The Adair County news., 1922-01-03

up IN the Loft With You Quick,
Stannie!" He Wiped at Me.
In other words, to obliterate swiftly
and completely all signs of the pres
ence Of third member of the family.
In minute or so there was gruff
hail from somebody outdoors and Dad
dy got up to go and look out.
''Why, hello, Ike, you old geezerT
he called. what under the shinin'
sun fetches you up on old Cinnabar
this early in the mornin'?' Light down
and come in; you're just in the nick
O. time for breakfast"
While I was cudgeling my brain in
vain effort to recall what, if any,
memory association there should be
awakened in me by the mention of an
ike" person, this particular Isaac pre-
sented himself at the cabin door and
dumped in with the stiff-legged walk
Of man who has ridden horseback
far and hard. 1 knew then why I
should have been able to dig that men,
DRY association This was Mr.. Isaac
Beasley, my Angelic friend of the over
grown silver star and the unshaven
cedntenance.
~ Huh !" he grunted, them griddle-
cakes shore do look mighty righteous
to me! been ridin' sense two hours
afore sun-up; wild-goOse chase clear
over on t'other side o. Lost mountain.
Couple o. prospectOrs blew into Angels
day afore yistidday and said they'd
seen that On-dummed lunatic that got
loose from us and busted up car FIR
the railroad; them yoddleheads said
they'd seen him workin' in the Lost
Greek placers."
"a loOney?" said Daddy Hiram, as
innocent as a twO-weeks-oId lamb.
yep; that Teller that stole an in
spectiOn car and got it smashed up
and then took to the hills. You hain't
seen anything Of him, have ye?"
mary lunatic," said Daddy Hiram
calmly.
His breakfast eaten, Friend Isaac
showed no disposition to hurry away
much to my chagrin. He took time
to smoke leisurely pipe with Daddy
Hiram and to ask a lot of Indifferent
questions about the drowned mine.
"Hain't heard nothin' firm yer own
ers yit, have ye, Hiram?" he wanted
to know, after-as it seemed to me
the subject had been pretty thoroughly
talked TO death.
1 heard Daddy's reply, made as to
l,o l..
canvassed before.
"Nothin' but that clippin' from some
newspaper back East, tellin' about Mr..
Dudley's passin' out"
Kinda curious somebody don't tell
We somethin', amt it?' the marshal
put in. Looks like the heirs d be
either fishin' r cuttin' bait on this
here Cinnabar layOut-not as it'd do
'em any good if they did. Didn't any
letter come with the newspaper piece"
"Nary a pen-scratch."
"WhereabOut- was the envelope
posted?"
"Washin'ton"
"Aha !" said to myself, 81 have you,
Cousin Percy! For some reason best
known to yourself you didn't want
Daddy Hiram to get hold of Grand
father Jasper's proper address"
His pipe smoked out, the marshal
prepared to take horse. Daddy went
with him to the far side of the dump
and the murmur of their voices came
to me in diminishing cadences. After
bit Daddy came back and called up
to me in the sing-song of the miners
after the final blast has been fired !:
"A-a-lI over, Stannie. reckon We
can come down now and get you some
breakfast"
jeanne served me in silence when
took my place at table and the good
old man stood in the doorway, keeping
watch, as I made no doubt, against
a possible second-thought return of
Friend Isaac, the bristle-bearded
Throughout the working day which
followed he never made the slightest
reference to the episode of the morn
ing and, truly, 1 think the whole Incl.
dent would have been buried in obliy.
ion by those two supplemented souls
if l hadn't first spoken of it myself.
This i did in the evening of the
same day, when Daddy had gone to
make his entirely useless night round
of the mine property. AS on most
evenings. Jeanie sat at her corner of
the hearth, knitting, and l was filling
a bedtime pipe
Jeanne" broke out, 81 wish you'd
tell me why you and your father are
SO good to me. How do you know that