jects for the Bird Woman that her.
coming was of almost daily occur-|
“Now! No!" snapped the angel.
Freckles leaned toward the bird
FRECKLES
By
Gene Stratton
Porta
COPYRIGHT. 1904, BY DOUBLEDAY, PAGE
& CO.
SYNOPSIS.
Freckles, a homeless boy, is hired by
Boss McLean to guard the expensive tim-
ber in the Limberlost from timber thieves.
Freckles does his work faithfully, makes
friends with the birds and yearns to know
more about nature. He lives with Mr.
and Mrs, Duncan.
He resolves to get books and educate
himself. He becomes interested In a huge
pair of vultures and calls his bird friends
his *‘chickens.’”
Some of the trees he is guarding are |
worth $1.00 each. Freckles’ books arrive.
He receives a call from Wessner.
Wessner attempts to bribe Freckles to
betray his trust, and Freckles whips him.
McLean overhears them and witnesses the
fight.
Freckles’ honesty saves a precious tree.
rence. and the hours he spent with Tense as a steel trap he waited. Un-
her and the angel were nothing less: consciously the bund of the angel
than golden. | clasped his. He scarcely knew it was
The Limberlost now was arrayed there. Suddenly Little Chicken sprang
like the queen of Sheba in all her! straight up in the air and landed with
glory. The first frosts of autumn had s thud. The angel started slightly.
bejeweled her crown in flashing topaz. but Freckles was immovable. Then.
ruby and emerald. About her feet as if in approval of his last perform-
trailed the purple of her garments, and ance, the overgrown baby wheeled un-
in her hand was her golden scepter. til he was more than three-quarters,
Everything was at full tide. It seem- almost full side, toward the camera,
ed as if nothing could grow lovelier, straightened on his legs, squared his
and it was all standing still a few shoulders, stretched his neck full
weeks. waiting coming destruction. | height. drew in his chin and smirked
The swamp was palpitant with life. his most pronounced smirk directly in
Every pair of birds that had flocked to the face of the lens.
it in the spring was now multiplied by = Freckles’ fingers closed on the bulb
from two to ten. The young were ¢onvuisively, and the angel's closed
tame from Freckles’ triparenthood, OP his at the instant. Then the angel
and so plump and sleek that they were heaved a great sigh of relief and lift-
quite as beautiful as their elders, even ©d her hands to push back the damp.
if in many cases they lacked their | clustering hair from her face.
brilliant plumage. There were chubby, Hand in hand they ran for lhe
little groundbogs scudding along the north end of the swamp, yelling, “We
trail. There were cunning baby coons S°t it!
and onossums peeping from hollow Ihe Bird Woman plunged into the
| swale at the mouth of Sleepy Snake |
ome thelr parts men ne ncn Greek and came. wading out with 3
! 800 couple of cameras and dripping tri-
If you could come upon a family of |
foxes that had net yet disbanded and |
| see the young playing with a wild
duck's carcass that their mother had |
brought and note the pride and sat-
isfaction in her eyes as she lay at one
side gmmarding them it would be =a
i pleture not to be forgotten. Freckles
Moved by an impulse she never aft-
erward regretted. she bent and laid
her lips on Freckles’ forehead, kissing
him gently and thanking him for his
many kindnesses to her in her loved
work. Freckles started off walking
on air. and he felt inclined to keep
NEVER TOO MUCH OF LACE
if Possible, the Use of It This Season
Is Really Becoming Mo-
notonous.
It is to be a season of lace, so the
modistes have been telling us, the
filmy appearing not only on gowns,
but as hat trimmings and parasols.
There have been, in consequence
many new and beautiful patterns of
lace, some copied from rare old point
and honiton, while novelties of all
kinds have made their appearance.
The latest of these are the very
handsome modern laces wide enough
to form a deep underdress or to
be made without undue difficulty into
blouses, and yet narrow enough for
more ordinary use, with brilliant
touches of color interwoven with them,
On a cream ground there will be a
pattern of large flowers, not wholly |
colored, but with bright hues intro- |
duced in an arbitrary manner which
pleases the eye 2s much as it would a
gardener. Or a conventional design
will be carried out in white or cream,
with touches of blue and red or a
dark blue ground.
White lace, with the pattern lightly
outlined with thread of black is also
extremely fashionable. Other trim-
mings are mostly comprehended by
various metallic embroideries, clusters
of ribbon flowers of the revived fash-
ion of button trimming,
never tired of studying the devotion
of a fox mother to her bables.
The angel was wild about the baby
rabbits and squirrels. Earlier in the
season. when the young were still
very small, it had so happened that
at times Freckles could give into her
He finds the nest of the vultures and Is!
( » of th little ones. 1
visited by a beautiful young girl. hands one o ese little ones. Then
watching behind to see if the trail
were not curling up and rolling down
the line after him.
% + * * * » *
Next day Freckles saw them com-
. The angel was standing, waving
{ her hat. He sprang on his wheel and
raced, jolting and pounding, down the
of white gauze brocaded with silver
vine leaves and tendrils, has an under-
| dress of vine leaf lace on which the
| bunches of grapes are emphasized
| by little crystal buttons.
i —
New Ideas in Napery. !
Daisies embroidered in various col- :
|
A lovely evening frock, for instance,
LYON & COMPANY.
EVERY ONE SAYS
La Vogue Garments
Are a bit different because
of the high character of
tailoring which insures
longer and better ser-
vice. Then too, there’s
the matter of clever de-
signing which is a little
above the best you've
yet seen.
corduroy to meet them. The Bird
her heaving breast, flushed | Woman stopped the horse. and the an-
cheek and shining eyes. Hers were gel gave him the bit of print paper.
such lovely eyes. They were forever | Freckles leaned the wheel against a
changing. Now sparkling and dark-| tree and took the proof with eager
ling with wit, now humid with sym- | fingers. He had never before seen a
8he calls Freckles McLean's son. Freckles |
calls her “the angel” and helps the Bird
Woman. in taking photographs. McLean |
promises to adopt Freckles.
Freckles and the angel become very
friendly. Assisted by the Bird Woman,
they drive Wessner and Black Jack, tim- |
| ors upon heavy Irish linen make a |
| charming decoration for a luncheon
set, including a center piece and a
dozen doilies. The petals of the flow-
j= are done in a single long stitch
and therefore the work goes very rap- |
For style, tailoring, fit
and service, we have
ber thieves, from the Limberlost.
McLean fears more trouble, but Freckles
insists upon being the sole guard of the
timber. Freckles calls upon the angel's
father.
The angel receives him as her equal, and
her father is kind. Mrs. Duncan has ex-
citing adventures in the Limberlost.
The Bird Woman and the angel again
visit Freckles, and Freckles falls in love
with the angel. The angel kisses him.
Freckles is bound and gagged by Black
Jack's gang, and the timber thieves start
felling a very valuable tree.
Wessner is to kill Freckles after the
tree is stolen. The angel makes a daring
effort to save Freckles and the tree.
McLean's men, notified by the angel,
rush to save Freckles. All the timber
thieves except Black Jack are captured.
Freckles guards the angel against Black
Jack's vengeance. He tells McLean of his
hopeless love for the angel.
[Continued from last week ]
CHAPTER XVIII,
TAKING A PICTURE.
HAVE been thinking." said
Freckles. “I believe if you
will leave one of the guards
on the line—say Hall—that |
will begin on the swamp at the north
end and lay it off in sections and try
to hunt out the marked trees. 1 sup.
pose they are all marked something
like that first maple on the line was
Wessner mentioned another good one
not =o far from that. He said it was
best of cll. I'd be having the swelled
head if 1 could find that. Of course 1
don't know a thing ahout the trees, but
I could hunt for the marks. Jack was
80 good at it he could tell some of
them by the mark, but all he wanted to
take that we've got on to so far have
Just had a deep chip cut out rather low
down and where the bushes were thick
over it. [| believe I codid he finding
some of them." :
“Good head!" said McLean, “We will
do that. You may begin as soon av
You are rested. And about things yon
came across in the swamp. Freckles.
the most trifling little thing that you
think the Bird Woman would want,
take your whee! and go after her at
any time. I'll jeave two men on the
line, so that you will have one on
either side, and yon can come and go
as you please. Have you stopped to
think of ali we owe her, my hoy?"
“Yis: and the angel—we owe her a
lot, 100," said Freckles.
life and honor. It's lying awake nights
I'll have to be trying to think how
I'm ever to pay her up.”
“Well, begin with the muff,” sug-
gested McLean. “That should be fine.”
Freckles told McLean of Mrs. Dun-
can's desire for a hat like the an-
gel's. He hesitated a little in the tell-
Ing and kept sharp watch on Me-
Lean's fuce. When he saw the boss’
pathy. now burning with the fire of
courage. now taking on strength of
color with ambition. now flashing in-
dignantly at the abase of any creature.
i She had carried several of the squirrel
and bunnv babies home and had the
conservatory littered with them. Her
care of them was perfect.
Brown butterfly time had come. The
outer edge of the swale was filled with
milkweed and other plants beloved of
them, and the air was golden with the
| flashing satin wings of the monarch,
viceroy and argynnis. They cutnum-
bered those of any other color three
! to one.
Among the birds it really seemed as
if the little yellow fellows were in the
| preponderance. At least they were
until the red winged blackbirds and
bobolinks that had nested on the up-
land came swarming by hundreds for
these last few weeks hefore migration.
Never was there a finer feast spread
for the birds. The grasses were filled
with seeds; so. too, were weeds of
every variety. Fall berries were ripe.
Wild grapes and black haws were
ready.
They seemed to feel the new reign of
peace and fullness most of all. As for
hunting, they didn't even have to hunt
for themselves these days, for the
bounty now being spread before Little
Chicken every day was more than he
could master, and he was glad to have
his parents come down and feast with
him.
He was a fine, overgrown fellow, and
his wings, with quills of jetty black.
gleaming with bronze. were so strong
they almost lifted his body. The funny
little Lops. springs and sidewise
bounds he gave set Freckles and the
angel, hidden out in the swamp watch-
ing him. into smothered chuckles of
i delight.
“I owe her we '
|
i
f
i
eyes were full of sympathy he loved |
him anew, for, as ever, McLean was
quick to understand. Instead of
laughing he said: “I guess you'll have
to let me in on that too. You mustn't
be selfish, you know. I'll tell you
what we'll do. Get it for Christmas.
+ I'll be home then, and we can send a
box. You get the hat. I'll add a dress
and wrap.
and gloves. I'll send him a big over-
coat, and we'll put in a lot of little
stuff for the babies.”
“That would be away too serious
for fun,” said Freckles. “That would
be heavenly.”
A week later everything at the Lim-
berlost was precisely as it had been
before the tragedy, except the case
in Freckles’ room now rested on the
it prettily, and every vestige of the snapped
havoc of a few,days before was
The new guards were patrollfig the
trail. Freckles was roughly laying off
the swamp in sections and
for marked trees. In that time he had
found one deeply chipped and the chip
It
promised to be quite rare, so he was
Jubilant. He also found so many sub-'
cunningly replaced and tacked in.
i
|
|
|
You get Duncan a hat ¥y
i
‘ he felt fine and in full toilet he
| at last.”
Sometimes he fell to coquetting with
himself, and that was the funniest
thing of all, for he turned his head up.
down, from side to side, and drew in
his chin with prinky little jerks and
tilts. He would stretch his neck.
throw up his head, turn it to one side
and smirk—actually smirk. the most
somplacent and self satistied smirk
that any one ever saw on the face of a
bird. It was so comical that Freckles
and the angel told the Bird Woman of
it one day.
When she finished her work on Little
Chicken she left them the camera all
ready for use, telling them they might
hide back in the bushes and watch.
If Little Chicken came out and truly
smirked and could
b db at just proper
snap him she would be more
lightea.
Freckles and the angel quietly curl-
ed down beside a
eyes and softest
for the light would
they had so wanted to try
picture. At last
his head, opened
widely. He dozed a minute
more. The angel said that
beauty sleep. Then he lazil
again and stood up,
y
g
f
g
BLE 1s
EZed
if
toward the gateway, and
said, “Now. we may have
f
“I do hope so,” shivered
With one accord they rose to
knees and trained their eyes
mouth of the log. The ligh
z
plumage, polished his beak, and when
to flirt with himself. Freckles’ eyes
and his breath sucked be-
80D. tween his clenched teeth.
“He's going to do it,” whispered the
angel.
Little Chicken nodded dsintily and
ruffied his feathers. He gave his head
sundry little sidewise jerks and rap-
idly shifted his point of vision. Once
there was the fleeting little ghost of a
smirk.
study from any of his chickens. He
stood staring. When he lifted his
| face to them it was transfigured with
i delight.
“You see!” he exclaimed, and fell to
gazing again. “Oh, me little chicken!"
he cried. “Oh, me ilegant little chick-
en! I'd be giving all me money in the
bank for you!"
Then he thought of the angel's muff
and Mrs. Duncan's hat and added:
“Or at least all but what I'm needing
bad for something else. Would yon
mind my stopping ut the cabin a min
ute and showing this to Mother Dun-
can?’ he asked.
Freckles went hurrying on ahead.
and they drove up in time to see Mrs.
Duncan gazing as if awestruck and to
hear her bewildered “Weel, 1 be draw-
ed on!"
Freckles and the angel helped the
Bird Woman to establish herself for a
long stay at the month of Sleepy
Snake creek. Then she sent them
away and walted wnat luck won']
bring to her.
“Looks ns If some one had been ent-
ting a flagpole,” said the angel. run-
son. “Freckles, what would anybody
cut a tree ax small as that for?
“1 don't know.” said Freckles.
“Well, but | want to know!" said
the angel. “Nobody came away in
here and cut it just for fun. They've
taken it away. Let's go back and see
if we can see it anywhere around
there.”
She retraced her steps and began
searching eagerly. Freckles did the
same,
“There it i3." he exclaimed at last.
“leaning just as naturally against the
trunk of that big maple.”
“Yes. and leaning there has killed a
patch of bark,” said the angel. “See
how dried up it looks."
Freckles stared at her.
“Angel.” he shouted. “I bet you it's
t marked tree!”
“Course it Is!" cried the angel.
is one of Jack's marked trees.”
The clear. ringing echo of strongly
swung axes came crashing through the
Limberlost.
*'Tis the gang.” shouted Freckles.
“They're clearing a place to make the
camp. Let's go help!”
“Get out your hatchet,” commanded
the angel. “I predict this is the most
valuable tree in the swamp. You
found it. I'm going to play that you're
my knight. Now, you nail my colors
on it.”
She untied a blue bow in her hair
and doubled it against the tree. The
angel had called him her knight! How
he loved her! She must not see his
face or surely her quick eyes would
read what he was fighting to hide. He
did not dare lay his lips on that ribbon
then, but that night he would return
to it. When they had gone a little dis-
tance they both looked back, and the
morning breeze set the bit of blue
waving them a farewell.
She reached him her hand, and, like
two children, they broke into a run as
they came nearer the gang. They left
the swamp by the west road and fol-
lowed the trail until they found the
men. To the angel it seemed complete
chaos.
In the shadiest spot on the west side
of the line, close to the swamp and
very close to Freckles’ room, they were
cutting down bushes and clearing out
space for a tent for the men's sleeping
quarters, another for a dining hall and
a poard shack for the cook. The team-
sters were unloading, the horses were
cropping leaves from the bushes, and
each man was doing his part toward
the construction of the new Limber-
lost quarters.
[Continued next week.]
A white potato, grated and sprinkled
over carpets is a fine cleaner and will
freshen the colors without injuring the
most delicate shades.
it
ning the toe of her shoe around n
small stump. evidently cut that sea- |
l'idly although when the pleces are
| completed they look as though an im-
mense amount of time had been spent
in the decoration of them. Other at-
| tractive luncheon sets are of Ma.
| deira embroidered linen with plain
| edges and embroidered corners, of
| batiste bordered with French Cluny
and inset with Italian filet medallions,
and of fine canvas with a border of
Cluny, a circle of embroidered daisies
centered with French knots and an
loner ring of punch work.
—Finest Job Work at this office.
Sm —
They Come Together
BACKACHE AND KIDNEYACHE ARE USUAL-
LY INSEPARABLE. SOME BELLEFONTE
PEOPLE ARE LEARNING HOW TO
GET RID OF BOTH.
Does your back ache?
Foal a, Ta eo can hard.
ly work?
SE fariioy the common mistake
or aw.
To cure the backache och
, You must cure
The pain may cease, but is sure to re.
ou may feel tired and worn-out all the
EE
Make up your mind your kidneys need
Begin taking Doan's Kidney Pills at
i
0
gf 3
# mt
&
Hardware.
Counts.
Dockash Stoves always please. You re-
duce your coal bills one-third witha
OLEWINE'S
Hardware Store,
57-25tf BELLEFONTE, PA
never found an equal.
Suppose you come 1n
and try on a few of
these new style
Ladies’ Suits and Coats.
Lyon & Co. .... Bellefonte
Yeager’s Shoe Store
Fitzezy
The
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Sold only at
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