The Hickman courier., 1872-11-09
ESTABLISHED 1856

ward him in a confding attitude of
interest, and laughed :'Oh, so you
are the people, and wisdom is going
to die with you !" said she. But
what do you DO out there in the heart
of the universe p
"We dig gold for one thing, and
raise sheep for another-millions
of them; from thirty to forty yes
sells a,e constantly plying to England
with the tallow and pressed wool >
What do you do with all that
mutton % asked Rosa, looking idly
at the light in her ring, and then as
idly at the light in the speaker $
eyes.
"We use what we can" was the
reply; and som etimes, am sorry
to say, we bury the fesh-not usual
ly; but sometimes an order VIII come
to one farmer for thousand sheep,
if you please; and all he can do is to
clip off the wool, get out the fat, and
bury the carcasses-
What pity the meat can't be
sent to the hungry poor at home
Why don't somebody condense it as
they do the beef in Texas p l said,
in my practical way,
Z" In good time L dare say some
BODY will; but we can't do everything
at once" replied the New Zealander,
looking with sudden interest at the
game of shuf1lebeard being placed be-
side us.
Just then along came the ships
surgeon, a blonde youth in uniform,
with his hair parted in the middle.
Miss Armour" said he, " the
gun is to be fred at the bow Will
you come and see it done?"
Miss Armour started up at once,
turning the same half confding
glance and ready smile upon him
she had been giving us.
50 am agoing to leave my rug with
you: l shall come back, said she,
beamiDg over her shoulder upon me,
as she took the surgeons arm and
went away.
The New Zealander looked after
her, tried to console himself by
drawing his wrap in another fold
across his knees, did not succeed,
and finally got up and went away.
/ OF course it was not worth while to
make himself agreeable to middle
aged woman in hood and water
/ proof. SOL sat, and looked at the
/ likeness OF lake among the sunset
clounds, and tried to decide whether
had better take oatmeal Cruel or
biscuit tea for my supper; wonder
ing the while, half unconsciously.
about the old chord in memory that
was always being struck by certain
musical ring in the New Zealandcr's
voice.
After an hour or so the gun was
fired; and presently Miss Armour
came back, with the disorder of the
strong sea-wind in her hair, and its 4
freshness in her pretty pink cheeks.
:" I've come as said" she muir
INJURED, dropping at my feet again, I
and smiling up, IS though she had .
got where she best loved to be-iust
such a smile as she would have given
to the stokers down in the engine
room, or to the ships cat But it
was lovely to look upon while it last
ed; and we middle-aged people have
learned to warm ourselves in any
chance ray of sunlight, without stop
ping to consider whether it is likely
to be perpetual.
This time the bit of sunshine did
not stay long, for there came an ar
st with his sketch book; and when
Miss Armour had sufficiently admir-
ed his graphic pencillings OF the cap
tain, and the quartermaster, and the .
sea-sick occupant of an upper birth,
it was time to throw the log; and .
so he bore her off, to find out by her /
own eyes whether we were actually .
going at the rate of thirteen knots,
or only twelve and half.
That was how the days went. The /
passengers read and paced the deck,
played games and guessed riddles,
and were always hungry the pilot +
stood steadily and firm at the wheel;
the sailors ran up aud down about
the rigging like over grown spiders,
and were forever securing and scrub /
bing, tying and untving, drawing up
and letting down. Thus at last we
had come safely almost to our desir-
ed haven. With fair sailing we were
only one day out from port; and, /
fond as we had grown to be OF each
other, we were getting impatient to
part. Miss Armour, during all the /
voyage, had kept on as she had be-
gan, beguiling every Cne with her
trick of lip and eye, They ran after
her ike boys at the string of kite. !
Well, they had nothing better to do
Just then; and when she had faded /
ont, as rainbow fades, made no
doubt she would be as easily forgot
I ten, or only remembered as a mid
summers day dream, by all, unless
| it might be solitary warm-hearted
man like the New Zealander. To
tell the truth. was little sorry for
him. Evidently, life had not brought
him all it might; and he was hungry
for the love and confidence that had
never been his. SO 1 was afraid he
would miss this little spark of girl
I hood and warm youth, and find the
void deeper when it had gone out
TO the very last day, Rosa kept
her place ty my chair; and to the
very last the New Zealander kept his
place by her, when no one younger
stepped in to carry her off, which
was pretty often, to be sure. Then |
ne always quietly went away him
self, with kind of grave regret in
his face. On this last m forming, Miss
Armour had just left US along with |
a young lawyer, to drop oranges
and lemons among the steerage pas
sengers, when ] noticed the New |
Zealander looking after her with a
sadder regret than usual--almost a
pain in his eyes. He had such
handsome dark eyes! L could see
that without my glasses.
Now" said 1 10 myself, "I hope
he isn't going to get sofia sensible
gentlemanly, agreeable man like
him. and quite old enough to be her
father r And so looked at him to
see if he was, when suddenly he
turned upon me.
" At least you might have written,
Agatha Wells,' said he, sharply.
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