The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1878-07-16

Aud for the first time his tone lost its

Auu lOr Tie urSG llnc lis lOut lOSb IVA
cheerful recklessness.
"The Court be Court of mercy, and
the Jedge looks upon 'em that comes up
for trial as efhe was their father
"That ends it, old man." answered the
gambler. "my father never showed me
any mercy when was a boy. "If he had,I
shouldnt have been here now. III did
wrong deed / got it 10 the last inch of
the lash, " and the words were more inten-
sely bitter because spoken so quietly.
"The fathers of arth be not like the Fa-
ther of heaven. for I have seed 'em cor
rect their children beyend reason, and
without mercy. They whipped in their
rage and not in their wisdom; they whip
ped because they was strong, and not bc-
cause of their love; they whipped when
they should have forgiven, and got what
fthey 'arnt-the hatred Of their children.
But the Father Of Heaven be different, boy.
He knows the men be weak as well as
wicked. He knows that half of 'em haven't
had fair chance, and so He overlooks
much and when he cant overlook it, I
conceit He sorter forgives in q lump. Yis,
He subtracts all He can from the evil we
have did, hoy, and ef that isn't enough to
satisfy His feelin's toward man that
might have ben different EFF he'd had a
fair chance, He jest wipes the whole row
of figur's clean ont at the askin'."
Sat the ssking2" said the gambler;
"that's mighty quick game. Did you
ever pray, John Norton p
"Sartin, sartin; be prayin' man."
said the trapper sturdily. .,--.....
"At the asking2" murmured the gam
bier, softly. f ssx - -
''Sartin, boy,"", answered the trapper;
"that's the line the trail takes ye can de-
pend on it; and it will bring ye to the
eend of the great clearin in peace"
sits aquick deal,"s said the gambler,
speaking to himself utterly unconscious
of the incongruity of his speech to his
thoughts. "Its quick deal, but / can
see that it might end as he says. if the fee
ling was right" .fea -.
For a moment nothing was said. The
lrapper stood looking steadfastly at the
young man on the moss as he lay with his
quiet face turned up to the sky, to whose
color had already come the first shade of
the awful wbiteness. ....' ss..a ..-..... >.
Up the mountain a rife, cracked.
Neither stirred. A red squirrel ran out
on the limb, twenty feet above the gam
bler's head, and shook the silence into
fragments with his chattering; then sat
gazing with startled eyes at the two men
underneath. e4..----..---.-
Scan you pray, old man ?" asked the
gambler, quietly. ,,j7;.a8 Eg
"Sartinlyr" answered the trapper.
"Can. you pray in words r. asked the
gambler, again. ,a..
For a moment the trapper hesitated,
Then he said: 81 can't say that can
No, sartinly, can't say that could un-
dertake it with reasonable chance of
gittin' through; leastwise, it wouldn't
be in way to help man any"
sis there any way, old man, in which
we can go partners?" asked the gam
bier, the vocabulary of whose profess.
ion still clung to him in the solemn
counseling.
IL was thinkin' Of that" answered
the trapper; "yis, l was thinkin' eff we
couldn't sorter jine work and each help
the other BY doin his own part himself
Yis," continued the old man, after mo
ments reflection, s.the plans good 'un
-ye pray for yerself and I'll pray for
myself-and eff / can get in anything
that seems likely to do ye sarvice ye can
count on it as ye can grooved barrel.
And now, boy,"J said the trapper, with
sweetly solemn enthusiasm, such as faith
might give to supplicating saint-which
lighted his features until his countenance
fairly shone with light which came out
of it, rather than upon it from the sun
overhead-s'now, boy, remember that
the Lord is Lord of the woods as well as
of the cities, and that he heareth the
prayin' Of The poor hunter under the
tpines as we'll as the great preachers in
the pulpits, and that when sins be heavy
and death be nigh, His ear and heart are
both open" -e ysT.4 ..,-5 5,
The trapper knelt on the moss at the
gamblers feet. He clasped the fingers
of his great hands until they interlaced,
and lifted his wrinkled face upward. He
said not word; but the strongly-chisel-
ed lips scanned with age moved and
twitched now and then, and as the silent
prayer went on two great tears leave the
protection of the closed lids and roll
down the rugged cheek. The gambler
also closes his eyes; then his hands qui
etly stole one into the other, and avoid.
ling the bloody stain, rested on his breast,
and thus the old man who had lived be-
lyond the limit of mans day, and the
lyoung one cut down at the threshold Of
mature life-the one kneeling on the
MOSES with his face lifted to heaven, the
other lying on the MOSES with his face
turned toward the same sky, without
word or uttered speech--prayed to the
divine mercy which beyond the heaven
and the sky saw the two men underneath
the pines, and met, we may not doubt,
| with needed answer the silent upgoing
prayer.
The two opened their eyes nearly at
the same instant. They looked for a
moment at each other, and then the gam
bier feebly lifted his hand and put it into
the broad palm of the trapper. Not a
word was said. No word was needed.
Sometimes men understand each other
better than by talking. Then the gam
bier picked the diamond stud from the
lspot where it rested, slipped the solitaire
from his finger and said, as he handed
them to the trapper:
"There's girl in Montreal that will
like these. You will find her picture in
side my vest when you bury me. Her
address is inside the picturecase. You
will take them to her, John Norton?"
"She shall have them from my own
hand" answered the trapper, grayefy.
"You needn't disturb the picture,J ohm
Norton" said the gambler; "its just as
we'll, perhaps, to let it be where it is"
81 understand" answered the trapper,
, solemnly; "the picture shall stay where
} it is"
'.The pistols" resumed the gambler,
and he glanced at the one lying on the
moss, II give to you You'll find them
true. You will accept them p
/ The trapper bowed his head. 1t is
doubtful if he could speak. For several