Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1875-08-19
StItftto storp.
Lumley's S Pardner.
From the Overland Monthly for August

Prom the Overland Monthly for August
| have forgotten the name he brought
with him from the States. for nobody ever
called him anything else but "Lumley' s
Pardner."
We miners have familiar knack of re-
christening. and name once altered sticks
TO man as long as he sticks 10 the mines
so, even af(er Lumley had thrown up his
claim and left the digsns, good three
years ago, Lumley's Pardner still remain
ed. a finger-post TO trace the distance back.
After all. John Jones, or Lumleys Pard-
ner, what mattered il, in that doubtful tide
OF immigration setting in toward the wild
regions, where the first confidential ques-
ton after intimacy seemed TO warrant the
liberty, was invariably, Say Comrade.
lchdt tolS your name bef0re you come here r.
lou see. knew Lumley's Pardner when
lie first came into the mines. | was up al
Woods Diggings at the time he and par
" of two or three more came around pros
pecting. | remember / thought what a
fine stalwart young fellow he was, straight
a. young pine-tree, and no foolishness
about him either for he had been rough
ing il year or two down on the Texas
border. i never saw the boys more down.
right pleased oyer a newcomer than when
he bought a claim and went in with US.
He was not man TO talk much about him
self, nor one you would feel free to ques-
ton but there was honest, square-dealing
looking out of his clear gray eyes. for all
the trouble and unrest laid up behind
them.
Lumley was as different as a man could
be. / have often noticed that men take to
Unlikes in mating among themselves, as
xtail IN nhnn.inO fnr lifa Ha
came into the diggins week or SO later,
and they some how fell in together. Lum-
ley was what you might call an extra clev-
er fellow. He looked scarcely more than
a boy-these fair-skinned people never
show their age-with his handsome wom-
anish face, bright blue eyes, and trim-buIlt
figure, but he had confidence until you
could not rest, plenty of the gift of CAB,
and something about hm-I believe peo-
pie call it magnetism; at least, when you
were with him you believed Just as he did.
and then wondered at yourself afterward
for doing it,
Lumley always had knack of twisting
folks round his little finger for all that the
lines of tirmness were quite lacking about
his mouth. Lumley's Pardner, now. with
his close-set lips, and square, massive jaw
you might as well hope to move noun
ldiu as nun dgoiuct MS Will. lie WOuIu DC
strong TO do or to bear; you could easily
see that.
do not know as it was exactly fair, |
never meant TO eavesdrop, but it happened
in this wise; one night went into Lum.
ley shanty-it was amazing strange how
soon his name got tackled to everything
to see about broken pick he wanted
mended. | used to do the smithing i'm those
| days. As opened the door, | saw there
was no one in, and, being tired with my
days work. dropped down on log Just
outside. lit my pipe, and sat leaning back
against the pine boards waiting for Lum
ley to come back. guess must have got
drowsy and fallen asleep, for the first
| thing heard was voices, and Lumley's
/ Pardner speaking out bitter and short, IN q
way we seldom heard him speak.
| Il reckon it's Of no use to ask if there's
| any letters come to my name.- he said
''There's no one to write to me-"
| rubbed open my eyes and saw two
CLEANS Of light streaming out through the
open door and the one lOop-hole of a win
dow. and then knew that Lumley and hi.
mate must have passed me by and nevel
| seen me in the twilight. Raising mysel
up, | saw Lumley through The window
sitting down to the pine table, beside ta!
low dip. with two or three letters lying be
fore him, and one open in his hand. Thel
it flashed across cry mind that one of tn
boys from a camp beyond had gone in I,
the station and was due with the mail tina
night.
! Lumley's Pardner sat over the far sid