The Ward County independent. [volume] (Minot, Ward County, N.D.) 1902-1965, 1918-10-03
The PR0DIGAL SON
BY AUGUSTUS G. sHERWIN.


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS %>%<<<%>%%<%%T0
Copyright, 1918. by Western Newspaper Union.)
He was man Of whims and impulse
apparently, for he was almost child
ishly engrossed in viewing pretty
picture, of which bright, attractive
looking girl was the center. She was
Just inside the fence of a clover field
and was daintlly picking the lucious
red tops. Then she would go to the
separating barbed wire fence, reach
through and pet converse with and
feed white-speckled calf, plump,
friendly and spotless of CRIME or
brier.
i've an idea-the fatted calf -
abruptly chuckled the onlooker. cal
most as pretty as the girl" and he ap-
preached the fence near which Hilda
Strong stood
"Part Of the big farm a bit back
where they're selling out?" he asked.
The girl quite startled, flushed and
fluttered and gave confused assent
I'll take that calf If the figure is
right resumed the stranger.
"But Whitley is not for SALE" an
nounced Hilda. "She does not belong
to the farm. Mr.. Warren gave her to
me when she was the tiniest little
thing and I have raised her."
( "You wouldn't sell her, then?"
! "Oh, no! Never! That is-unless l
had to. And maybe that may come"
said Hilda, a mournful shadow cross
ing her pretty face. "Mr. Warren is
breaking up and I must look for new
home. am an orphan and have only
few distant relatives"
Her artlessness charmed Bart Mil.
Ter and her simple ways aroused his
sympathy and interest.
"Heigho!" he uttered "We're pretty
near of a kind I've been an orphan
myself for ten years-that Is, I ran
away from home and haven't seen IA
Their or mother since"
ooh, dear! how could you stay away
from them?' chided Hilda.
"Well, got going careless and rough
and bad. Then in trouble, and finally
settled down to life among the hard
4
cards, drink and fighting most of the
time"
Hilda had shrunk little at the con-
fession. "You don't look very careless,
and rough, and bad" she said. He
laughed quite boisterously at her in
nocence.
I'm not-now. That's why I'm
going back home"
ooh, are you? Are your" cried Hi.
da, sprightly. 'How glad your folks
will be to see you'll"
"Father is dead" said Bart, "but
mother is living, and I've sort of spied
out the land before I ventured to let
her know I was around. AS I said,
was a reckless one until a year ago.
I had gone to prospecting. Bad as
ever, / trained with hard crowd. One
day took Il drop too much, and tum-
Bile. | went into a pitt must have
been over fifty feet. How I escaped
being killed l couldn't reckon out.
When I landed it was on a soft bed Of
sand--on my knees"
He spoke the last words solemnly.
A strange, spiritual expression came
into his eyes and illumined his face,
until Hilda was fascinated in an in
tense, hypnotic way.
eyes, on my knees" repeated Bart
'"Chere I was--saved by the Almighty.
was, as l had been at my mothers
side way back in childhood. All my
bad life flashed upon me. The words
of Now lay me down to sleep drift
ed dreamily through my mind.
couldn't stir for over an hour. All the
time some new spirit seemed to come
over me. Young lady, I crawled out
of that pit weak and broken-a new
man."
ooh, how glad your dear old mother
will be when you tell her all thisw
cried Hilda.
with good behavior came good
luck went on Bart tersely. 81 struck
rich mine. l saved, instead Of
Squandering. I'm going home a pretty
rich man, and my money will do some
good, for found my mother poor and
neglected. I'm still queer in my no.
tons, young lady. 7 know what moth
er will say when she sees me coming
back"
"What?" urged Hilda breathlessly,
as absorbed as though listening to
some enhancing fairy story.
'Well, mother is biblical, and lit
would be just like her to say, in her
gentle, kindly, forgiving way: 'PrOdi-
gal son, you are welcome, and for you
shall be killed the fatted calf But,
you see, poor old soul; she has no
fatted calf. And your Whitley struck
my fancy. And I thought I'd buy her,
lead her to the old home-it's only
ten miles across the country-and say,
Mother, I've brought the fatted calf,
and a bag of gold, and my worthless
self, all at once back home.'"
"Oh, she won't think you worth
less And what grand man you have
been to stop-stop being rough and
careless, and all that, and thinking so