The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1880-02-19

sn1rteQ miner, with PICK and drills across
his shoulder, came striding home. The
sun sinking behind the Wasatch Noun
tains, one hundred and sixty-fve miles
distant, cast great long shadows across
the surrounding peaks, and yelled the
ravines and gulches in deepening dark
ness.
Nellie sat on the groupings of vein
of quartz and / lay stretched out at her
feet, watching her pretty, tender eyes as
they wandered about the horizon, drink
ing in the beauty and the grandeur of the
scene. She had some light, feecy ar
rangement-a nubia, l believe it is called
wrapped loosely about her head and
shoulders, and her hair, in whose meshes
the sunbeams seemed to have caught,
peeped from beneath, helping to frame
q face stamped with innocence and pur-
ity- Young people always get senti-
mental in the evening, when surrounded
by quiet, and Twas no exception to the
rule, and almost before I knew it was
toying with the little hand, go white
and soft, lying carelessly on the fiinty
quartz.
"Nellie," said, after few moments,
don't you ever long to leave this rough
place and go back to the East?"
Not now" she said, slowly, though
l might under some circumstances"
Why not nowT'
"Oh, because-because-I don't want
to leave papa"
"Is that the real reasonf" 1 asked,
her shyness and evident avoidance of
my eyes giving me hopes thai set my
heart beating with quicker pulsations.
Let us go down." she said, quickly,
as she arose.
"No, not until you answer me-" and
1 caught again the little hand.
She drew it from my grasp, and, with
a saucy "Come," started down the
trail and I hastened to follow. [ made
several attempts to renew the conversa-
tion on the way, but Nellie always
turned It off from the subject nearest
my heart; and yet when left her at her
fathers door she shyly extended her
hand, and l thought 1 detected soft
pressure as took it in mine. A mo-
ment, and she had vanished, and I no
ticed rosy flush on her pretty cheeks
and an unusual light in her tender eyes.
I went back to my little cabin with a
strange admixture of certainty and
doubt in my feelings, and quickening
of pulse that made me oblivious to my
rough surroundings.
After supper I lit my pipe and sat
upon my roughly-hewn door step. The
sun had gone down, but yet there
was light enough for me to see her cabin
aud notice her father standing in the
doorway chatting with Mineral Bob, the
best prospector in camp and the third
owner with Stacy and myself in the
Ajax. / turned my head and saw the
lights in the shaft house of the Big
Giant mine on Red Mountain cleaning
away in the distance; I heard the clang-
ing blows of the blacksmith at his forge
as he sharpened the tools for the morn
ing's work, and the deep boom of the
blast in the Little Emily mine came
floating through tho still night air. Then
my eyes wandered back to the cabin
which held Nellie. Bob was still there,
his tall figure and broad shoulders con-
trasting greatly with the little old man
in the doorway. What was he doing
there SO long, thought, and 1 puffed
my pipe viciously as saw Nellie mo.
ment later join the two. The night set
tied down and the cabins faded from
view, their presence only revealed BY
the lights shining through the little
square windows or the sparks streaming
out of the stone and mud chimneys. Il
was getting cool, too, and I knocked
the ashes out of my pipe and re-entered
my little home and stirred up the
smouldering embers on the hearth. An
hour went by and the moon sent its
beams across my little table, with its
tin plates and cups; across my earthen
and rocky floor, touching lightly my
books on a shelf at the head of my bed
and resting softly on the rolled-up coat
that served me for pillow. turned
on my stool and glanced out of the
window. The tops of the surrounding
timber were silvered by the moonlight
and the cabins stood out against the
dark background of the tall spruces
The sound of singing came up from the
saloon, and the wind sighed fitfully nov
and then. And SO I fell into sombrt
reverie, and Nellie was the center abou
which all my thoughts revolved Pres
emily there was knocking at my door
and at my invitation Mineral Bob en-
tered
Hellal Philadelphia" he said, &c.
kinder thoug ght you wasn't in"
"Whyp asked, rather sorry of tn,
interruption, though Bob was goot
company, and 20 one could look int,
his merry, blue eyes and pleasant face
covered all over with a luxuriant, ricl
brown beard, without feeling better ant
| less out of spirits.
"Oh, / sort of calculated you'd bt
somewhere around the girl. How
your chances, partner? Good eh p
"Come in Bob, and stop your non
sense. Here, fill your pipe and 81
down."
Bob laughed good-humoredly AM
pulling up stool, sat down near tn
fire and, as he filed his pipe, said:
"Pve dropped in on little business
about the Sunshine, you know" allud
ing to a mine of his and one of the bes
in the camp. You know Pm oblige,
to sink-ain't got no chance to tunnel
and the surface water is getting the bes
of me. Must have pump, if want t
do-anything-th bailing water out b
the bucketful when she's coming in nea
as fast is of no account. You kno1
thatT
nodded assent.
"Well, then, Philadelphia" as b
lighted his pipe and gave two or thre
vigorous puffs, "I want to see wha
kind OF a ticker I can make with yo
about running the mine. amt got tn
money to get an engine and puml
though guess 1 could borrow it, an
besides Pve got to 60 East on bushes
inside of a week, and I don't want t
leave the Sunshine idle-I can't affor
it."
"Why don't you sell her to oil
Stacyp Isaid. He's got some read
cash." ......
i "But he's going out shortly and wan
to sell his own mines."
"Going out-Stacy" 1 demanded
wondering why Nellie had never allude
to it.
eyes, going to take that gal of hi
back to the States. This amt no t
| IL {.