Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1913-11-28
THE TRAGEDY OF .BITTERSWEET~
BARTONS THANKSGIVING DAY
cometh my strength"

WAAStA&C COAlACkkl lily 0StSllkIu. ~
THE everlasting hills"
They wOrshiped a. they walked, all
unconsciously, but In sincerity and
truth.
But occasionally the Sunday quiet
was disturbed by the arrival Of the
Rev. Eaijah Thunder, n OF the then
eight Methodist circuit riders of North
America. His was the God of vengeance
and of wrath. and as his especial am
bassador. Thunder poured it out on the
heads Of these simple folk. Women
who had been wives n mothers at is
n in whom We're no guile. who had
been he best and most faithful OF
heipmates. wondered. when they had
heard Thunder picture his awful God.
II from hat hour they ceased work
and tasted and prayed INCREASINGLY to
the end. they could by any hook or
crook escape the lake of eternal fire
n h weeping, wailing n gnash-
ing OF teeth.
Little children, when they heard this
minister plenipotentiary, Struggled
closer to their parents side, and at
night, after an unusual thunder storm,
older ones went up to the loft with the
and held tiny hands till the children
the night a timid one would cry out
with terror and alarm, having in
dreams seen the awful pit or heard the
screams and agonies of the damned
or smelled the terrifying lake Of brim-
stone.
One summer, a sweet-faced Quaker
lady from near. Philadelphia visited the
settlement. Fair-haired, blue-eyed
sunny and optimistic, comparing
strangely with these dark, stern-vis-
aged pioneers. the Quaker talked
sweet!y n comfortably of the love of
GOO. his tender watchfulness; how he
neld his people In the hollow of his
mighty hand; how his burden is easy
and his yoke light, and by coming to
MIN they could find rest unto their
souls. They We're almost persuaded to
follow this God Of the Quaker lady,
their hungry hearts yearned 30 for the
But when the Rev. elijah Thunder
came back and repainted his God Of
the thunderbolt and Of wrath, down in
tneir pioneer hearts they were so
tnankful they had not been led from,
tho true path" to worship the false
a0d OF the Cuakers. n they were as
n ever had the %hardihood to miscon-
str4e o as an instrument Of mercy
as q father to his children" It
was 9 narrow escape for them.
=! was on one of he Sundays Of the
early spring following the death Of
5.enry Baker, when its peace was not
by fiery doctrines of the re-
generating Thunder. that members Of
several families Of the hamlet in the
eariy AFTERNOON started. for q walk over
the mills to gather, among other things,
tralling arbutus. There had been no
rains IN weeks, and the dry pine
needles cracked under their feet.
Among the party were Samuel Bak-
er and Bfttersweet. They were. in adj
vance of the others. down on their
knees. putting, aside dead leaves and
anche n gathering great spikes of
enese most beautiful M fragrant Of
wearied and left the hill, leaving these
Two alone. They descendwed the sides
OF y steep gully. where they found
larger and finer sprays than ever. A
ssrong south wind was blowing in their
erection. and finally an ember lit at
s 9 aa neet. igniting the pine needles.
we better got to the top Of this ravine
find out where this fire came
from" $50.
With ntmble feet they clambered up
us p~recipitous sides. Al they reached
Tue uinmlt the sight was to quail
tnem at express train speed. famed
by q high wind, running as
only wildflre can was q tre-
mendous forest fire. It hemmed them
ln on three sides. A heavy cloud Of
- CAtlUeIS QT0C9000 lS @n0 the
roar or Its increasing volume was ter.
rifying. 20.
Both OF them knew what such forest
fires meant. They had soen the fruits
OF OF toll Of the settlers swept
OFT the earth In a few minutes by
mem. Forest fires Of prtmeval days
were different from those which now
run through old slashines. whore only
the dry. dead timber BURNS. for then
tney ran through the pine needlea NTH
even greater rapidity.
Instinctively, Bittersw0et reached for
sms nand q together they ran like
open to them. Il was . Cood ousrter
OF 2 mile to Mill creek, ana TO b saved
II wa necessary to beat the fire 20
NAV point. a very simple but Z very
proposition, a. they both
Knew. Neither spoke. 70 conserve their
at q mad pace.
Ahead Of the blaze came bear deer.
Elk oeavers rabbits and horde Of
otner Wild animals, all toiline to rat
OUT OF the way Of tho oncomine wall of
Ilame. while s4rpents. among which
were F~a1tiesnakes squirmed almost be-
life. An enormous black bear Wa r,In-
nlng 0y their side, too terror-striken to
g y attention to them. Bruin was
Wlnded. his tongue was lolltng and he
was about to give up the struggle and
succomb to the Inevitable.
Sam and Bittersweet had covered the
most OF the distance. with Nil creek In
sight. when an elder root on which h
stepped peeled, and she fell headlone.
she struggled to her feet. but one ank-
ie refused to bear her weight, and h
IRE was gaining on them every second.
sam picked her up in his arms as IL
abe had been a baby ana hurried on.
oug his burden greatly retarded
MS speed. She looked a~ppcalinRly at
MIN which nervcd him further to the
struggle.
He flung her skirt over her head to
protect her from the awfl,l cmoEa thet