The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1922-08-14

CHAPTER v

she came forth from the kitchen, he
drew her into the old parlor, shadowy
now in the gathering dusk, and closed
the doors.
Mrs Howard he began, Ct"
Mother Howard" she corrected. 81
amt used to being called much else"
Mother, then-although I'm not
very accustomed to using the title
My own mother died-shortly after
my father came back from out here"
She walked to his side then and put
a hand on his shoulders. For a mo-
ment it seemed that her lips were
struggling to repress something which
strove to pass them, something locked
behind them for years. Then the old
face, dim in the half light, Gained.
"What do you want to know, Son9"
Everything
"But there isn't much can tell"
He caught her hand.
There is! I know there is. L"
"Son-all can do Is to make mat
tiers worse. If / knew anything that
would help you-if I could give you
any light on anything, Old Mother
Howard would do it Lord, didn't |
help out your father when he needed
1t the worst way? But I'm as much
In the dark as you. All that I ever
knew was that your father came to
this boarding house when he was a
young man, the very first day that he
ever struck Ohadi. He didn't have
much money, but he was enthusiastic
and it wasn't long before he'd told
me about his wife and baby back in
Indianapolis and how he'd like to win
out for their sake. AS for Newell,
they always called me Mother How
ard, even when 1 was a young thing,
sort of setting my cap for every good
looking young man that came along
guess that's why I never caught one
of 'em-I always insisted on darning
their socks and looking after all their
troubles for 'em instead Of going out
buggy-riding with some other fellow
and making 'em jealous" She sighed
ever so slightly, then chuckled. "But
that amt getting to the point,
though, is it?"
IF you could tell me about my IA
ther-"
"Tm going to-all / know. Things
were a lot different out here then
from what they were later Every
where around the hills and gulches
you could see prospectOrs, with their
gads and little picks, foo1ing around
like life didn't mean anything in the
world to 'em, except to grub around
in those rocks.
'YOur father was one of these men.
squirt Rodaine was another-they
called him that because at some time
in his life he'd tried to shoot faster
than the other fellow-and didn't do
it. The bullet hit right between his
eyes, but it must have had poor pow
der behind it-all it did was to cut
through the skin and go straight up
his forehead. When the wound healed,
the scar drew his eyes close together,
like a Chinaman's. You never see
Squint's eyes more than half open.
"And he's crooked, just like his
eyes" Mother Towards voice bore
a touch of resentment Il never liked
him from the minute | first saw him
and I liked him less afterward Their
got next to his game.
your father had been prospecting
| just like everybody else. He'd come
on float up Kentucky gulch and was
trying to follow it to the vein. Squin
| saw him-and what's more, he saw
| that float. 1t looked good to Squint-
and late that night, / heard him an(
| his two drinking partners, Blindeys
| Bozeman and Taylor Bill-they JUS
reverse his name for the sound of it
talking in Blindeye's room. I'm 1
| woman" Mother Howard chuckled-
$50 just leaned my head against tn
| 7oor and listened Then | flew down
! stairs to wait for your father whel
! he came in from sitting up half th
| night to get an assay on that float
Squint and them two others was figur
| ing on jumping his claim before h,
could file on it and all that.
well. there was a big COrnishmal
here that was kind of sweet on-an'
| / guess I always will be. He's beel
4 gone now, though, ever since your fla
Their left. l got him and asked hin
to help. And Harry was just the kin
of a fellow that would do it. Out il
the dead of night they went an
staked out your fathers cIaim-Harr
was to get % per cent-and early tn
next morning your dad was waitin
to file on it, while Harry was waitin
for them three. And what a fight
must have been-that Harry was
wildcat in those younger days" Sh
laughed, then her voice grew serious
lssssBut all had it's effect Rodain
didn't jump that claim and few O
US around here filed dummy claim
enough in the vicinity TO keep him Of
| of getting TOO cloSp-bI1t there wa