Emmons County record. [volume] (Williamsport, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1884-current, 1922-08-31

: to him. And sometimes he drew IN.
Hans and cowboys. And one day
when he wasn't half watching what
he was doing-he drew something
quite different
Perhaps he wouldn't have looked at
1t twice, II the teacher hadn't stepped
up behind him and taken 1t ont Of his
hands. It was geography then, not
drawing" and he should have been
"paying attention" And he had every
reason to think that the teacher would
crumple up his picture and send him
to the cloak-room for punishment.
But she did no such thing. When
her eyes glanced down. her fingers
slowly Strengthened. Then she looked
again-carefully.
"What is this, Bruce?" she asked
"What have you been drawihg?"
I'll don't KNOW the child an.
swered. He looked and for an instant
let his thoughts 60 wandering here.
! and there. 'sThose are trees" he
said A word caught at his throat and
he blurted 1t out. pines! Pine trees,
growing on mountain" {.
! "Not bad for six-year-old boy"
the teacher commented. "Bnt where
Bruce, have you ever seen or heard
of such pines? But Bruce did not
| know.
Another puzzling adventure that
stuck in Bruce's memory had happened
only few months after his. arrival
at the Square house, when a man had
taken him home on trial with the idea
Of adoption. 5.3s.
All the incidents and details OF the
excursion with this prospective parent
were extremely dim and vague. He
did not know to what city he went,
nor had he any recollection whatever
Of the people he met there. But he did
remember, with remarkable clearness,
the perplexing talk that the man and
the superintendent Of the Square
house had together on his return.
He won't do" the stranger had
said. II tried him out and he won't
ill in in my family. And I've fetched
him, back. &. s55s
II believe In being frank, and tell
you there's something vicious In. that.
boys nature. It came out the very
first moment he was In: the house..
when the Missus was introducing him
to my etght-year-old son. This Is lit
tie Turner she said and this boy
sprang right at him. I'd never let
little Turner learn to fight, and this
boy was on top Of him and was pound
ing him with his fists before we could
pull him OF. I didn't understand It
at all" Z F '5l s .tsz
Nor did the superintendent under.
stand; NORM these later years
Bruce either:
He was quite big boy, nearly ten,
when he finally left the Square house.
And there was nothing pickering or
dim about the memory Of this occasion.
| a tall, exceedingly slender man sat
beside the window man well
dressed but with hard lines about his
mouth and hard eyes. Yet the superip-
tendent seemed particularly anxious
to please him. '.You will like this
sturdy fellow" he said, as Bruce was
ushered In. rss y.
The mans eyes Travelled slowly from
the child's curly head to- his rapidly
growing feet; q but no CLEAN of inter.
est came into the thin face. Il sup
Ipose he'll do--as good as any. It was
the wife's idea, anyway, you know.
What about parentage7 Anything de-
cent at all ~ ~ 81; E
The superintendent seemed to wait
4 q long time before answering. Little
Bruce, already full Of secret conjec-
lures as to his own parentage, thought
that some key might be given him at
4 last. There Is nothing that we can
tell you, Mr.. Duncan" he said at
last. IA woman brought him here
with an infant girl when he was
about four. L suppose. she. was his
mother-and she didn't wait to talk
to me. The nurse said that she wore
outlandish clothes and had plainly had
Ia hard time s8s
But she didn't waltz
i "she dropped her children and fed"
a cold little smile .flickered at the
mans lips. ut looks rather dam
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