The Belding banner-news. (Belding, Mich.) 1918-1973, 1919-04-30


take it back In a<day er two but after
II had been In the house three days We
couldn't "a pulled 1t away from her
with windlass.
ave brought him up an he was al
wuss a good boy. We called him
ELoch-Enoch Rone--did We ever hear
the nameT
"sNo.'
II didn't think twas likely but I'm
alwuss hopin'.
early that fall Kate got better an
left the poorhouse afoot. Went away
COMPLEMENTARY knew where.
Some said she'd crossed the lake an
gone away over into York state, some
said she'd drowned herself. By'm by
we heard that she'd gone way over
into st. Lawrence county where Silas
Wright lives an where young Grim
shaw had settled down after he got
married.
oval, bout Eve year ago The squire
buried his second wife-there It's over
in there back o. Hates with the little
speckled angel on it. Nobody had seen
the squire outside o. his house for
| years until the funeral-he was Grip
pied so with rheumatic. After that he
lived all lone in the big house with oil
Tom Linney an his wife, who've
worked there for bout forty year,
guess.
wal, sir, fust we knew Kate was
I'm ha lf,,f,. hA,. %
ther. We wouldn't a"knowed it, then,
If it hadn't been that Tom Linney
come over one day an said he guessed
the OF squire wanted to see memo,
sir, we wouldn't-fer the squire amt
sociable an the neighbors never dark
en- his door. She must "a come in the
night, jest as she went-nobody see
her go an nobody see her come, an
that's a fact. Wal, one day las fall
after the leaves was off an they could
see corner o. my house through the
bushes, Tom was walkin' the oil man
round the room. All to once he
stopped an p'inteds at my house
through the winder an KEEP p'intin'.
Tom come over an said he ca'llated
the squire wanted TO see me. So
went there. Kate met me at the door
Gosh How old an kind o. broke down
she looked But / knew her the min
ute / set my eyes on her--uh huh-an'
she knew me-yis, sir-she smiled an
tears come to her eyes an she patted
my hand like she wanted to tell me
that she hadn't forgot, but she never
said a word-not a word. The oil
squire had the palsy, so t he couldn't
use his hands an his throat was para
lyzed-couldn't speak nor nothin'.
Where do We suppose he was when
found him?"
"In bedT 1 asked.
mo, sir-no, street. He was In hell
that's where he was-reg'lar oil FASH
toned, down-east hell, burnin' with fire
an brimstun, that he'd had the agency
for an had recommended to every sim
ner in the neighborhood. He was set
tin in his room. God o. Isr'ell You
orto "a seen the motions ne made with
his hands an the way he tried to
speak when i went In there, but all I
could hear was Jest long yell an
kind of rattle in his throat. Heavens
an airth how desperit he tried to
spit out the thing that was gnawin'
his vitals. Ag'in an ag'in he'd try to
tell me. Lord God how he did work J"
"All tc once 1t come acrost me what
he wanted-quick as We could say scat.
lie wanted to have Hates headstun
took down an put away--that's what
he wanted. The stun was kind o. lay
In on his stummick an painin' Of him
day an night He couldn't stan it.
He knew that he was goin' to die purity
soon an that Kate would come here
an see 1t an that everybody would
see her standin' here by her own grave,
an it worried him. 1t was kind o. like
a fire in his belly.
II guess, too, he coul Int bear the
idee of layin down fer his las sleep
beside that hell hole he'd dug fer Kate
no, sirl
"Wal, We know, mister, 1 jes' shook
my head an never let on that knew
what he meant an let him wiggle an
twist like worm on q hot griddle, an
heller like cut bull It'll he fell back In
a swoon.
Damn himi 1t don't give him no
rest. He tries to tell everybody he
sees-that's what they say. He bel
lers day an night an If you go down
there he'll heller to you an you'll know
what It's about, but the others don't.
"You an me are the only ones that
knows the secret, ! guess. Some day,
fore he dies, I'm goin' to take up that
headstun an hide 1t, but he'll never
know it's done-no, sir-not til he
gifts to the judgment seat, anyway"
The old man rose and Strengthened
himself and blew out his breath and
brushed his hands upon his trousers
by way of steppiug down into this