Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1918-03-14
On the
Mountain
1a@
By Susan E. Clageett

From the railroad faint path
| stretched upward to a cabin high on
| the mountain above Horseshoe Bend.
The same path continued downward TO
cluster of houses, brOadened into Il
| narrow road, and came to a full stop
before Il rough porch, upon which sew
| cral men were scented in varying de-
grees of comfort.
They were listening to one of their
number. He was reading, with trace
| OF impatlcnce--as if compelling him
| self to be nelghborly when his desire
was to hasten away-thc market re-
ports, the sporting page and the stock
market. But what interested him, the
war news, apparently did not hold
their attention. They turned deaf ears
to news from the front but were abb
| sorbed In the Army and Navy ball
game that had taken place the day
before I'm Philadelphia.
with sigh Of relief, willy Warren
at last folded his paper, wished them
gOod-day and, walking rapidly away,
path. As ne disappeared from sight
the chair Of Uncle Johnny Peyton
came down on its front legs with a
thud, and the old man said, addressing
no one in particular:
"'Pears like Bllys mighty low in
his mind. He's in a heap of trouble
I'm thinking"
'What sort of trouble, Uncle Johnp
a girl asked casually, as she came
through the door OF the post Office and
general store.
"Now. Miss May, y'lnow he's listed
an don't know whatll becom O. his
leedlc gal. He's feared he'll have to
90 fore he kin place her"
81 had not heard; but things right
themselves in time, and this will be
Strengthened out"
Maybe, Miss May, maybe. But v
know Billy's got no one, leastwise
down hyar. There's an old aunt in
Ioway, an l guess he's writ to her, but
hain't seen fit to answer, so | reckln
she's dead. Course, we-alls II LUX arf-
ter her. but he's riz her dlffrunt. She's
pretty leedle gal.
BILLY don't blong hyar, y'know. He
jest come. Something the matter with
him. Never hearn tell Of his wife.
jest came with thot gal an she was
baby. Hired thot cabin up yonder an
didn' make fren's till the fever tux
we-alls, then he come down an TUX
kyar of jim" nodding toward noun
taineer sitting on the steps "then he
TUX hold o. me. Reckin we'd both be
in the boneyard IL he hadn'."
$50 he made friends, after ALL" said
the girl. 81 think the child win be
taken care of, Uncle Johnny"
"Sure. But thot's not The pint, Miss
May. She's riz dif'runt." His voice
took on wheedllng tone. II Jest
wonder If you couldn't think up some
way to help Billy? He sartinIy needs
itw
"That would be unwarrantable in
reference, Uncle Johnny. / scarcely
know Mr.. Warren"
Don't take no stock In sich talk, 4"
said Uncle Johnny, reaching for his
twist OF tobacco and cutting Off a
! piece Of goodly size. when II comes
10 do!n' things, an thinkin up things,
| Miss May, you're right smart. You
| didn' know we-uns when you come to
| the mountains, but you now has us
trained to eat from your hand-al-
| most"
She threw back her head and laughed
| heartily. almost is well put, Uncle
Johnny; but | do not see how | can
help you In this"
"'Twont hurt to think erbout 1t,
| anyhow, an p'haps you'll see light"
was his concluding comment as, with
II glance toward the family outlined
path she turned from the group and
| walked away.
She had been in the mountain three
ycWS-at first for her health. then be
cause 1t claimed her. She had heard
ull about Billy Warren. had occasion
| ally met him, bur save for the merest
courtesy no word had passed between
| them For some reason he had not
impressed her pleasantly This was
probably due to the fact that ne had
made no effort to know better one who
had made friends with all the noun
tain people.
But the tan, of old John Peytou or
some suhconSCious sense OF trouble
in the man himself as he stood silently
beside her that morning, waiting for
his mail, influenced her Ia the dircc-
ton of her walk that afternoon Yet
she was not aware that she had been
SO influenced until she found herself
watching a child dahbliug bare feet
IN the rushing vater of a tiny stream
the while She hushed a corucoh doll
to sleep.
There was mo fear III the ChildS
eyes as She raised them 10 the woman
beside her Instead there was a whis-
perol "hush your wake her She's
been rcul sick and is just going To
sleep"
Mary Hilton dropped upon the
ground and ia au equally low voice
asked whnt was wrong.
"Daddys says it's case Of humps
or measles he's not sure which; but