The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1915-01-15

NV
re you will only come now and then
and hold my hand"
seemed ~instincdvely to feel for her.
"She did not know me. yet she cared
for me at once" thought Waitstill ten.
derby and proudly, land l for her. too,
at the first glance"
She heard her father lock the barn
and shed and knew that he would be
going upstairs Immediately. so she
quickly went through the side yard
and lifted the latch Of the kitchen
door. 1t was fastened. She went to
the front door. and that. too. was bolt
I'd. although 1t had been standing open
all the evening so that IL a breeze
should spring up it might blow through
the house. Her father supposed, of
course. that she was In bed. and she
dreaded to bring him downstairs for
feur Of his anger. Still there was no
help for it, and she raped smartly at
the side door. There was no answer.
and she raped again, vexed with her
W ~carelessness. Patty's face ap-
peared promptly behind her screen of
mosquito netting in the second story,
but before she could exchange a word
with her sister Deacon Baxter opened
the blinds of his bedroom window and
put his head out.
You can try sleepin' outdoors or in
the barn tonight" he called. II didn't
say anything to you at supper time. be-
cause l wanted to see where you was
intendin' to prowl this evenin'.'
Il haven't been 'prowling' anywhere,
father" answered Waitstill. i've
been out in the garden cooling off. It's
only 8 o'clock"
"Well. you can cool of some more"
he shouted, his temper now fully
aroused. "Or 60 back where you was
this afternoon and see If they'll t6aae
you in there! l know all about your
dece1tful tricks. | come home to
grind the scythes and found the house
and barn empty. Cephas said you'd
driven up Saco hill and l took his
horse and followed you and saw where
you went. Longs you couldn't have
a Teller calm on you here to home
you thought you'd call on him. did
yer, you boldfaced hussyT
Il am nothing Of the Sort the girl
answered him quietly. Ivory Boyn-
ton was not ut his house. he was in
the bayfield,. You know it. and you
know that I knew it. I went to see a
sick. unhappy woman who has no
neighbors. ought to have gone long
before. l am not ashamed of it, and
! don't regret 1t. II you ask unrea-
sonable things of me you must expect
to be disObeyed ono in awhile"
Must expect to be disobeyed. must
/" the old man cried. his face posi-
lively terrifying in its ugliness. We'll
see about that. II you want calm
on a young man you were calm on q
crazy woman, and l won't have 1t. l
tell you. do you hear? won't have a
daughter O. mine %consortin' with any
o that Boynton crew. Perhaps a
night outdoors will teach you who's
master in this house. you imperdent,
girl! Well try 1t anyway"
And with that he banged down the
window and disappeared. gibbering
and jabbering impotent words that she
could hear, but not understand.
CHAPTER XIV.
Locked Out.
AT AITSTlLL was almost stun
wv ned by the suddenness Of
this catastrophe. She stood
with her feet rooted to the
earth for several minutes and then
walked slowly away out of sight Of the
house. There was 4 chair beside the
under the Porter apple tree.
and she sank. into it, crossed her arms
WI the back and. bowling her head on
them, burst into a fit Of weeping as
tempestuOus and passionate AS it was
silent. for, although her body fairly
shook with sObs. no sound escaped.
The minutes passed. perhaps an
hour; she did not take account of time.
The moon went behind clouds, the
night grew misty. and the stars faded
one by one. There would be rain to-
morrow, and there was a great deal of
hay cut. 50 she thought in a vagrant
sort of way.
Meanwhile Patty upstairs was in a
state of suppressed excitement and ter
r0r. 1t was Il quarter OF HI hour be-
fore her father settled himself in bed.
then al age it seemed to her before
she heard his heavy breathing. When
she thought it quite safe she slipped
on a print wrapper. took her shoes in
her hand and crept noiselessly down.
stairs. out through the kitchen and
int" the shed. Lifting the heavy bar
that held the big doors in place. she
closed them softly behind her. steup+d
.nf and looked about her in tile dark.
nrSS. Her quick eye espied in the dis
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