Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1877-12-29
,ost faultless nose fairly quivered with angry

VTOUUY IN an afflfIIGp
the most graceful defiance. She proba bly, wore
The regulation habiliments: but people seldom
noticed what Kate Carneth had on.
The artist eye was fascinated at once; the
artists ear was thunderStruck, BreathlesSlv
the Intruder confronted the not astonished
Rollins, and burst forth
Look here, Mr.. Rollins you're the fellow
oh, certainly, Mrs. Carneth"' he replied.
with great suavity: Il pray be seated. Allow
Now, none of your peach butter on nay
bread, John Rollins. amt to be come over
IN that way. I've come on business, and
don't want any of your fOOlng. I've been told
that you said didn't use to pull il even with
joe, and Just come to ask you If you did say
Chase was astonished at the imperturbable
calmness of the acclimated john who merely
replied
Il am not at all surprised at your. hearing
this; but did not say 50. only said that /
had heard you did not live happily together
and wondered if the report was true"
Chase Carroll, who did not lose look or
movement of the lovely virago, could not help
feeling that the departed Joe had probably
not led an altogether stagnant life with his
bonnie Kate. The stamp of the shapely foot,
the clinch of the bare, dimpled fist, were
highly suggestive of scenes; but what a beauty
she was, to be sure. summed up the man and
the artist.
The excited Nemesis paused for two or three
vehement breathS, and resumed:
Very well. John Rollins, III tell you ,rhdt,
Ia wanted To come here and manage this
Il
own mineral; and III thank you to attend to
yours. don't want any Impotence, sir" (aS
John was about TO speak, you sabe? IMPU-
DENCE!-capital letters, too. that is what /
say. You just mind your own affairs. and lei
mine alone! If you don't" with rising iniec-
ton and rising COLOR "TIl-ridde-y0u-SO-
Observation-Disclosures TIo TI hold-victuals!-
The last word was a perfect shrek; and.
with a final stamp of her brass-tipped heels,
the girl. or woman, or fury, vanished.
Carroll mt no m
parently been as unnoticed by the visitor as
though he had been fly on tie ceiling: John
Rollins flung down the cigar which he had
held in his hand during the lady's visit, and
burst into a fit OF uncomfortable laughter.
''Ye nymphs and goddesses!" exclaimed the
things ber''
Pretty woman. isn't she?" said his friend,
when he had recovered himself: ''but had no
idea that she would show off so well at first.
Thor and WOdin, Jupiter and Mars. every
belligerent god III the catalogue, wasn't it?'
laughing afresh.
"Is there any danger of her trying to shoot
your asked his companion, anXiOusy.
. She wouldn't mind doing it," was the easy
reply; but do not think She will consider it
eXpedient."
WHO is shee what is she: where does she
live?' poured rapidly from Chase CARROTS
Katherine Barring Carneth' she writes
herself; not a bad name, either. and she comes
of good blOOd-well connected, | believe, in
England, though pure American to the back
bone. Widow OF Joe Carneth-a rather bad
lot, who ruined himself in the Invincible mine
two years ago, and then blew his brains out, if
he had any. Lives alone with her father, old
Barring, in that dismal house on the outskirts:
and, if she UGs a. little breezy as a wife. is "A
most devoted daughter-keepS the old man, it
Is said. from falling to pieces, he is SD utterly
shiftleSs.
Then" said Carroll, 'sshe is really the
daughter of that mild-lOOking old gentleman
with silvery locks whom have noticed about
the town because of his peculiarly courteous
manneTS-in such marked contrast To the gen
erality of RanchtOwn residents. What SIN
gular connection"
That's Peter" nodded his friend :he's great
on department Seventeen or eighteen wears
ago." he continued, resuming his cigar, Peer
Barring came here ruined man-alOne, eX-
cept for q Strangely-beautiful child about five
years old. He had the misfortune, it seems,
To be born genius, and was always inyenting
things, and wasting money on his inventions
ran through with his own fortune and that of
his wife; worried the latter in the most amia-
bic manner possible into her grave: and then
gathered up his remaining property, which
consisted principally of the little Katharine,
and wendell his way hither, with some Won
derful scheme in his brain for charming gold
out of the OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES with scarcely
any trouble or expense To the workers. think
the miners fairly hate him; he is always rails
ing their hopes, only 10 dash them to the
ground. Now it is this thing now it is that, that
he haSinyented. some wonderful sieve, perhaps:
some marvellous cruSher some Open-Ses1Ble to
the granite portals of the enchanted palace;
but they all prove delusOn and "A snare: and
odd man Barring is now stunned almost as if
he had the plague. Meanwhile, Katharine
grew to womanhood, with all the beauty of a
wild rose, full of grace and gracelessness: and
Sultors far and near clamOred for her hand.
Ii was said that her father had never crossed
her wishes, and that her temper was-well.
whatever il was, il did not prevent Joe earn
eth. the richest SpeculatOr in Colorado. and
owner of the Invincible, from laying fierce
siege to the RanchtOwn beauty. Joe was
handsome, reckless and generous: he loaded
The girl with costly presents, he paid the old
mans debts: and finally Katharine consented
10 marry him-though telling him, with her
usual frankness. that she didn't love him. and
didn't want to marry any one. This did not
prevent her, however, from becoming Mrs.
Carneth: but IL probably saved her from any
very serious grief when, two or three years
afterward. her husband made such a melOdra-
matte end. leaving her about as penniless as
she was before. As TO Uhot she is, you have
from the slightest approach to affectatiOn. but
awful bad form even for the west. Shoots,
smokes, whistles. plays piano, writes poetry,
and talks slang, gossips, does a good deal here
Out-bucks' every woman in RanchtOwn, and
is the leading character of the town. Now,
don't fall in love with her, Chase: for think
of marrying her myself some day, when she
refOrmS-as she undoubtedly WILL"
Chase Carroll shuddered at the thought.
Marry her. Outside of his buried hopes, the
very idea OF this western anomaly to fall in
love with was altogether repulsive to his faS-
tidiOus tastes. HIS ideal woman was An
other Shudder passed over him, as the hateful
fact Obtruded itself, The wife of an Italian
opera singer
Don't elevate your aristrOcratic nose"
pursued the placid John; Kate is no hypO-
critic, whatever her faults may be-and that,
let me tell YOU, is great deal for woman. /
mean by this that she despises little, under
handed dOings OF all sorts-would not shed a
tear for ef1ect-and. rather than put the best
foot foremost, if it did not happen To come of
its own accord. she would be far more likely TO
get up a cloven hOOf for the occasion. She is
a woman who, il she saw a bullet whiZZing
through the air and making for your heart,
would Qf she liked you, mind,) throw herself
upon you without word or n scream, and re-
ceive the death-dealing missile in her own
breast"
And a woman" said Chase, quietly, ''who,
il she did not like you, wouldn't hesitate to
shoot you herself. JOhn-John! am sorry to
see YOU 50 far gOne-such infatuation is UNI
worthy Of YOU.
John smiled. but his smile was neither child
like nor bland il had a world of meaning i'm it
which his companion did not see. His thoughts
were busy with a pair of blue dilated eyes
just the Kind of eyes that always had power to
carry him out of his sober senSes-and a cloud
Of sunny hair; but this, he told himself was
the admiration of the artist and not of the