The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1885-01-17

crimson glow had blotted out the stars, and
rested on the distant mountain chains,
weirdly rejecting from their scanned fronts
and craggy peaks the glare of the unright-
eous flames. Would she admire them
now?
Surely it was spectacle to enchant the
eye of unprejudiced spectators, whose whole
possessions were not being sacrificed to the
effect. He turned to the scene before him.
There was still something to be done. The
cream of the stock had been destroyed, but
unless some piles of lumber to the right Of
the building were speedily removed, the
fire would communicate with the whole
outside stock, stretched for several hundred
yards along the railroad track. He turned
to the crowd of men who stood there, in
active, gazing upon the scene
"Come on and help US save the lumberI
A couple of dozen of men came promptly
forward The lumberman saw, to his sur
prise, that the volunteers were almost ex-
clusively composed of the so-called profes-
sional men of the town. The local officials
of the railroad, well-dressed set of fellows,
commonly viewed with contemptuous eyes
by the hard-working portion of the popula-
ton, presented themselves to a man. The
tall form of Judge Cheeseman, stiff and
somewhat aristocratic legal luminary, loom
ed up in their midst. A quiet-lookine
little real-estate agent leaped ON pile of
shingles and began to fling the punches
down to German chemist below. The
two rival editors (for the least of New
Mexican villages usually boasts its minia-
ture newspaperdom), who had exchanged
shots on Gold avenue the previous day
glared cordially at each other long the
lengths of timbers they undertook to trans
port to place of safety. The laboring
population offered scarcely a representative,
save in the person of few contractors and
mechanics, who had learned to know and
like the pleasant young lumberman.
The men worked like heroes Their
energy never waned until faint light in
the east began to rival the red glare which
the flames, through the medium of the
high, rare atmosphere, cast over the desert
plains for miles around, and every piece of
lumber was removed to safe distance.
Worn and wearied, John Proctor sat
down to rest upon the wheel of his own
copying press. A gradual change had
taken place in the ranks of the loungers
Many of the spectators of the night had
gone home to refresh themselves with a
nap and the remainder were reinforced by
struggling corps of men who had slept all
through the tumoil and excitement. One
of these, stout fellow, with big diamond
blazing in his shirt bosom and mimic
beer bottle suspended from his massive
watch chain, was recounting his experience,
as all people revel in detailing their indi-
vidual impressions on the occasion of fire.
"You see, 1 was sleeping like log when
Lizzie caught hold of my shoulder, and she
says: "Bob, Bob, wake ur, | tell you.
The sky is all afre, and there must be an
eclipsep I reached up to see if my pock-
et-book was safe
The words brought back to John Proc
tor sense of the loss he had sustained.
At that moment Maxon strolled up, flushed
with exertion. He had just administered
a sound kicking to a couple Of young Mex
leans, whom he had detected making off
with keg of building hardware.
"Maxon," he said, abruptly, "did that
fellow who got me out last night come out
safely himself?"
''Now 1 think of it, returned Maxon
che went back minute but he got out
all right-just as the roof fell in 1
thought at the moment piece of falling
timber hit him, but he scrambled off fast
enough
A dreaded suspicion assailed John Proc
tors honest heart, but he repelled it stur-
dily Yet all day long, as he wandered
dreamily about, answering a thousand idle
questions, or fishing from the ruins various
mementoes of the wreck, there would con-
stantly intrude upon him the memory of
two greedy, devouring eyes, peering through
a window, strange retreat into burning
building, and disappearance into the
shadows. When night came, it was neces-
sary for some one to stay and guard the
ruins, for if the wind should rise, some
smoldering piles of lumber might be famed
into blaze, and the remainder of the stock
swept away. Maxon, wearied and hollow
eyed, offered his services
sNot bit of it, Maxon. Go home to
your wife and babies II have engaged
man"
Proctor did not add that the watchman
he had engaged was no other than himself,
but when the rest had gone home, he re-
mained there alone. Separated as it was
from the rest of the town, by night it was
a dreary solitude. A fiery spark, miles
away over. the level plain, developed into
the headlight of the locomotive of the
evening train, which thundered past on its
way to the depot below. The moon came
up and threw into weird relief the black
ened ruins.
John Proctor who had been slowly y pac-
ing to and fro, sat down upon bunch of
shingles and buried his face in his hands.
He knew, what not even Maxon had guess
ed, that this disaster had wrought his If
reparable ruin 1t would require every
cent of his insurance money to settle his
outstanding liabilities, for he had done
business on the rushing western plan, and
had carried stock out of all proportion to
his capital. If he could only have saved
that S., 900, or if he had not been so am
bilious. Annie had been ready-poor
little girl She had even proposed bringing
her piano to this raw Southern town, and
eking out their income with the result of
their own labors. On one point he was re-
solved. Whenever he got square with the
world again, he would put his pride in his
pocket and humbly presenting himself be-
fore the little woman ask her to share his
fortunes, for better or worse. o, God !
how long would it be? A sharp groan es-
capped his lips.
Suddenly he rose and stood erect. His
quick ear had caught the sound of some
heavy body slowly moving over the ground
'Who is there ?"
"Only me- Is that you boss ?"
John Proctor bent forward and perceiv-
ed man slowly crawling along in the
shadow of pile of joists. AS the figure
emerged into the moonlight he saw that the
fellow dragged one leg helplessly after him.
His suspicious melted away beneath his
natural warmth of heart.
"Are you hurt ~
aOnly falling timber, boss, but the fire
got into my eyes, and l can't see very
well.