Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1918-03-29

.CNtl liAus pClIuPS 1Ollg dNlGS III "a
tent. They broke through the belt of
pOplars-and pulled up again. On one
side of the meadow stood a cabin, the
fresh-peeled log walls glaring yellow
IN the sun, and lifting an e~arth-covered
roof to the autumn sky. Bill whistled
Along the west side of the meadow
n brown streak of sod, and down
one side of this a man guided the han
dies of a pillow drawn by the strangest
Hazel's eyes had seen for
many Il day.
For goodness sakew she tx
claimed.
That's the true pioneer spirit for
you" Bill spoke absently. "He has
bucked his way into the heart of q
virgin country, and he's breaking sod
with Il mule and a COW. That's adap-
tation to environment with a venge-
ance-and grit"
There's I. woman, too, Bill. And
see-she's carrying 4 baby?" Hazel
pointed excitedly. ooh. Bill"
The man halted his strangely assert
ed team to watch them come. The
woman stood Il step outside the door,
Il baby in her arms. another fodder
holding fast to her skirt. A thick
bodied. short, square-shouldered man
was this newcomer, with a round,
pleasant face.
Hello, neighbor :" Bill greeted.
nh, yIo,yu,1n Iftc1 his oII fpIt hnf
c%ourteously. His face lit up.
"Ach :" said he. "Neighbor. Dot
ISIS Il goot word in diss country we're
dere ISIS no neighbor. But 1 am glat
to meet you. Viii you come do der
house und rest a v'ile?"
"Sure!" Bill responded. But we're
neighbors, all right. Did you notice
Il cabin about half a mile west of
here? That's our place-when we're
at home"
"So?' The word escaped with the
peculiar rising infection of the leu
ton. 81 half saw dot cabin ven We
come here. But l dink it vass aban-
don. Veil, let us to der house go.
Id will rest der mule-und Gretchen,
der cow. Ilah =!
He rolled a blue eye on his incOn.
gruOus team, and grinned widely.
Come" he invited; mine wife be
glat."
They found her Il matrOn of thirty
odd; fresh-cheeked, round-faced like
her husband. typically German, with
out his accent of the Fatherland. Ha-
eel at once appropriated the baby. 1t
lay peacefully in her arms, staring
widc-cyed making soft, gurgly sounds.
"The little DEAR" Hazel muir
INJURED.
"Lauer. our name ISIS" the man said
casually. when they were seated.
"Wagstaff, mine is" Bill completed
the informal Introduction.
II am from Bavaria" Lauer told
him. "Vill you smoke? light mine
bibe-mit your vife's permission.
"Yes." he continued, stuffing the
bowl of his pipe with a stubby fore
finger, 81 am from Bavaria. Dere |
vass upon a farm brought oop. l serf
in der army my dime. Den AmeriGo.
Dere ! marry my wife, who is born in
Milwaukee. I work in der big brew.
cries. Alder dot / learn to be a car
-penter. Now 1 am a kink, nit a castle
all mine own. l I'm 10 more a wage
SLATE"
you're on the right track" Bill nod
ded. Its a pity more people don't
take the same notion. What do you
think of this country, a%nyway?'
ut ISIS goot," Lauer answered brief
ly, and with unhesitating certainty
1T ISIS goOt. VOr der bOor man it iss-
it ISIS salfation. Nit fife huntret toll
lars und hiss two hants he al him
self a home make-und a lifing be
sure off"
Beside Hazel, Lauer's wife absent
ly caressed the blond head of hel
f~our-year-old daughter.
No. l don't think I'll ever get lone
some," s&e said. I'm too glad to b.
here. And I've got lots of work an(
my babies. OF course, it's natural II
miss Il woman friend running in nov
and then to cnat. But a person cam
have it all. And I'd do anything II
have Il ROOT of our own, and to hav'
it some place where our Twin Ion
depend on a pay envelope. Many
time I've sat and cried, just from
thinkin' how bad l wanted a littl,
place of our own, where there wa
grass and trees and Il piece of grounC
for a garden. And l knew we'd neve
be able to buy it. We couldn't ge
ahead enough"
"Und So" her husband took up tn
tale, Il hear off diss country. we're Ian
can be for holdings got. Und so w
Scrapc ind pinch und safe nickels I'm,
dimes for fife year. Und here We arc
All der way from Wisconsin in der va
gOn, yes. Nit two mules. In Ashcroft
| buy der COW. so dot We hat der freS,
milk. Und dot ISIS lucky. For vo
mule he die on der road. So / al
plaw oOp der liant und haul my vaigo
NIT won mule und Gretchen der COW.
Hazel had Il ~mOmentary vision of III
related hardships by the way, and sh
wondered how the a could laug
and his wife smile Over it. Two thol
sand miles in a wagon! And at tn
journeys end only a rude cabin G
lOgs-and years of steady toll. Isols
ton in a huge and lonely land. YC
these folk were happy. SIZE wOndere
briefly if her WI viewpoint were pO'
sibly askew. She knew that she coul
not face such Il prospect except in Il
ter rebellion. Not now. The blea
peaks of the Klappan rose up befol
her minds eye, the picture of fiy
horses dead in the snow, the wolvt
that snapped and snarled over the
bones. She shuddered. She was sti
bordering this when she and Bill di
mounted at home.
CHAPTER XIV.