Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1880-05-29
CHAPTER Xxx.
RAMS DIARY CONTINUED,

RANF's DIARY CONTINUED.
Unexpectedly to myself, 1 continue my
diary.
The night has passed, and the day. |
am able to move more freely, and to-mor-
row hope to make my way slowly to my
hut below, to look after my goats, and
dogs, and birds. In little while I shall
be quite well.
" The night has been strange one, and
may lead to important results.
Whether it was that the recalling of
certain incidents caused me to dwell upon
details which had not made much impress
sion upon me, or because l was in a state
of nervousness produced by my narrow
escape when endeavoring to pluck the
flower on the mountains top, cannot say !;
but contrary to my usual habit, 1 could
not sleep for longer than a few minutes,
or perhaps moments, at a time. All
through the night was in condition of
wakefulness-nowd doing with hundred
confused pictures in my mind, now awake
and striving to pierce the darkness, which
seemed to be thronged with moving figures
Now and then the confused tangle of plct-
ures and faces assumed some kind of order
from which a distinct impression could be
gained, and of these the most distinct was
the recurrence of two faces-the face of
Margaret Sylvester and that of the lady
who had sought the shelter of my hut the
night before Mauvain visited me. At first
l saw no meaning in this conjunction, but
gradually it dawned upon me that there
was likeness between these two faces, al
though one was fair and the other dark,
and l beguiled myself into studying the
/ shadowy presentments. The longer dwelt
upon them the stronger grew the like
ness, until l began to believe that there
was really meaning in the resemblance
determined not to let the matter slip, but
to make some quiet inquiry into it. Mar
garet Sylvester has already told me that
she is not native of the Silver Isle, and
from the few chance words that have
reached me with reference to her l have
learned that she and her husband and her
husbands father led for some years life
of adventure in places not unfamiliar to
me. l have already described in these
pages that the lady to whom had given
shelter appeared to me to be friendless
| and at one time in the night l was startled
by the memory of her expression of grief
when she was lamenting that father, sister,
&, child had been torn from her.
g 1t would be difficult for me to explain
here why determined to probe this mat
ter; sufficient to say that in some undefa.
able way the lady to whom I had given
shelter, Harold, Mauvain, and Evangeline,
appear to be connected by invisible links
and now this likeness between the
lady and Margaret Sylvester adds another
to the chain. 1t is because within this
chain of circumstance surrounds Evange-
line, whose future happiness is my only
care in life, that am anxious to arrive at
some understanding of it.
Accident has already placed me in
possession of wonderful piece of evidence,
and this is why, after had finished my
recital of those events affecting Evangeline
which l deemed proper she should be
made acquainted with when she is q
woman, continue the recital with the
words Unexpectedly to myself continue
my diary 1t will be as well for me al
onoe to resolve to note down in this way
anything of Importance that occurs, 81
that the story may be complete as far a.
lies in my power. Then l can place the
record in Evangeline's hands and say, Al
that is here written relates to you and my
self
"The dreams which haunted me in tn,
night would not have been in themselve.
sufficient to warrant me to resume my
pen; but what occurred this evening de
termined me.
"Prosaic people who believe in nothing
but what they see and touch might, if they
had the opportunity, ask, What car
occur to man living alone in hut on
deserted range thousands OF feet above tn,
| level of the sea- 1t would be waste o