Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1914-05-16
The Little Red
Crutch

when it rains-old laces, and skele
tons. and things"
'Skeletons!" calculated the listener
at the other window. MY, Nan!
Should you like to find a skeleton
I'm rather glad we haven't any garnet,
If skeletons live in garrets. But / tell
you what" lowering her voice mysteri-
ously, and coming over to stand on the
same long-suffering curtain that Nan
was abusing, there is little shut-up
place in this house that must have
something awful in it."
The little shut-up place. was a
closet in the third-story back room. A
gabled roof made Irregularities in the
room, and one of them developed into
a dark closet.
But it's locked objected Nanette.
mo, it isn't. l pulled it open one
day, just very little way"
And what was inside?"
Nothing" confessed the discoverer,
except dust and darkness. But
didn't go in, you know. l wouldn't for
anything
The next minute two slim little fig
ures might have been seen-they could
not be Misunderstanding up the great
Queen Ann stairway. Tiptoeing, and
covering up laughing lips, and pinch
ing each other, they reached the third
story back room, and stood before the
closed door But it was not an OBJ
stinate door; and the small. cunning
fingers soon had it open. Darkness
and dust, indeed! plenty Of both, and
nothing else to be seen.
Would you be afraid to 90 in,
Nan?"
mo, indeed! 'Fraid Of what?"
Would you go way back to the very
darkest end?"
Nan insisted that she would.
We'll, then. do it, dared the other;
and sturdy Nan plunged into total
eclipse. She came back to the cheer,
full light of day with great alacrity,
covered with dust, of course-eyes
full, nose and mouth ditto, apron look
ing like Cinderella's, and something in
her hand Winking her dusty lashes,
she held up her discovery. 1t was a
little red crutch.
Downstairs they clattered, with
noise enough to make up for their
silent ascent the little crutch bobbing
along each step as they flew down to
Grandmother's room.
The look that came into Grandma's
eyes when the crutch was held up was
very much the look that Anita would
have shown if the skeleton had been
found indeed, or ghost.
Tire was clearly something to tell;
and, as story on this wet day would
be even more delightful than finding
a skeleton, the dear old lady was at
once put in a state of siege. the crutch
and two little girls sitting down OBJ
stinately before her.
zone breezy fall day." said Grand
ma, surrendering at discretion, "a
little girl went out to the barn to
swing
~ What barn. Grandma? ?"
This barn. she answered, was the
most delightful place in the whole
world 1t was none of your fine north
ern barns, with stained-glass win
dows, but great high-roofed, dark
raftered place, where cobwebs had
leave to sleep, where the breeze wan
dered in and out all day, and the sun
shine played about, as the children did
hunting eggs 1t was full of sweet
odors from the bayfield, on one side
and the apple orchard on the other;
and the little Virginia girl, whose
swing dangled from one of the lower
beams, had no idea that anybody in
the world had a higher claim on it
than she had"
What was her name, Grandma"
Her name" said the old lady. look
ing SHAREHOLDER name was Nancy, of
course"
And she went out to swing one
day. prompted the listener
"She went out to swing one day, de-
termined to work up till she touched
the BEAM She was very strong and
very skilful. She put her little bare
feet on the board seat, seized the rope
high up, gave tilt this side and that,
and was off. Do you know how to
work up'-how to bend the knees and
straighten them again with jerk that
sends the obedient swing flying
through the air? Nancy came so near
the beam that it's cobwebby dust sift-
ed down in her eyes (not the beam she
was hanging to. you know, but an
other). So close, and yet not to
touch. Ambitious little goose! she
suddenly threw out her hand, and
struck the great log with her fist. But
the loosened rope swung away from
her. the board tilted, she hung only by
one little hand in the air, and soon the
impetus Of the swing jerked that hold
loose, and she fell"
"Ah!" cried the little girls, with a
sob of pain-"ah, Grandma! was she
killed."
mo. not killed; but sometimes in
the long winter months that followed,
when she was weary and racked with
pain, Nancy wished that she had been
killed Then this little crutch was
made for her at the carpenters shop
on the plantation, and padded on top,
and
Painted red?'' interrupted Anita.
"No. not then. Nobody had ever
heard of painting a crutch red; but
one rainy day like this, when poor
little Nancy felt so tired and sad. and
had no hope to cheer her, but lay on
the couch and counted how many long
months must pass before she could run
and walk again, her mother came and