The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1884-01-09


II was little, cramped-up, helter-skel-
ter mining town among the Sierras. One
need not rise early in Scars Hole to see
the sun rise, for he viii not see it If he
! does. Old Sol is never visible there until
ten in the morning. The rough, pictur..
esque cabins looking for all the world
like dilapidated dice thrown at random
from the box, are built down deep in q |
hole between the surrounding peaks, And |
yet they actually had a telephone cohhec- |
ting them with the outside world. The
denizcns of Scars Hole were not given |
to an indulgence in business commu- |
nications with the great commercial
centers, but their telephone was the
means of preventing many of the inhabi-
tants from spending the remainder OF
their earthly days at the insane asylum
Every morning when the cchoing OF the
booming blasts and the thud of the pick
had ceased in the half dozen mining
claims surrounding the camp, the wearied,
lonely miners gathered at the little cabin
in which was placed the telephone, and
gave vent to their pent-up feelings by,
not a free fight, but by free interchange
of gossip with the residents of the camps
: above and below them on the line of the
wire.
Such was their Unborn detestation of
any man who followed any pursuit which
{ did not require active labor with their
hands, and such was their chivalric de-
votion to the fair sex, that the manage
ment of their part of the telephone was
given to young lady by the name of
Frances Goldsmith.
On the afternoon of June 90, 1880,
! Miss Frank, as she was usually called, sat
in the little telephone Office waiting for
n the nightly crowd of manly gossipers to
come in.
d The little rocking chair in which she
sat went humping to and fro noisily and
,e nervously kupon the pine floor, and the
tiny slippered foot beat nervous tattoo
o in unison with it.
''It's too bad, she cried impetuously,
), {" it's too bad for Charley to work down
y in that old hole in the ground all the
winter and then sell out for paltry
thousand. And he's doing it just so he
can be married this summer too, and
pretty little wave of blood swept over
y the sweet neck and face.
e. "He shan't do it. Charley don't
l, know anything about mine and he
a might have little bonanza and moi
IL know it, just hear the dear simpleton.
~ LoGTowN, CAL
- MY Precious FRANK:-Bonn is negotia
10 ting with me for my claim, and he offer
g 81 900 cash. have not yet accepted it., bu
have about made up my mind that hat
=, cash, could have the face to ask you to hasteI
US thai long. hoped-for happy day. For you
60 sake darling, Ibeeve it will be best for me *
ar take this offer. II do you may look for m
down early next week.
- Yours forever,
OF CHARLES MOTLEY.
10 "Hello, Frankw shouted smothere(
he voice close to her ear; ''are you ther
NJ yet?n Frances jumped to her feet anC
= ran TO the telephone.
''Dear me, left the receiver hanging
ON down, and they could not ring the bell.
She nut it to her ear and shouted bacl
in, through the transmitter:
Il eyes, Pm here; what is itG'
Don't you forget to send that thousan'
ia up on the stage tonight to Logtown
m Tom says there's at least $40, 900 in sight
' Motley is a school marm and don't kno'
nv it. Don't forget now. Goodbye"
,st Franks pretty eyes and mouth sprea
wider and wider as these words came ou
no of the wonderful little instrument.
cd ''For goodness sake who is he talkin
nd to2 Oh-h-h, y-e-es! why it must be I
ng Frank Downey, the express agent {
or Bokey They've been talking togethe
NV and Downey has stopped and switche
my end on. Motley is a school marm,
mo- he? There's $40, 600 in sight and Charlie
ars don't know it, and the money is goin
'he up there on the stage from Bokey t.
ain night. Oh DEAR what shall ! do2 L
+bo 90 up there l will It's only eigl
icb miles, and it's twenty from Bokey. 1t
five O'Clock, and the stage gets there
,os nine"
on Frank was a California girl, and thel
were no perils to her On, the eight-mi
ion trail to Logtown, and if there had beel
erv the slur cast upon Charley's keennes
-ral and the eager desire to save that " $1O
ed. 600 in sight for him would have be-
was sufficient incentives to induce her
A dare them, though she knew they awaitt
ght her. Running over to the pOstottice, 81
4 a hurriedly engaged the young clerk
ice take care of the instrument for her, an
of dashing back to her room, she soon a
peared ready for her eight-mile walk
DOT Logtown 4 little silk cap surmount'
he'd her head and over it was stretched
.ge. black veil to protect her face from t
ter sun ana from lhe evening uIeeAo az
box dark. Spreading her jaunty parasol 5
inn treaded her way along the narrow tn
ows which led through the chaparral into t
dark woods.
ped The sun was yet very hot, althoul
almost down behind the hill, and t
etc, trail was steep and rocky, but Fra
'har pushed on, muttering to herself, VIII
ows She felt so tired she was tempted to
.rter down and rest "Charley's a scho
that marin is he2 Ten thousand dollars
one, sieht and he don't know it, eh2 We
OF he shall know it, and have all the cree
box of the discovery too. there nOwm l