Show A CHRISTMAS CHOICE ISlMiS MARTA MCULLOCHWILLIAMS Copyright 1898 by Martha McCunoch iiams The towd in the store overflowed upon the porch but thee was a hull in i tradea surprising lull considering it was well toward 8 oclock of Christm eve The morning had been prl weather weath-er fun of fitful sunshine and soft flawy winds Now the sky was leaden the wind sat northwest lower ragged clouds scudding before it let fall a little a spiteful snow spits or dashes of The Murray outfit came wobbling uP Thdrt was a sort of tremolo even to I the loud crakings of Sonnys whip Lassaphin at Snnys elbow scowled and shivered impatiently at the noIse Such uselss noise The crack of doom could not have quicleened the patent amble at which Brandy the red ox and Jinny the pale little donkey drew their clattering load By gonnys Must be youve fetched a feather bed alive storekeeper Wa her said holding out both hands Las saphine overlooked them Instead of getting out she writhed down aid the turkeys They were fine big fellows whIte find coppers yellow dnd gloss greenish bronze She had fe and tended tend-ed and talked to them since they came out of the egg A lump had come in her throat as she hoppled them in palS and laid them upon the scant straw at the bottom of the wagon The lump was there still though Lasaphine was very far from a sentimental person She could have sold her flock to the turkey drover lat week with the lightest light-est heart in t1 world I a quite another matter to seize anti bind them treacherously as they fed from her hand and deliver them thus to make sport for an5 idle holiday crowd Snny Jim Walker Aint you got anew a-new frock and stick er redstriped candy can-dy They mought tole this yer gal ermine er-mine inside Sonny said stamping hIs feet had a hp cambered down She wants tel sidle our funLassaIhine docsben abeggln me all the way not to have the turkey walkthough she knows I saved them burreds jest fer nothing else in the world Come now lIss Lasahine That wont do Not never in the world Walker sad Christmas comes but once a year you know Come in Do Ive got the very dress for outold Iy wife so last night when the newest goods come in Lasnphine shook her head decidedly I dont want no dress you got she said No thin ouvC gotunt the money to pay for it is iil my hand That wont be long Walker sad rubbing his hands Look at all them fine gobbler I cal i jest a great notion no-tion of your pashavln em walked for stand you in twice whut the drover s ben aayin Ef you dont wan tel trade though leme take you up to thb house I dont leave this wain till it stars for home asaphine interrupted turning ing to Dick up the rope reins her father had dropped He had vanished inside the log storehouse As the team crawled a little from the steps to mae room for a smartnew buggy he came out wiping his mouth with the back of Uon his hand his eyes glassy with satsfac UonSo So you raly did core Jack Good boy Man of his word he shouted to the buggys driver Lassaphlne did not turn her head yet a slow blush gathered gath-ered in her olive cheeks She had long dusky eyes with spark at the bottom bot-tom heavy nightblack hair and the poise and stature ofa Greek goddess Notwithstanding most women In the countryside reckoned her ugly She was so unlike their standard of pink and white prettiness they could not in the least comprehend why so many men of so many minds and fortunes lost their heads over her Jack Chiders for instance a con gressmans son rich and fairlooking though reputed wild Len Haltel most driving and thriving of the young farmers round about Doc Grant the bachelor tobacco dealer a catch for any girl to say nothing of Teeny Walker Wal-ker the storekeepers bashful young brother I was certainly aggraVft g to good women with girls of their own to settle to have so many dangle after Lassaphlne who coquetted with nIl and favored none The Murray place was poorer than poverty the bare and unmerchantable fragment of a wide plantation Its starveling acres were either galled and gullied or overgrown with vagrant briers and the big weatherstained house was ruinous except ex-cept in two or three south looking I rooms Still the lurrys managed to live by ItLassaphine and Sonny and Grand pap Grndpap never forgot nor a lowed the others to forget what wfls a due to Murray blood Lassaphlne for example must learn to read and sign her name must wear shoes upon high l1gh days and holidays and go to church at least once a month He was the more strenuous because Lassaphines mother had not been a person of qualty bu a hal girl who had however Qeen obUg lug enough to die while Lassaphine was yet in arms Drive round Were agoin to walk in the back lot Sonny caned shaking hands right and left a he spoke AU Lasphlne s worhler were in the crowd on the porchbesides everybody hiked Sonny in spite or his weakness weaness for many glasses when one was too much for his poor head That was the secret of Lsaphines i l3 presenceshe could not afford to have him royster away the price of her feathered Hock For one thin there were her church dues Sonny argued that the circuit rider a wifeless young felow well clothed wel mounted at no expense for living had much less need of the 5 than themselves Las saphlne listened smiling obstinately She could put in acton not words her feeling that it was due herself to pay regardless of anything else A turkey wails understand is a sort of rural lottery much affected round holidays in the middle south As a lot terit comes under the ban of strict church people certnly there is a strong element of chance in it Each walker pays a stipulated sum for the privilege of waltingin local parlance buys his peg After it is bought he must walk blindfolded a given number of steps and set the peg firmly in the ground He who comes nearest to the stake wins the turkey or whatever the prize may be Commonly ten or a dozen live birds are walked off The winners are rarely thrifty enough to tae home their live prizes Instead they had them over to a negro cook who serves them up at a turkey supper toward 1 oclock on Christmas morning By the time the supper is eaten it is time togo to-go out and shoot anvil Christmas guns or touch off hollow logs plugged with a pound of powder inside The back lot > va an acre of rough turf stretchIng between the spannew Walker house brave in gaudy paint and the squat weathered store nesting in the angle of the crossroads Halfway Half-way in it a stout stake had been driven A pie of roughly whittled pegs lay beside be-side the stores back steps As Sonny cae down them with three parts of the crowd at his heels he stopped and I gathered the pie under his arm saying i with a mid pretense of mistrust I Yeve ail got so much Christmas in I yer bones consarn yer pictyer yere a full of tricks as so many unbroke mules I but I lay the best gobbler in the me buhch ye dont lay none of em on I meSonny you shorely dont think theyd try i with Lassaphine aIook in at em f the storekeeper called after him from the dOor Len Haskel shied a stone at Walker Jack Chiders contented con-tented himself with a shake of the fist Doc Grant made a motion toward his hip pocket but dropped his had and looked at Lassaphine with Ill I do so Ithonest Injun I wll you say soLassaphine did not smieshe was busy with the turkeys which had setup set-up a pitiful fluttering and peeping Sonny Son-ny lifted out a big bronzy fellow swung him back and forth head downward down-ward once or twice and said almost sad amost shamefacedly How much is he worth boys Would you say nowhalf a dollar dol-lar A whole doIarnot a feather goes for less Doc Grant sad loudb jing lng a handful of loose silver I say two Jack Chiders begun Len Haskehl stopped him with a significant sig-nificant touch Let it go at one he sad under his breath I hurts her Lassaphine you knowto tae even that much She hates bein here but she caint well help it No plottn agin the whites here 1 Grant said jocularly setting his youhger rivals alengh apart Teeny I Walker darted up to the Some er i youal do me a favor please he said breathlessly Folks are comin so peart likely I shant git the chance to walk at albut I wan tel be in five I pegs deep at lestI thought maybe one er youd buy qm and walk for me Im your man Jack saId clutching Teenys coin and spinning it above his head Len grinned good humoredly Better lemma have er walk and a half he said Grant laughed explosively explo-sIvely Oh these boys he said stepping step-ping to the wagon side where instantly he shouted Step up to the captains office and settle gentlemen Pegs right I heret only a dime Come on come on No such turkeys anywhere Come runnin Hasltel said clutching clutch-ing a peg an flipping silver Into Son nys hat In a twinkling ten peg were taken Sonny held up his hand Gt yer blinder Doc he sid to Grant You go fJst Grant whipped out a gorgeous red andyelow bandana Sonny muffled his eyes securely then peg il hand he was turned around two or three times and told to walt toward the central cen-tral stake A laughing shout went up as he shaped a course at right angles to it Walk big Injun Walk away Walk Spanish Tiptoe fine the rest called after him as he steppe his allotted al-lotted forty paces He steppe bingeIy and so high Lassphlne herself jmed in the laughing When he stooped to stick his peg and bumped fairly against the Jot fence there was a chojus of gleeful howls B Jacks I Im to win this fellow Sam Walker wont have a panel o fence left he said pulling off his blinder and rubbing his chin Here you nice young men put on this fame rag and lets see if you do any better with no eyes in your head One thing surewe cant do any wore Jack retorted as Sonny hood ed Hasltel and turned him about las kel had an Indians sense of direction along with a hunters trained perception percep-tion He wheeled slowly until he felt the wind cut his left cheek and then with a confident smile went straight toward the stake and set hIs peg withIn with-In a yard of it Goo for Len Wel walked Sure shot the other called Thas Lens turkey dead to rights Jack Chiders sid we couldnt beat tl t if i we tried a year Put up another turkey Sonnyand bar Len from waking ingGod as wheat from the crowd Len smiled quite happily I jet gives me a better chance tpr se Lssaphlne he saId aide to Chider II walk though for the nextthen you lookout look-out outHerc Hero goes for Teeny Walter Jack said stepping manfully out A babel or shouts assailed him but he kept straight ahead and set Teenys peg re sIeably near the stake The other nine walkers went widnot a one came I within five yards of the winning past One Iuclles fellow broughtup at the store sepst rest scattered impa tuy about tough each had been morally mor-ally certaIn with his eyes open that he I could shut them dnd g siribht to the goal without turning a hair Teenyil feel like a sport after his hes always been sech er pious little cuss Doc Grant said Haskel nodded But hei be in at the turkey supper large as life he sad You must remember re-member its a developing procssfall lug in lave with cjssfal Childers added But Look Chider say yonder There comes the preacher as Im a living liv-ing sinner I wonder what hes after Lassaphnelke the rest of us Len growled Doc Grant whistled shrilly then nodded assent Preachers are jest men he said Boys we might a well hang our harps on the willows Commonly the preacher had an open countenance a ready and engaging smile Now his face was something set his sooth cheek the least bit flushed as he rcdetqward Sonny answerng I OnlY With a grave collective nod civil greetings from ever side Brother Muiray he said not touching Sonns outstretched hand It grieves me to sell what you may not care to hearD hear-D ar bless my soul Is anybody dead or a church burnt or air you I turned aginst your feed boardin I ro n Sonny asked cheerfully Dnt be cast down Brother Mickle johnno matter whut happens the LoidU provide 1 have no doubt of that lUcldejohn said trying to speak severely and to keOp his eyes from Lasaphine who I had risen and stood erect in the rickety wagon bed as a queen might stand beside be-sIde her throne lly trouble is not material but spiritual I does trouble I me beyond expression to find you a professor of Christ openly engaged in I a gambling scheme I Gambln SonnYs jaw dropped I his hands fell to his sides nerveless and flaccid Garnbiin he repeted I never gmble in my life I dont know what you mea 1 do knowis wakln for our 7 4 > t I turkeys Lasaphine said springing down and standing at her fathers side I Her head was high her eyes darted I lightning a royal color burned in her cheek She looked 3licklejohn full In the eye His slan c fell before hers Where are your vng she asked wit a little sneering laugh You ought to be an angel you a to god for a mere man Understand though thIs is my turkey walk I raised the turkeys Sonnys jet managn things to save me trouble Im a probationer i not a full member of your church I wont ever be anything Take my name off your booksat once Do you I hear Micklejohn bowecLsllently His breath lUcklejohn bowedsienty I came a little short Lasaphine waved I him toward the gate As he turned his horses head she laughed defiantly and patted Sonnys aria Ob I wish I was a man and he not a preacher she sad Then raising her voice a hit tie Come on everybody After this Ill hold peg and Sonny may have fun with the rest of you The waking went on with a rush Tough there were but seventeen turkeys tur-keys Lasaphine somehow found her seld at the end possessed of 25 I was almost dark but she went into the store jingling the coin laughing and making jokes with all her court Teeny darted out of sighthe would never never undertake to walt on her in the face of all those other Jack Chiders at once flung over the counter into his vacant place and certainly saId Lasa phlne some astonishing bargains from the beat in stock She made no demur since her encounter with lcklejohn she had a royal recklessness in everything thing Therefore she had flouted the most trifling gifts Now he took with a free hand whatever her wooers chose to offer thereby greatly scandalizing the few other women making belated her a purchases J Let me take you home Jack said looking up Into her brilliant face when the buying a done Jack was fair and blueeyed and hf j head the lower She smiled down at him and stepped toward the door Outside there was black darkness She could nut mae out even JiJnys paleness agafnst the red of Brandy Sonny whom Grant and Hakel had managed to keOp miraculously mir-aculously sober for Christmas eve was already i his sat propped all about with parcels No Ill go a I camein my own prate carriage she called over her shoulder I dont want to spoil sport Be sure youal to cme tel me how Ute turkey supper went offTell Tel you what shes got gitthat girl ha Waleer raid sticking his hands in his pocket by way of emphasizing empha-sizing his first leisure since sunrise sunrse She ant afraid of nothin in this world nor the next We found that out several hour back Jack said And Walker could not understand why the others laughed so heartily Christmas dawned property clear and cold with a powdering of fine light snow over everything By 1 ocloclc it had melted except where it lay in shadow The road was moist not wet from t yet Lassaphine held her skirts high above it She sang in a gay loud I voice as she walked and now and then I mae a dancing step Until now she had never in her life mae a Christmas gif and she was going to bestow upon the Rouse tribefve strapping girls renter and poor whitesal the gaud and geegaws she had accepted from her lovers When they came later in the day she would tel them of what she had done She smiled whimsically in thinking of Doe Grants dismay there was feud tobaccoborn betwixt him and the Rouse tribes progenitor progenior Len would sigh thriftily over the waste of his aclack money would laugh prank with her and think it a fine Christmas The Rouses should never know She had marked their name on the bundle stealing in she would knock drop it and run away Their house sat almost flush with the road which a little later plunged downhill into a dark and threatening gorge Either side the his precipices almost crowde in so close a resolute man might dispute anothers passage Lassaphine hated the gorge She passed through it whenever she went to her favorite church Sharon Brother lIcklejohn preached there today to-day The Rouse tribe were likely to go and hear him Laaphine herself had meant to be therealso to fetch the minister home with her to share her Christmas dinner Let the Rouses have himwith the rest she thought touching the bundle of which her arm was growing wear She heard hoofs upon the road behind and slipped within with-in a roadside cedar clump to rest She was hardly well hIdden before three rider halted just in front of her splc brie tgether then rode furiously away down hill Brother lHcklejohn had prayed with fervor and preached with unction yet his heart was heavy a he rode away from Sharon Against hope against reason he had hope to see Lasaphine He loved his Master and his Masters work yet he was barely 2 with veins riotously full of young red blood From the frt he felt Lsaphines spell A brief while he had fought against it then he surrendered everything but conscience to its subtle swetes It was conscience which had made him anger her he was jealously afraid of his own heart Anotherman in Son nys case would have been privately told of his unseemly behavior Love and Laphine had constrained him to deal hashl upon pain of seeming to himself him-self a coward She must be furiously angrsti he would not give her uphe would go to gve her and smehow make life pec He rode with eyes downcast reins hanging hang-ing His horse all at once shied violently vio-lently then stood stock still A glance told him the reaonthree other hore men so aligned as to b19CI the way i Jack Chiders a inti middle Grant and Haskel to riglt and left l three faces were set in a sort af steely whiteness white-ness Instinctively lIcKlejohn understood under-stood and in understanding comprehended compre-hended how much he had mistaken his yo caton The elemental savage broke In himlove religion honor ambition were a nothing by contrast with this lust for a weapon thIs mad desire to fight to the death He was wholly 1n te deat fght odds armed in the face of tremendous I ared horsed than any of the i He was better hore tha ay three and to the fulhasgOOd rder His one chance was to tide them down and run for it It was characteristic that the thought of turing back never once entered his mind He gathered up the reins bent his head whistled softy and spurred straight at the line Jack swerved his horse the lest bit let the other get his head well past then leaning lightly b tore the reins from Mieklejohs grasp and threw his horse upon its haunches The force of impat swung i his own horse arundIn an Instant both animals had fallen The rder at i hard grips writhed free of the struggling strug-gling beasts Jnggred swayed back and forth through a breathes heartbreaking breaking minute then fell prone in the rocky road Mickejohn stood six feethe had brawny broad shoulders and Joe jointed longrachng am But try a < l he might he could not free himself Jacks arms were locked about the big chest like a steel band momentarily tightening Not a ward had ben spoken spok-en None was needed icklejohn knew he was paying for what they had taken a a inst to Lsaphne The knowledge knowl-edge was mere feelnghe nether thought nor planed consciously Life meant fghtngnothing more nor less fighting an antagonist he ought to crush with one arm who yet seemed likely to best him He shut his eyes but opened them instantly in-stantly He could see noting but rings of red and yellow and green melting into blackness Still Jacks grip held yise1ee agonizing His bret went no lower than the throathe must break the grip or perish With a mighty plunging surge he got to his knees loosed one had clinched it and struck Chiders a blow full in the face Blood followed red blood warm and sic I came in a trickling jet but did not dIm the fire in Jacks eyes Still he held hard swaying back and forth foiling Iickejohns efforts to get upon his feet He saw the purple face the staring ing eyeshe knew the end was only a few minutes away Trump was in his gap licejoh had struck him again a feeble plane ing blow Alt at once a whirlwind seemed to rage behind himhis arms were torn loose he was flung violently her blazing asideLaavhin eyes blaing stamped her foot and cried Shame Shame Shame on you I Alter this never call yourselves men YouontthintYou ctwe seton set-on himtbe to one Jack gasped She nodded coldly I cant thnk anything any-thing else she sad I know well why because he took it on hhseif to sass Son and me A preachers same as a womanit aint ften fer hint to fight no matter how much strength and will he may have I could mighty nigh manage man-age you Jack far fstadsulbut you wouldnt lay the weIght of yow hand on me no mate what I might doNo Jack said nor Jet anybody elm Who planed this foolishness first she asked still seer All of us said Hakel laconically Then we drwe Josand Jack had luck Tat fellow had to be thrashed ef be thrashed Jack then I come into the argent and Doc after me Laphines face relaxed a little You all go on up to the hose and wait she said IItht ist rs somethngIve got a word to say to Brother lIcklejohn Im frd is Yes Doc sid gloomily as they mounted and rode away Remember haw she blushed up at the lat Lsaphine ant like no other womai ever I sawbut even shes likely to be a fool over a goo I lookin preacher Doe look like H Hakel admitted admit-ted with a half sarcastic sigh Twould be funny of if wed won the brothers case for him instead of rnnin him out o the country a we intended What do yn think about i Jack IOh nothing Jack said as though coming out of a dream In this matter mat-ter Laaphne must do the thinng Sonny and gand pap give the trio a uproarious welcome which grew somewhat some-what chastened when ten minute later Lssphine came in with Brother MAck lejohn in her wake Shake handsal of you she commanded then wash your hands and faces and come out to Christmas dinner It was a royal dinner Glack Lure I whose forbear had belonged to the lurray in the days before their deCadence deCa-dence had done her very betd Sonny Son-ny had helped her Sonny had a gourmets gour-mets palate and a pretty taste in sea coning At Christmas neither a over stinted however bare the hIving other days of the year They ate leisurely fashionit was quite dusk when they arose fro the table Lssaphine led the way into gandpaps rom which was bright with leaping firelight Notwithstanding Not-withstanding she lit candles in two tail brass sticks turned about and faced Mickiejehn who throughout what ought to have been an ordeal had seemed cur iousiy eiate Her face was grave though a laugh lurked in her eyes Brother Mieklejohn she said you asked me down in the gorge if I came there because be-cause I loved somebody and I said Yes Did you think I meant you I did said Micklejohn smiling softly soft-ly and half extending his hand Las saphines hands went up You thought wrong she said I did go for love thoughbecause I couldnt bear to have Jack disgrace himself Hurrah Haskell shouted hugging grandpap who stood next him Hur rub Grant echoed trying to shake Jacks hand Delight in the ministers downfall overbalanced personal loss Jack stood as though dazed his hands hanging ills eyes fast on Lassaphine The cut on his forehead was throbbing viciouslyhe was spoilt and weakthe flood of joy overwhelmed him He flung his arms about Lassaphine and laid his head on her shoulder with a dry smothered sob Before them pAl she bent and kissed him then laughed out to the fleeing Micklejohn If youre a mind you may come back and marry usOld Christmas dayt |