Year: 1872

AMONG the earliest settlers of Wood
stock, a beautiful town in the Green
Mountain State, was man by the name
of Silas Sloey, who had left his early
home near the sea, and following the
windings of the new Connecticut, had at
last pitched upon place in the wilder
ness, where he erected his cabin, and then
commenced an onslaught upon the giants
of the forest that reared their heads in
stately grandeur about him, but gave way
beneath his relentless strokes, and in
couple of years he had quite an open space
encircling his cabin. During this time he
had lived alone, but when the second au-
tumn came another journey was under
taken to that old home by the sea, and
when he returned young wife bore him
company, to share with him the joys and
privations incident to pioneer.


Three years came and went, and the
clearing had greatly enlarged its borders,
although no arm but his own labored
within its bounds. The trees that at first
had come up close to the cabin, had now
retreated to a respectable distance, and
the ground they had once occupied was
now usurped by fourishing crops that
cheered the heart of the settler, and
encouraged him to still greater exer-
ton.


uC tiliCC Cfl1S oPCh1 LII ehO lOlCSt ny
the young couple had been those of peace
and contentment. A son was born to
them at the commencement of the second
year of their married life, and who was,
at the time the adventure we are about
to relate transpired, nearly two years of
age, and as bright little fellow as ever
cheered the hearts of parents, whose very
life seemed bound up in that of their
child.


The nearest neighbors of the Sloeys
were more than three miles away, through
the forest so it was seldom they saw 9th
ers than themselves. The settler was too
much occupied with his work to pay
much attention to making visits, and the
distance was so great that it was not safe
for his wife to go alone, as the forests
swarmed with wild beasts, which render
ed the night hideous with their cries.
Bears and panthers abounded but the
wolves were most to be dreaded, and
proved the greatest annoyance; for often
they would gather around the cabin at
early dusk and keep up their horrid cries
until the early gray of the dawn sent them
bowling into the dim aisles of the forest
and up the dark ravines among the noun
tains, where shadows almost like those of
night 1urked all through the day.


One day late in October business called
the settler to the nearest settlement of i'm
portance in that section, which CHANGED
to be some eight miles distant; and he sat
out early in the morning, telling his wife
she need not look for him before night
fall, as it was very uncertain what time
he would be able to accomplish his busi-
ness, and it might be that he would not
be home till late in the night; but come
he would before he slept, unless some un-
g. s,,{a
Bending over his child that was sleeping
In the bed, he kissed it, and then having
bestowed the same mark of affection upon
his wife, he babe her be careful not to
stir from the cabin or to allow the child
to wander from her sight, for fear that
some harm might come to them from the
wild beasts. With this caution, which
she promised readily to observe, he threw
his rifle over his shoulder and took his
way across the clearing, and his wife
watched him from the doorway until the
forest thicket hid him from her sight.


The morning had given promise of
beautiful day, which assurance was well
kept until little past meridian, when the
wind changed to the eastward, and dark
clouds began to obscure the sky to the
south and west, giving strong indica-
tions that storm was nigh at hand. Busy
with her work and the care of her boy,
Mrs Sloey did not notice the approach
ing storm until near nlghtiall, when the
sudden darkness that seemed all at once
10 throw a deep gloom apsnt tne caolh
reminded her that the nlght ana storm
were close at hand, and going TO the door
way she gaZed anXiously toward that
point IN the forest whence she expected
to get the first sight of her husband.


although her gaze was long and ear.
nest, 1t was not rewarded by glimpse OF
her husband then with a glance at the
dark clouds that seemed to them the little
clearing IN as II with huge pail, she
tried to calculate how long 1t would be
before the rain would begin to fall, and
to guess the distance her husband might
pc away, and the chance he had OF reach
ing home before the storm


Standing in the doorway the gloom
seemed TO deepen every moment, while
the WIND that mad been signing dismally
In the forest died away, leaving every