The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1919-01-02
CHAPTER u.
l Meet the Silent Woman and sIias
Wright, Jr.

Meet the Silent Woman and siIas
Wright, Jr.
Amos Grimshaw was there in our
do0ryard the day that the old ragged
woman came along and told u for
tunes-she was called ROvin' Kate,
and was said to have the gift Of sec
ond sight" whatever that may be. 1t
was a bright autumn day and the
leaves lay deep in the edge Of the
woodlands. She spoke never a word
but stood pointing ut her palm and
then at Amos and at me.
Aunt Deel nodded and said:
"Ayes. Kate-tell their fortunes If
we've anything to say-ayesl"
She brought two sheets of paper and
the old woman sat down upon the
grass and began to write with a lit
tie stub Of a pencil. l have now those
fateful sheets Of paper covered by
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 Its swift lines
and loops.
My aunt exclaimed Mercy y az she
looked at the sheet for while l knew
not, then, the strange device upon
the paper, l knew, by and by, that
II was Il 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. / saw a kind, gentle
glow in her eyes that treasured me.
She clapped her hands with Joy. She
examined my palm and grew serious
and stood looking thoughtfully at the
setting u
1 see, now, her dark figure stand
ing against the sunlight as Ii stood
that day with Amos in its shadow.
What q singular e%loquence In her pose
and gestures and In her silence! 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 a yellow-covered book be-
gan to write these words:
II see the longing Of the helper.
One, two, three, four great perils
shall strike at him. He shall not
be afraid. God shall fll his heart
with laughter. / hear guns. l 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 fn!sh the
sentence, and by and by the notion
came to me that some unpleasant Wis
ion must have halted her pencil.
Aunt Deel brought ONE 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. 1 went
to the village one Saturday with I'm
Gle Peabody in high hope of seeing
the Dunkelbergs, but at their door
we learned that they had gone vi
the river on a picnic. What a blow
II was to me! Tears flowed dowI
my cheeks and l chung to my uncle:
hand and walked back to the MAR
street of the village. A squad of small
boys jeered and stuck out theil
tongues Mt me-. 1t was pity for m,
SORROWS, no doubt, that led Uncle Pea
body to take me to the tavern FOL
dinner, where they were assuaged by
cakes and jellies and chicken pie.
At Christmas / got a p~icture-book
and forty raisins and three sticks OF
candy with red stripes on them and a
1ew's-harp. That was the Christmas
we went down to Aunt Liza's to
spend the day and ] helped myself to
two pieces CT cake when the plate
was passed and cried because they al
laughed at my g~reediness. 1t was the
day when Aunt Liza's boy, Truman
got q silver watch and chain and hel
daughter Mary Q gold ring. and wher
all the relatives were invited to com
and be convinced, one and for all
OF Uncle Roswell's prosperity, ant
be filed with envy and reconcilet
with Jelly and preserves and roast
turkey with sage dressing and minct
and chicken pie. What an amount Of
preparation we had made for the jcnr
ney. and how long We had talked about
~
Ia the spring my uncle hired . mar
% work for us-a noisy. brawny
ehnrp-feafured fellow with keen era,
sye6 az the' nams of Dug Draper
Aunt Dcel hated him. feared Inn
brt regarded him With treat hop
bccnu1e ~ I'D : Funny VA o. wink