Year: 1878

business through Cooper county, Missouri.
| remained over night at the farm house OF
a well-to-do farmer, named Harper He
was man over seventy years of age, with
wife very few if any years younger, and
both the picture of robust and sunny old
age. They were the parents of five boys
and three girls, all grown up, married, and
settled with a comparatively short distance
of the old homestead.


Old Mr.. Harper still superintended the
cultivation of his extensive farm, and al
though he had the assistance of several
hired men, it was his boast that he vas a
full hand" and with heavens consent he
expected to say the same for some time to
come.


" How long have you lived here ?" asked,
as we sat around the cheerful hearthstone
in the evening, he smoking his pipe, my
cigar.


al came here in the spring of 1926; so
you see it's rising half century. was
somewhat younger than now, and better fit
ted 10 act the pioneer than | am to-day
though there amt many that could make Inc
knock under, even now"


"You were not accompanied by your wife?"


"No, that was the year before | was
married. / came here from Kentucky, and
hadn't even picked out my wife. thought
the best plan was to go out and fix up sort
of home and clear off a patch of woods and
get in something in the way of crops, before
| asked young lady TO jine in with me.
There's no help like good wife; but, as
take it, man is mighty mean and piggish
to ask her to rough it too hard-so for six
months didn't do much else but work from
daylight till dark"


"All alone ?"


" Bless you, no Joe Hunter came out
with me, and he was one of the best fellows
that ever lived. He would do the work of
two ordinary men, and would keep singing
over it as though it was the only thing that
could give happiness"


Everything went on splendidly. The
soil was as rich as if it had lain under two
feet of guano for a hundred years. When
winter set in, we had a good building up
built months before-several acres cleared
off, and things in the best kind of shape.
We owned a couple of oxen, three horses,
and other animals, and we had neighbor
twelve miles away, on the other side of the
river. The woods were full of game and we
never lacked for food Joe and | were hunt
ers for years in Kentucky, and we found
royal sport when we came over here in Mis-
souri,. There were bears and deers, and
now and then an Indian, though we met no
serious trouble with them.


GAN through the winter, when we sat in
our cabin smoking or playing checkers by
the light of a blazing pine knot, Joe kept
telling me that we needed woman there, and
that as he didn't propose to get married for
ten years at least, he urged me to take a
partner for life When he first spoke about
it | asked him where was going to get one.
He said that the family of Hunters, on the
other side of the river (they were of the
same name as him, though they were no re-
lation), had daughter, Mary, pretty, smart,
and Industrious, and Just the wife | wanted.
To tell the truth, that was Just what had
| thought many times, but had never said a
word about it to Joe. So | tried to act as
| though it was altogether a new thing to me
and said that would think about it; but |
know he saw me blush, and he beat me that
game of checkers-something he never did
before in his life.


"The next day, the weather being warm
we crossed the river in our dug-out, the
horses swimming behind us, and rode over
to make social call on the Hunters. There:
no mistake; Mary was as sweet as a peach
and fell dead in love with her. / wa:
clean gone, but was dreadful 'fraid that a.
soon as it become known that such girl as
Mary Hunter was living in Missouri, every
unmarried man would make rush for her
cause why, there was no such person living


"And Joe sot me wild by telling me oil
his honor that he knew that she was in lov'
with me- He said he was disinterestec
spectator, and could read them things like {
book Mary showed it in her looks and man
ner, and if | wanted TO make her my wife
had clear sailing before me.


could hardly believe it; but so it proved
to be. Mary was coy; when | asked her to b.
my wife she blushed like rose, and said sh
hoped she would be good one.


"This being settled upon, there was no
much trouble in fixing the date Of the wed
ding day, which was made in May follow
ing. Joe seemed almost as much pleased a
was (he couldn't have equaled me), and h
reckoned that now we'd have things in til
right shape on the farm.


"Well, the fact that we was going to hav
lady at the head of the household gave u


both an ambition we hadn't felt before, eve
though we had done good deal of har


work, and we pegged away as long as day


light lasted. | spent Sundays on the othe


side of the river and if | should live hun


dred years longer, the memory of thos
I


though they were only yesterday.


Howsumever, time went ahead, as it a


ways does, and bime-by | found that tn


wedding day was only week off. Joe ha


been down to Bonneville several times, an
although he was very shy and mysterior


about it, | knew he had his trunk full OF t


bits and presents for the bride.


"The arrangement was that Joe and IN
should cross the river the afternoon befol


the wedding and stay over night at Hunter


The parson from Bonneville was to do I'll


same; then, of course, everything would


ready on the morrow.


"Wel, sir, you're married man, an


maybe you can appreciate little how fel
} | didn't mind being around my father-i
laws after | was married and for some tin


before, but felt sort of sheepish in hangir
, about when | was so close TO being hitche
/ :" So | arranged that Joe was to leave Il


house about noon, so that he would reaC


the place before dark, while would folio
!, after in the course of an hour or two.
made an excuse that | had some little ma
ters that | wanted to fix, and if Joe kne


how it was, he was kind enough not to sf
0 anything about it and off he went, cautio
! ing me not to be too late, because it was
= good ride through the woods.


"A curious thing happened. There WASH
: much for me to do except to spruce up all
e could; and after doing that | sat down in
I chair by the hearth, TO think what hapI


fellow | was, and how much happier wou
o soon be when was able TO call Mary VIII
!. when I'll be hanged if didn't drop aslee
r "When | opened my eyes, it was just b
q ginning TO grow dark. l got up, look'


around and when understood how it was
was the most disgusted individual "
: ever saw.


a "By no means at all could l reach Il
= house before it was late at night, and pc
. haps near morning, and before that tin
Mary and the rest of them would be worri'


half to death. They would think of a hu
9 dred things that might have happened, SUI
T. as tree crushing me, falling by the shot
5 a stray Indian, getting drowned in crossiI
Il the river, losing my way and being deyour'
d by wild beasts, and other things, while


would have TO tell them that it was all b


cause was sleeping like pig,
d "Well, | was on the back of my horse in
a, twinkling, and galloped away to the rive
1t which was where my i'll luck began. v
l. had two dug-outs, and of course there oug
to have been one on my side, but when
1t come TO look it wasn't there.


a III