Year: 1872




@Just one more story, Grandma,
abont when you we're a little girl
and lived in the woods, . said FFank.


And Grandma drew of her spec
tacles and shut her book. She lean
ed her head back against the large
easy-ehairs and shut her eyes, think
ing.


''I remember as if it was only yes
terday," she said, raising her head
and looking at the children. who
had gathered around her. 81 was
only seven, and my little baby broth
er wasn't a year. old


Il am going to the spring house" "
said mother, and YOU must stay in
the room and rock the baby if he
wakes" So I took my knitting, for
1 had learned to knit, and was very
proud of the stocking that was grow
ing under my hand.


at was q cool day late in the fall,
and the doors we're all shut. Baby
slept and I knitted for half an hour.
Then he aSoke and began to cry.
As / got down from mothers great
easy chair where / had been sitting.
I Thought l heard 3 strange noise
outside 1t wasn't Lion, for he had
gone of with father to the mill.
Something rubbed against the door
and made the latch rattle. / felt
afraid, and went to the door and fas-
tened the bolt. I stood stiIl, listen
ing, with baby in my arms. He had
stopped crying, and 1 could hear my
heart beat thump, thump, thump!


'sAll at once there came a short,
cruel kind of a bark, and then
snarl. A moment after, the window
broke with a loud crash, and Tsaw
the long head, open jaws, and fiery
eyes Of a wolf glaring in upon me.
An angel sent by our good Father
in heaven must have told me in that
instant of terror what to do. The
wolf was climbing in through the
small window, and to have fingered
but a second or two would have been
death.


Moved as IL by a power not my
own, and without thinking what was
best to do, l ran, with baby held
tightly in my arms, to the stairs
that went up into the loft Scarce
Is had my foot left the last step
when the wolf was in the room be-
low. With 3 savage groYl he sprang
after me- As he did so, let the
door, which shut like a cellar door,
fall OEerltbe stairway, and it struck
him on the nose and knocked him
back. A chest stood near and some
thing told me to pull this over the
door. So 1 laid baby down and
dragged at the chest with all my
strength. just as / got one corner
over the door the VOLTS head struck
it and knocked it up little. But
before he could strike it again, I had
the chest clear across. This would
not have kept him back If had not
dragged another chest over the door
and piled ever so many thiBgs on
top OF these. How savagely he did
growI and snarll But I was safe.


And now I grew frightened about
mother. If she should come back
from the spring-house, the wolf
would tear her TO pieces. There was
only one window or opening in the
loft, and that did not look toward
the spring house; and so there was
no way in which L could give her
warming, or let her know, If she had
seen the wolf, that we we're safe.


"For . long time the wolf tried
and tried to get at us, but at last
could hear hin going down the
stairs. He moved about in the room
below, knocking things around for
ever so long, and heard my fathers
voice shouting not far of. Oh how
my heart did leap with gladness F.
Thea csme Lions heavy bark. which
grew excited, aud / soon heard him
yelling down the road in the widest
way The wolf was still in the win
dow. / could hear him struggling
and breaking pieces. Of glass Lion
was almost upon him, when my IA
ther called him of in 3 stern com
mand. All was silent now, but the
silence was quickly broken hy the
sharp crack OF a rifle, which sent q
bullet into the volts head, killing
him instantly.


s.Fathers fathery'' I cried rrom the
len window, He told me afterw.sr
that nv voice came 70 him as from
the dead. He ran around to that
side Of the house. Mother was with 4
him. looking as white as s sheet i
saw them both clasp their hands TO-
gether ana iifs their eyes in thank /
f,flness 70 God


4When tried to pull the chests
away, / could not move them an /
inch. In my great danger, God had /
give1 me strength to drag them over /
the lot door, but now that the dan
qer was past, ny listle hands were
foo weak to remove them. 50 IA !
ther had TO climb up by ladder to /
the Il Il window and release baby and
me from our place Of refuge


eHother did not know anything
Of our danger until she had finished (
her work ih- the spring house. Just