Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1882-05-28

"don't you ever long to leave this rough
place and go back to the East"
"Not now," shesaid slowly, "though
I might under some circumstances"
"Why not now?"
"Oh, because because don't want
to leave papa"
els that the real reason % I asked,
her shyness and evident avoidance ofmy
eyes giving me hopes that set my heart
beating with quicker pulsations.
"Let us go down." she said quickly,
as she arose.
"No, not until you answer me-" and
I caught again the little hand.
She drew it from my grasp, and, with
q saucY "Come," started down the trail
and I fastened to follow. I made sew
eral attempts to renew the conversation
on the way, but Nellie always turned it
off from the subject nearest tony heart;
and yet when I left her at her fathers
door she shyly extended her hand, and
I thought ] detected soft pressure as I
took it in mine. A moment, and she
had vanished, and I noticed rosy flush
On her pretty cheeks and an unusual
light in her tender eyes. I went back to
my little cabin with q strange admixture
Of certainty and doubt In my feelings,
and quickening Of my 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 and
notice her father standing in the door
way chatting with Mineral Bob, the best
prospector in camp and the third owner
with Stacy and myself in the Ajax. I
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 changing blows of
the blacksmith at his forge as he
sharpened the tools for the mornings
work, and the deep boom of the blast in
Little Emily mine came floating through
the still ight air. Then my eyes wan
dered back to the cabin which held
Nellie. Bob was still there, his tall fig
ure and broad shoulders contrasting
greatly with the little old man in the
doorway. What was he doing there so
long 1 thought, and I pulled my pipe
viciously as saw Nelly moment later
join the two The night settled down,
and the cabins faded from view, their
presence only revealed by the lights
shining through the little square
windows or the sparks screaming
out of the stone and mud chimneys. It
was getting cool, too, and I knocked
the ashes out of my pipe and re-entered
my little home and stirred up the smoul-
dering ernbers 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
shelf at the head Of my bed and resting
softly on the Tolled-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 back
ground of the tall spruces. The sound
Of singing came up from the saloon and
the wind sighed ftfully now and then.
And so fell into somber reverie, and
Nellie was the center about which all
my thoughts revolved. Presently there
was knocking at my door, and at my
invitation Mineral Bob entered.
"Hello ! Philadelphia" ,he said, 81
kinder thought you wasn't in"
Why?" asked, rather sorry Of the
interruption, though Bob was good
company, and no one could look into his
merry blue eyes, and pleasant face, Gov
cred all over with a luxuriant, rich,
brown beard, without feeling better and
less out of spirits.
ooh, l sort of calculated you'd be
somewhere around the girl. How's
your chances, partner? Good, eh?"
Come, come, Bob, and stop your
nonsense. Here, fill your pipe and sit
down"
Bob laughed od-humoredly, and,
pulling up stool, sat down near the
fire, and, as he filed his pipe, said:
GIVE dropped IN on little business
about the Sunshine, you know, "allud-
ing to mine of his and one Of the best
in the camp. "You know, am obliged
to sink amt got no chance to tunnel,
and the derned surface water is getting
the best of me. Must have pump, if
I want to do anything this bailing
out by the bucketfM when she's coming
IN near as fast is of no account. You
know that?"
nodded assent.
"Well, then, Philadelphia, as he
lighted his pipe and gave two or three
vigorous puffs, 81 want to see what
kind of dicker can make with you
about running the mine. I amt got the
money to get an engine and pump,
though I guess I could borrow it, and
beside I've got to go East on business
inside of week and I don't want to
leave the Sunshine idle-I can't afford
it."
"Why don't you sell her to Old
Stacy?" said. "He's got some ready
cash."
"But he's going out shortly and wants
to sell his own mines"
"Going out-Stacy I demanded,
wondering why Nellie had never alluded
to it.
eyes, going to take that gal of his
back to the States. This amt no fit