Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1914-10-01

Copyright, 1918, by the Mcclure
Newspaper Syndicate.)
A sweltering hot day in July.
girl swinging in a hammock under an
apple tree. A corpulent colored WON.
an, the cook of the manor house, sit
ting on the back steps and wiping the
sweat from her face and muttering
to herself:
II declar to goodness, if DR.. Cook
did find dat north pole, den he was
a fool not to stay right dar' and keep
house wild it!'
Through the back gate leading to a
lane came gypsy woman.
what you want yere?"
II tell you a true fortune for ten
cents"
Scat! am no cheap skate!"
"Just ten cents. You are going to
meet man."
"And it will be bad for dat man, if
he winks at mel"
"You are going to have money
soon."
"Hu! I git my wages dis week."
"You are going"
80 are you! Git right long wild
you! Dis hain't no Toulouse wild
fool people in it. Five vars ago a
woman OF your kind told my fortune.
She said was gwine to fall in lub, hab
money and marry a Gubiner. Did it
happen? Not on your life! Instead
of fallin' in lub fell outer an apple
tree and broke two ribs. Instead of
gittin' any money losted SIT. In
stead of marryin' Gubiner, it was a
- of y,ch - ~
dat tried to win my heart. Bosh!
Stuff! Humbug! Fade away"
els some young lady here?' asked
the gypsy.
Eyes, Miss Madge is here, but she
hain't gwine to fool away her time on
you no more dan am. Dis am our
busy day. Seer"
Miss Madge Rayburn was not so far
but that the humble of voices reached
her ears. She drowsed and wondered
and rose out of the hammock and
walked around the house.
what Is it. Linda?"
"Dis yere fool woman wants to make
fools Of us, Miss"
The gypsy advanced and took the
girls hand.
ut will be at night" ,s.
Burglars" grunted Linda. -
1T will be in winter
"Wish It were yere today!'
There will be high wind and fly
ing snow
Zone o. dem billiards. or buzzards,
or whatever dey calls 'em!'
"You will meet him midst the
storm
"Hu! It will be de milkman!"
"And love and marriage will come
concluded the gypsy, as she released
the hand.
Linda, go up to my purse and get
a quarter for the woman, said Miss
Madge.
Linda obeyed with very bad grace,
said to the girl:
II jist hope her gang will come back
tonight and steal all your Leghorned
chickensD
II have heard Of their foretelling
wonderful things"
"Say, now, Miss Madge, dat fool
woman jist tryin' to make as big fool
oh you as she is herself! Doan' you
pay no tension to her tall, fur it's all
nonsense. De way you'll git mar'd am
to stay right yere till a young man
comes along and stops to ask you how
fur it am to Herpaer's Hill. You will
answer him dat 1t am nine miles, and
de meanest sorter road, and he will be
tickled dat he will fall in Tub at once.
OATS how it will be-
It was an all-the-year-'round country
home that the Rayburns had, but Miss
Madge lacked neither callers nor ad-
mirers. They came and went without
seeming to arouse much interest, and
now and then the cook would grumble
to herself:
dat gal am gwine through ten miles
of woods to pick up crooked stick at
last! 'Tain't my bisness to talk to
her, as hain't quite one of de family;
but l reckon de times comm when
I'll have to-"
Not word was said between Madge
and Linda about the gypsy from that
hot summer day till one day in mid
December.
Then the girl got word by telephone
that chum from the city would be
out to visit her on the o'clock train.
There being good sleighing, the pony
and cutter would be made use of to go
to the depot, two miles away. The
mother fell in with the plans. while
the father would pass the night in the
city.
At s o'clock the man Of all work
got the rig ready.
1.-THE wind Is up and its much
colder" said the mother.
miss Madge, dars gwine to be one
Of dem buzzard!" warned Linda as
she tucked in the robes my bones
ached SO I couldn't sleep any last
night. Can't fool an old nigger's
bones when buzzard's comm
a-howkin' and a growlin'!"
There is going to be a change in
the weather" replied Madge.
Oars romance gwine to happen