Connecticut western news., 1919-01-02

the scrawls of old Kate. I remember how she shook her head and sighed and sat beating her forehead with the knuckles of her bony hands after she had looked at the palm of Amos. Swiftly the point of her pencil ran over and up and down the sheet like the movements of a frightened ser pent. In the silence how loudly the pencil seemed to hiss in it's swift lines and loops.
 My aunt exclaimed 'Mercy!" as she looked at the sheet; for while knew not, then, the strange device upon the paper, I knew, by and by, that 1t was a gibbet. Beneath 1t were the words: "Money thirst shall burn like a fire. in him."
 She rose and smiled as she looked into my face. I saw a kind, gentle glow in her eyes that reassured me. She clapped her hands with joy. She examined my palm and grew serious and stood looking thoughtfully at the setting sun.
 I see, now, her dark figure stand- ing against the sunlight 'as 1t stood that day with Amos in its shadow. What singular eloquence in her pose and gestures and in her silencel l remember how 1t bound our tongues that silence of hers!
 The woman turned with a kindly smile and sat down in the grass again and took the sheet of paper and resting 1t on yellow-covered book be gan to write these words:
 "I see the longing of the helper. One, two, three, four great perils shall strike at him. He shall not be afraid. God shall fill his heart with laughter. I hear guns. hear many voices. His name is in them. He shall be strong. The powers of darkness shall fear him, he shall be a lawmaker and the friend of God and of many people, and great men shall bow to his Judgment and he shall"
 She began shaking her head thoughtfully and did not finish the sentence, and by and by the notion came to me that some unpleasant wis., ion must have halted her pencil.
 Aunt Deel brought some luncheon wrapped in paper and the old woman took 1t and went away. My aunt fold ed the sheets and put them in her trunk and we thought no more of them until-but we shall know soon what reminded us of the prophet woman.
 The autumn passed swiftly. went to the village one Saturday with Un- cle Peabody in high hope of seeing the Dunkelbergs, but at their door we learned that they had gone up the river on picnic. What blow 1t was to me! Tears flowed down my cheeks and clung to my uncle's hand and walked back to the main street of the village. A squad of small boys jeered and stuck out their tongues at me. It was pity for my sorrows. no doubt, that led Uncle Pea body to take me to the tavern for dinner, where they were assuaged by cakes and jellies and chicken pie.
 At Christmas I got a picture-book and forty raisins and three sticks of candy with red stripes on them and jew's-harp. That was the Christmas we went down to Aunt .Liza's to spend the day and helped myself to two pieces of cake when the plate was passed and cried because they all laughed at my greediness. It was the day when Aunt Liza's boy, Truman. got silver watch and chain and her daughter Mary gold ring, and when all the relatives were invited to come and be convinced, once and for all, of Uncle Roswell's prosperity, and be filled with envy and reconciled with jelly and preserves and roast turkey with sage dressing and mince and chicken pie. What an amount of preparation we had made for the jour- ney, and how long we had talked about 1t!
 In the spring my uncle hired a man to work for us-a noisy, brawny, sharp-featured fellow with keen gray eyes, of the name of Dug Draper. Aunt .Deel hated him. I feared him but regarded him with great hope because he had funny way of wink ing at me with one eye across the table and, further, because he could sing and did sing while he worked songs that rattled from his lips in a way that amused me greatly. Then, too, he could rip out words that had new and wonderful sound in them. I made up my mind that he was like ly to become valuable asset when I heard Aunt Deel saw to my Uncle Pea body:
 You'll have to send that loafer away, right now, ayes. I guess you will"
 "Whyw
 Because this boy has learnt to swear like pirate-ayes-he hasw
 Uncle Peabody didn't know it but I myself had begun to suspect 1t, and that hour the man was sent away, and I remember that he left in anger