Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1869-09-09
stifft Story.
rae PEARL OF CA.sPAN.

y
rambling through the secluded Vale,
of Calnpan, in the Pyrene' Is. aceompa
MED by the excellent cura te of the dis
trict. with whom in the course of IN,
pereyrinations, l had bees ,lre acquainI-
ed. and beneath whe Sc h'ospitabie roo
I had promised to spend r.he night. The
scenery was Wild and lovely beyond
description; and having expressed my
admiration oft, Iadded wish TO know
something of the Inhabitants.
.sThey have heas Is o: gold and wills
of iroD.u said my friend. "Many d
touching and noble instance Of senerosi-
ty and selfdenial have met wit amongst
them Aud, for example, look at this
man approaching US"
He was fine looking fellow, of five
or six and thirty, with military air,
and dressed in uniform. The lower
part of his face was very handsome, and
his dark sunburnt complexion suited
well with the long mustaches. / could
not see his eyes, tor the visor of his cap
was drawn down go as completely to
shade them from the light. Having
exchanged cordial salutation with the
curate. be passed on, followed by q huge
white dog, with thick fur and enormous
paws. The animal belonged to breed
peculiar to the Pyrenees, and remarka-
BILE for their sagacity and fai hfulness.
Now said my companion, as soon
as the soldier had passed out of hearing,
while we walk along, L will tell you a
true story, of whicn you have just seen
the principal characters.
'.Juan Trigoen was born in the heart
of these mountains, where the peasant
has his choice of following one of two
occupations,-that of a shepherd or
a hunter. Juan chose the latter, as his
father had done before him and haz
ardous pursuit it is. Not only has the
mountain hunter to scale all but mac
cessable precipices, and 10 brave the fury
of famished bears and wolves. but he is
constantly exposed to be swept away by
n torrent, or durried beneath an avalau
che. To this latter peril Juan's father
had fallen a victim. Crus ed beneath
mass of snow, he perished, leaving his
son no other heritage than his dog, his
gun, and his grandmother Gertrude, an
aged woman, unequal to the task of
supporting her self. Juan, at this time
q fine lad of eighteen, loved his grand
mother tenderly; she had always sup
piled to him the place of mother, who
had died in giving him birth, and he
now, with courage and resolution he
yond his years, undertook the sole charge
of their maintenance. He had been
early trained to the chase, and success
now crow ned his efforts. The number
of lizards eagles and bears struck down
by his hand, testified the sureness of
his loot and the certainty of his aim.
Thanks to the value of these spoils,
Gertrude knew no privation but she
trembled for the safety of her beloved
child, aud often said to him, with tears
in her eyes, stay at home to-day Juan !;
you will perish some time or other, like
your poor father; and what should l do
left alone. without any one to love in
the world?"
s'Then the lad would answer: Calm
yourself, mother; Providence will watch
over me for your sake"
''Thus did Juan work hard through
the week for his own and his parents
support, and on Sunday / loved to see
them entering my little church, Ger
trude leaning on the arm of her hand
some boy, and both joining in prayers
with the utmost devotion.
'.Two years passed on, and Juan was
returning one day from Bagneres.
whittier he had gone TO dispose of some
game. 1t was winter, and the north
wind blew piercingly cold; but the
young hunter stepped on briskly, whist
liDR d lively k-u00Ch1J q Va
distress struck his ear, bat be knew not
whenceit came.
Caesar! he cried, trusting TO his dogs
sagacity; seek it out, boyr>
s.Thes docile creature set off in the
direction of a thick pine-grove, and his
master followed; the cries became louder,
and Juan recognized the voice of q
female in distress.
Ha ..edoubled his speed, still preceded
by the At length be reacneu arr
open space, and there was Caesar struy-
Cling with wolf, while on the ground
lay a woman, with huge she-woif in
the act of fastning on her neck. With
shout Juan rushed forward, and at the
sound the fierce creature raised her
head, on him twoeye- balls glowing with
rage and hunger. Without moments
hesitation the intrepid hunter seized her
by the throat with one hand and thrust
ing the other into her mouth, grasped
her tongue, and dragged it as with an
iron vice. After fearful struggle, he
succeeded in dashing the strangled beast
on the ground. This done, Juan looked
to see if his faithful ally had need of as
sistance. No; his antagonist also Law
dead, and the hunter had time to attend
10 the woman, who lay motionless on
the ground. having tainted from excess
of terror. Her deiiverer raised her gen.
tly in his arms, put back the rich brown
hair that had fallen over her face, and
perceived that she was young and very
lovely girl. Taking a handful of snow
which lay on the ground, he rubbed 1t
on her temples and then succeeded in
putting somo bits of ice into her mouth.
By degrees she revived, her eyelids un-
closed, and she drew a deep sigh.
HWhere am 2" she murmered.
''Safe with friend.n
1T was you, then. who saved me 2"
Rather it was Providence, who was
pleased TO employ my hand"
.'She thanked him with a look far
more eloquent than words; and then,
with confiding simplicity, as she still
felt weak, asked him to let her lean on
his arm as far as her home. L was go-
ing to the town, she said, ito sell some
milk, when those dreadful wolves at
tackled me, upset my pitcher, and, but
for your timely aid and that of your
good dog, would surely have devoured
me.n
s.The conversation thus commenced
did not flag. Juan soon learned that
Marguerite lived in the hamlet of Cam
pan; that she was an,orphan, and had
no property save q small cottage one
COW, and some hens. She managed to
support herself with the profits Of these
animals and of her spinning, Her per-
feet candOr and her inocent beauty
charmed the honest heart of Juan were
he possessed of all the treasures in the
world, he would like 10 lay them at
Marguerite's feet. On entering the viii
lage the news of their adventure spread
quickly; and it was easy to see, by the
consequent excitement, how much the
young girl was beloved by her neighbors.
Both young and old rushed forth TO meet
her; Juan was overwhelmed with
thanks and praises nor was poor Cesar
by any means forgotten.
saA dion Maupllerifa said T,,on xvba,,