Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1878-01-08

door again, and attacked the drift until
it yielded far enough to let her latch the
door behind her.
The night was awful. She could see
nothing through the Skurry. She
hardly dared to turn her face to the
yelling blast. She thought of asking
some one to accompany her, but the
camp lay some distance out of her line.
Moreover she knew the country in ev
cry direction. She could feel anywhere
if necessary; besides, she had her Ian
tern-that would enable her to distin-
guish objects within small circle
Turning resolutely in the direction of
Wild Swan .Gulch she set out to find her
husband and guide him home.
AS she emerged from the canyon and
gained the level of the surrounding
broken plain, a strange pause came. It
seemed as though the winds had sudden
ly forsaken the neighborhood and gone
reeling away into the mountains. She
took advantage of this sinister calm to
hurry onward at a run. Out of breath
at last she stumbled and fell.
The lantern went out.
She had no matches!
Staggering to her feet she heard the
moan of the returning storm. She
| shouted:
"Jim!"
Again, with all the might of her
voice, she lifted the plainsman's CALI
"Yip, zip, yip-ya-hoo! Jim ~
| No answer.
Then the tempest rushed round her
in battling, ferocious whirl of sound
and wind and snow.
In the meantime Jim Oaks had been
at one of his old diversions. Having
returned from Wild Swan Gulch' with a
splendid trophy in the shape of black
billed swan drake, he was lounging to.
ward home when the storm came on
and stopped in at the last saloon as usual
to get drink. 1t was always warm
and coy in that liquor mill, and on
Christmas Eve the place was peculiarly
inviting. The boys were assembling
for night at poker, and Jim sat down
and took hand.
"It's kind O. rough on Minerv'," he
thought once, about midnight. 'leavin'
her alone up thar such night as this
Never mind; she'll worry it through, I
| reckon"
But when the man entered his cabin
next morning and started toward the
bed with peace offering This winnings)
extended in his hand he was completely
| 0F W1dL Dc SGH. lie
ed bed, the fireless hee nth, the cold I'M
tasted supper, his wife's clothes strewn
on the floor, the open trunk, the absent
cap and lantern-these flashed the truth
into his brain.
J "She's gone to hunt for me! She's
2 been gone a long while. All night
p'rhaps-in the storm. 0. Minerv' !"
Out he sprang through the doorway
The storm was over The air was clear
still and bitterly cold. The sun was
: rising. He cast one strenuous looE
: around the narrow horizon, then plung
! ed through the drifts towards the camp
= Minerva" he shouted. "Have any
r of you seen Minerva"
s Immediately the camp aroused itsel
from its aromatic slumbers. When i
] was found that Mrs. Oaks was really
j missing The miners volunteered as on,
] man to go to her rescue. A sled wa.
s prepared-some firewood, provisions
Y blankets and keg of whiskey were
roped fast to it. and, with Jim chatting
Y by this time and far in front on the way
toward Wild Swan Gulch, the company
g started. Parties were assigned to search
0 the whole prairie, east, west and north
! the largest group followed Oaks trail
t 1t was hard work tiOundering across tn
= | SuiilCS cho dcl|ouLs. w HUI WHY E{rCh
ed to the edge with snow. Often tn,
0 mon shnddered to think of what NIGH
0 be hidden under these heavy whit,
g masses.
= The first "signn was discovered by
! Jim Oaks partner, one "Spick" Jones
e who Kept to the left and signalled from
e clump of timber The bark was par.
} TALLY torn off about four feet from til,
! ground. on the side of tree, not BIZ
: the teeth or claws of wild beast, bu
as was plainly to be seen, by the hands
Of O human creature Almost every
5 miner was familiar with the trick.
e was trick to keep from freezing, at thu
e sacrifice of nails and finger tips. It wa
a desperate effort of exercise to arrest
d lethargy. One veteran of the camp re
membered to have climbed up and dowf
tree II night one winter when he was
Y Overtaken without matches by a Mon
0 tana blizzard.
, Jim Oaks set his teeth hard when he
+ saw the frozen blood on the tree
a "Stay with me, boys" he said, hoarse
, ly, land help me find my wife.n
The man struggled on.
e Some two hours later figure on
! distant bluff was seen waving hat
r All sought the place where the wine
| hetu OIOW IL 81 lICICCly uu 1lIS lHC piCCta
e ing night that it had prevented tn.
, snow from lodging on the windwarG
, ridges. Mrs. Oaks lay on her back there
3 half covered with snow. frozen to sleep
: Her left hand was inside the vest she
: wore; her right was extended above
f her head and covered with blood from
her poor torn fingers.
] Everybody made. way for Jim.
! He came up and knelt down rever-
r emily beside her, and kissed her rigid
lips.
"Minerv'!" he said, gently. H.
reached, trying to feel her heart
2 "Minerv' ~
: He looked around on the faces OF his
: fellow miners with such an expression
on his drawn and haggard visage that
they turned away.
He touched the cold hand in her DO
; som. 1t covered something which sb,
Lad olatched when she fell. Opening
it mechanically at the fiy-leaf, he saw
the words, written, perhaps, long be-
fore -
: This book has been my comfort.
"Read it. jim"
, And Below
, II am the resurrection and the life
, saith the Lord. He that believeth il
me, though he were dead, yet shall ht
live; and he that liveth and believeti
, in me, shall never die"
Boys" said Jim, half rising to hi;
feet, and holding out the open book witt
} both his trembling hands. shes lef
me-a Christmas present. See!'
From the II. Y. Herald.
f Chat by the Way.
!. Many man will sit on the river bank
and wait patiently two hours for nib
BILE. and think it fun, who will scold hi.
, wife, pinch his children and introduce
, young volcano into his household il
he has to wait five minutes for his break
: fast.
A sewing circle is haven of rest fol
certain restless feminine souls 1t is the
| nnI.r ,,laoo On fhic iIonl- 90 nj ,..Lor1