things in which he don't deal.
i set nothin' down as business
which a man don't live by"
perhaps you're right, Waring.
More die by whiskey than live by
whiskev.or
Whiskey Centre seemed struck
with this remark, which was in
troduced SO aptly, and was utter
ed so quietly. He gazed earnestly
at his companion for near min
ute, ere he attempted to resume
the discourse.
Blossom has often said as much
as this" he then slowly rejoined;
land even Dolly has prophesized
the same"
The bee-hunter observed that an
impression had been made, and he
thought il wisest to let the re-
proof already administered pro-
duce it's effect, without endeayor-
ing to add to it's power. Waring
sat with his chin on his breast,
in deep thought, while his COM
panion, for the first time since
they had met, examined the fea-
lures and aspect of the man. AT
first sight, Whiskey Centre GER
tainly offered little that was in
viting; but a closer study of his
countenance showed that he had
the remains of a singularly hand
some man. Vulgar as were his
forms OF speech, coarse and for
bidding as his face had become,
through the indulgence which was
his bane, there We're still traces
of this truth.
His complexion had once been
fair almost to effeminacy, his
cheeks ruddy with health, and his
blue eye bright and full of hope.
His hair was light; and all these
peculiarities strongly denoted his
Saxon origin. 1t was not so much |
Anglo-Saxon as Americo-Saxon,
that was to be seen in the phys
ical outlines and hues of this near
ly self-destroyed being. The heavi-
ness of feature, the ponderous-
ness of limb and movement, had |
all long disappeared from his race,
most probably under the influ-
ence of climate, and his nose vas
prominent and graceful in out
line, while his mouth and chin
might have passed for having been
under the chisel of some distin-
guished sculptor. 1t was in truth,
painful to examine that face.
STEPPED as it was in liquor, and
fast losing the impress left by
nature. AS yet, the body retained
most of it's power, the enemy hav-
ing insidiously entered the citadel,
rather than having actually sub
dued it. The bee-hunter sighed as
he gazed at his moody companion,
and wondered whether Blossom
had aught of this marvellous COM
eliness of countenance, without it's
revolving accompaniments.
All that afternoon, and the whole
of the night that succeeded, did
the canoe float downward with the
current. Occasionally, some slight
obstacle to its progress would
present itself: but, on the whole,
it's advance was steady and GER
tain. AS the river necessarily fol-
lowed the formation OF the land,
It was tortuous and irregular in
its course, though it's general dir
ection was towards the northwest
DIT west a little northerly. The {
river bottoms being much more I
heavily ''timberedn-to use :
woodsman term-than the higher I
grounds, there was little of the [
"openings" on its i'm
Mediate banks, though distant (
ylimpses were had of many a n
glade and many a charming grove. 4
AS the canoe moved towards its [
~ <,f a