Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1874-11-13

From "All The Y, ar Round."I
MlNNlE'S DOWRY.
TcoNrrNUED FROM YESTERDAY I

TCoNTINUED FROM YESTERDAY
For a moment thought that the sigh.
ing OF the wind, or the scream OF bird OF
prey. perched ON the cliffs above, had de-
ceived my sleeping ear, but no! 1t was u
woman's voice, calling on Prank
Frank and l hastily started up. and
opening the door of the hut. beheld in the
silyery moonlight the outlines of a female
form. Hurrying up, saw with infinite
surprise that it was Minnie herself who
stood before me. She looked strangely
pale, but very beautiful her dark hair, no
doubt loosened in the rough and rapid
ride, hung loose about her shoulders, and
her manner was singularly earnest and
excited for one usually so gentle and
meek.
This is no time for sleep!" she said,
eagerly; up, up. and be doing. before
the precious hours are gone. Take what
you need for digging, and come with me,
nv own! have ridden fast and far to
guide where it awaits YOU"
"What, Minnie?" asked. much per-
plexpd By her words and manner.
"Gold !" she replied, with Quivering
emphasis. Mach gold! your fortune.
love and my dowry. l will be your
guide"
"You. darling" answered, trying TO
take her hand You are ill, fear, or in
distress, and" She interrupted me ut
as to avoid my touch.
Frank she said, with passionate,
pleading earnestness; "let me have my
way in this. You'll never repent it. be-
lieve me. Do Minnie Fairlop's bidding.
without remOnstrance, without question,
for this once. Come, come, why are you
so sluggish"
Puzzled by Minnie's vehement energy
of address. SO utterly new to me. I
thought it best to humOr her. and accord
ingIy fetched from my hut the pick,
shovel. crowbar, and lighted lantern, say
ing with smile, that l was now ready,
like true knight, to obey my lady's be-
hest AT the same time looked around,
wonderingly, tor her horse. l remem.
bered, however, that she might probably
have secured the bride to tree in the
thicket within easy ride shot, and made
up my mind not to vex her by idle
queries. With u wave Of her white hand
she signed 10 me to follow, and set forth.
at a rapid pace, towards the frowning
gorge OF the Sasquewash torrent, thread
ing her way without hesitation among
boulders and tangled brushwood. until, in
narrow and gloomy ravine, she halted
before black stone that bore some tanci-
ful resemblance to pulpit.
'Here! dig here!'' she said eagerly;
"wOrk, Frank. as you never worked be-
fore. You stand upon gold"
She gave no reason for this bold asser-
tion, but there is something contagious in
strong and genuine conviction, and in this
instance surrendered myself completely
to the impulse of the moment, and clear
ing away with my shovel the black allu-
vial soil, struck Justify with my pick-axe
into the rocky stratum beneath So far as
| could dis inguish by the dim light of the
lantern beside me, the minerals which my
pick disturbed were precisely such as l
had met with in twenty excavations ca
gerly commenced and abandoned in dis
gust. Yes, there was the curved gneiss,
the brittle hornblcnde, tho fallacous
sparkle Of yellow mica. the black basalt.
the water-worn gravel, varied by thin
streaks OF milky quartz or of dark ferru-
ginous sand. What could have caused
Minnie visit. her fancy respecting the
richness of this particular spot and the
singular alteration in her manner? So
far as l knew she had never before en-.
tered the ravine whittier she had guided
me, while OF gold digging she was neces-
sarily ignorant. Was her mind affected
by the mental strain which she had for
some time endured, Or
Ha! What was that ? The sharp point
of my pick had pierced, with a dull thud,
into something softer than rock, softer
even than the hardened clay that gave up
so much trouble in cleaving through the
bed many dried-up stream, and in free
ing the tool encountered slight but per-
ceptible resistance. held up, within the
radius of the light that streamed from the
lantern, the end Of the pick. and 10 a
fake of something yellow and bright was
sticking 10 the polished metal. Another
blow, and another, and had tralsfixed,
and was dragging to the surface a
weighty, wedged.shaped. glittcring mass
with threads OF gold and small cubes of
crystalline quartz clinging to it. Gold!
gold fell on my knees, and in sort
of amazement, lifted the huge nugget in
my outspread hands.-lt was heavy, from
twenty to thirty pounds weight, as l
guessed; such lump OF the virgin metal
as seldom gladdens the eye of digger.
and worth, at the lowest computation, six
thousand dollars. laid The mass down
on the grass beside me, and looked up. as
if to seek an explanation, at Mnnie's pale.
lovely face.
Her eyes flashed, and her lips were
trembling. "Quick, Frank, quick!' she
cried; "work on. work like man. and
do not linger on the very threshold of our
fortune. Win wealth, win me, poor boy,
and spare not pain Or toll in few hours
that are left-see, see, the yellow vein
yonder, trending south. That is what the
miners call a heart-lode, is it not? Fol-
low it and be rich. will light you as you
as Dig" she added. sna,ching up the Ian
tern, and holding it so as 10 throw its
CLEAN into the shallow pit, where. sure
enough, my eye caught the tell-tale gilt
ter of u thick thread Of gold quartz, trend
ing southwards, AS Minnie had said. And
now fell resolutely to work, striking
such blows as awoke the echoes Of the
cliffs. while Minnie, holding up the light
overhead. encouraged me with fond and
hopeful words to fresh exertiOns.
The weather was intensely hot. at least
to English appreciation, and now the light
ming began 10 play among the serrated