The tribune. [volume] (Beaufort, S.C.) 1874-1876, 1875-02-17

sure.
Langsdale muttered something about
. breaking his head" and went into the
| cabin for his dinner. Phoebe went in
after him. When he had gone into the
! rear room, which was his room, par er-
celLence, she softly closed the door be-
hind him. The front room was her own; !;
it contained her bed, her wardrobe, and
her trinkets; tho latter were all presents,
and all of one sort. They stood in n
row on rough board shelf" speci-
mems" which would have made Eastern
ladies' eyes shine.
When a Sandy Gulcher found mug
get which WAS remarkable for purity or
beauty, he set it aside for " Posy -
they all liked to call the blooming
maid their "Posy." The consequence
was that Miss Phoebe had several thou
! sand dollars ON her rough shelf, and
went barefooted and bareheaded, and
wore q calico gown. She had no fear of
any one robbing her, though there were
scamps in the camp who would have cut
mans throat for q tenth of the wealth
which Phebe's nuggets represented; but
woe unto the man in Sandy Gulch who
would have robbed the Posy
When she went to attend the grand
ball at Bootjack Bar, although she was
absent three days, she left her trinkets
undistHrbed on the shelf, and found
them there undisturbed on her return.
When she had shut the door after her
father, Phoebe took from her pocket n
new specimen particularly fine one,
and very valuable; it was present just
received from Jose Apodoca. 1t had
Slim Jim's, but that did not trouble
lNo oha tD -.
fornia she had been shocked at hundred
things which she now looked upon with
indifference. She admired her nugget,
not for its value, but because it was
pretty; perhaps because in her heart
there was n soft place for the handsome
Mexican. She despised him 70. dis lazi-
ness. and yet-she put it on the shelf
with q sigh. "I'l tell papa" she
thought to herself, "when he feels
kinder toward loco"
1et, in spite of old Langsdale's en-
phatic translation of the Inglis" over
his door, Apodoca came again.
Phoebe couldn't be cross to people,"
and smiled and chatted, rose-pink deep
ened in her cheeks, light frightened in
her eyes, until Jose was more enthralled
and bewildered than ever. But, for all
her pleasantness, Phoebe was dutiful
daughter, and not only impressed her
adorer with the necessity of departing
before her father came home for his din
ner, but likewise besought him not to
ton. The Posy and her father seldom
entertained less than twenty in an even
ing. Every one in the camp would have
been there If the cabin had been bigger;
as it was, half the callers had to content
themselves with standing outside, and
catching now and then a word or smile
from the goddess through the door
way. The New Orleans Saloon did not
begin to have such attractions for them;
and the evening before the Posy went to
Bootjack Bar, and held grand farewell
reception, in her ball dress, with shoes
and stockings on, the saloon was wholly
deserted, and Slim Jim himself closed up,
and went with the crowd to old Langs-
dale's cabin.
But Jose intimated, in mellif}uous if
adulterated Spanish Spanish flowed like
oil from Posy's ready tongue-that he
| could not speak more than two words to
her in the evening, and besides with a
smile and jerk of his thumb toward
Slim Jim's), his business engagements
prevented his coming in the evening;
and, still besides that, he must there meet
a certain hated John, who was supposed
to be the choice of her heart, rs he GER
tainly was of her fathers.
Phoebe pouted and made q face at the
mention of John; he would have been q
grand catch for pretty Phoebe Langsdale
in the little down-east town where she
had been brought up-but the goddess
of Sandy Gulch could afford to be scorn-
full.
Jose, however, was inclined to question
the sincerity of her scorn; she, in turn.
protested vigorously, and, in the midst
of the discussion, old Langsdale walked
in unsuspiciously. Casting one look full
of anger and disgust at his daughter, the
old man, who had the strength of a giant,
seized Apodoca by the shoulders, and
half lifted, half kicked him out, yelling,
"Git git! !" at the top of his voice.
The Mexican, however, was not to be
kicked ont of anywhere by anybody
with impunity, and, drawing his short,
sharp knife, without which q Sandy
Gulcher would have been unrecogniza-
BILE, he made furious bound toward the
old man, with his knife appraised, and
murderous rage distorting his handsome
face. But Phoebe was there before him;
seizing his arm with her little brown
hand, the rose-pink all faded out of her
cheeks, and her eyes wide open with ter
ror, she cried Don't strike-don't
strike |" catching her breath in a terrified