Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1917-01-25
CHAPTER vi.
My Man O'Mara.

m TOR a week and more Caleb
Hunter secured the surround
ing country. He whipped over
49, the hills in every direction,
half hopeful that he might overtake
the boy who had gone in the night.
But none of the farmers on the out
lying roads had seen pass their way
a little foot traveller such as he de-
scribed, and after a time even that
small hope died.
When Dexter Allison came over the
next day, his face far more perturbed
than Caleb had ever before seen it by
the news which Barbara in tears had
carried to him, together the two men
searched for Steve, driving in silence
through the country until they both
realized that the search was useless.
And at last, one day in early fall,
Caleb started alone upon his Grand
into that stretch of timber to the north
which the. boy himself had vaguely
designated as ''up river"
He spent week in the saddle before
he located the cabin of the JenkinseS
in an isolated clearing upon the main
branch Of the river. And even then,
when he did locate the Jenkinses, it
took hours of quiet argument before
Caleb could convince those shy and
suspicious people that his errand was
an honest one. Eventually they did
come to believe him. They led him
afoot another half mile up the timber
fringed stream to log cabin set back
in the balsams upon needle carpeted
knoll. And they stood aud stared in
stolid wonder at this portly man in
riding breeches and leather putteeS
when he finally emerged from that
small shack, Old Toms tin box under
his arm, and with lips working strange
ly pinned the door shut behind him.
Caleb left in the limp fingers of the
head of the jenkins household yell
low tinted note of a denomination
which they had not even known exist
ed. He left them half doubling its
genuineness until later when there
came an opportunity to spend it. And
Sarah was waiting at the door of the
white place ON the hill when Caleb
wheeled into the yard at dusk two
days later.
you've found himr' she exclaimed
as she glilnpscd his face when he en-
tered the hall.
Caleb shook his head his heart ach-
ing at the hunger in her question.
NO, l haven't found him, Sarah
he said gently enough. But 1--we
found out who he is"
They forgot their supper that night.
With heads close together they hung
for hours over the ink Smeared sheaf
Of papers which the tin box yielded
up. Most of them were covered with
cramped and msspclled handwriting
which they knew must be that of the
one whom Sieve had called "Old Tom
Some of them were hard to decipher,
but their import was very, very clear.
There was one picture. Il miniature
Of q girl, eager of face and Wavy of
hair. Her relationship to the boy was
unmiStakable. Sarah found that and
Wept over it silently, and while she
Wept Caleb sifted out the remaining
loose sheets
ITS not hard to understand now, IS
it?' he said. Its pretty plain now
why he had to go. And we, Sarah~we
who were going to make something
Of him'-why, we should have known
absolutely without this evidence. They
laughed at him, they made fun of him.
and there isn't any better blood than
flows in that boys veins! He was
Stephen O'Mara's son, and no more
addressed Il Jury Of a prisoners peers
and-and broke their very hearts with
the simplicity Of his pleading"
CONTINUED NEXT WEEK.