The Red Cloud chief., 1885-07-31
CHAPTER XVI.
~ LOVER


OF course. Era,tus wa, told Of ucy"s
engagement to Mr.. Annel,cy. Ia tact,
he learned it from Jennie in advance Of
any other member If the family.
As they were driving home from the
land ny on their return from san Fran
J cisco and chatting of those thing which
are OF more interest to young people.
namely, other young people, Jennie
suddenly broke out with:
Say, Luce. I'm going 10 tell Ras.'
and without waiting for a reply or CIV
in1 any heed to the bushes which
I flooded her sisters face and neck, size
ratified on with all the speed which her
tongue could command: How YOU
Ike { have Mr.. Annclsey for a brother
in-law, Ka,? / know YOU didn't used
10 like him very well, but you'll have to
now, for Lucy and he are engaged, and
are going to bc married when he comes
! back from New York in about a year.
/ There Row, Luce, its out. and you
won't have to be- carrying the awful
load of having To tell il any longer
IL think YOU are just ~ mean as YOU
can be- rctorted Lucy. half angry and
uncertain whether TO laugh or cry Il
hadn't said 4 word about Mr.. Ensign.
who has been almost rs constant AS
your shadow ever since We met him on
the boat You would be engaged 10
him. too know YOU would ii il
wasn't tina; Ia. has got nothing to 90 10
housekeeping with. 80, there nov
RaS. you know all about Us girls, and
can confess that You are going 10
marry Julia Ennis if You want 10 with
out blu-hing."
But Era,tuS made no such confession,
and instead Of blushing. hi face became
very white. and he looked straight
ahead and did not speak for some sec
oni~. and then said. in a Voice which
sounded hoarSe ald unnatural:
II am not going TO marry Julis En-
MS or ANYBODY else
After that little more was said for
some time.
Once or twice Jennie, who felt that
she WAS the innocent cause of the sud-
den silence which had fallen upon
them. ATTEMPTED t. start the CONVERSE
ton aoan 10y asking questions about
~ncighhor- or affairs on the ranch. but
Era~tu> only replied in the icwc>t words
possible. and still looked straight in
front of him.
Jennie WAS half inclined To be offend
ed al this. She thought hIm angry be-
cause Lucy had engaged herself To 4
man whom he did not like. Could
she have seen his fatc she would have
known that some feeling deeper than
mere dislike for Annelscv was al work
within his breast.
Was ii possible after all that he loved
her:
the thought sent ali the blood rush
ing back upon her heart. and for n
moment she felt tha, she should suifo-
cate. Then came another thought.
Perhaps EraStuS had proposed TO Julia
and been rejected. This she felt could
no.; be unless Julia had suddenly be-
come enamored of some new admirrr,
for certainly she had always shown Il
preference for ErS>tus oycr the other
young men of the neighborhood.
Still the thought cluRg 10 Lucy that
such might bc the case. and that in,
stead of feeling bad because of her own
engagement To- another. his silence wa
caused by pain al being reminded of his
refusal br Julia. and her whole mood
changed. and she became as cold and
hard ~ he himself appeared.
A. they ncared home she began talk
ing glibly of ANYTHING and everything
she could think Of-the presents they
had brought for each member of the
familv-tovs for JOHNNY. "A dress fol
mother. a ncck-tic for Era>tus himself.
aud a silver tohacco-box for father all
bought with money saved out of that
sent them for their W use: going on
from this To tell of their school. and OF
a couple of girls who came on the boa,
with them As far rs Sacramento. where
their parents lived; and how these girls
We're related To one Of their W neigh.
borS. and how. in answer to their in.
quirieS. Jennie and she had told them
all about this neighbor; now near they
were to their own home; how their
ranch looked. and how il had been in.
jurcd by the washingS from the mines.
Here she anne 10 a sudden stop.
She had unintentionallv run upon that
which they were all trying 20 avoid the
mention of. and there came To her no,
only a knowledge of her blundcr. hu;
an entirely new feellng-a feeling that
she was somehow responsible for the
losses and Su..e,ings of this family and
every other family in the valley whose
homes We're endangered by the opera
tons of the hydraulic mining compa.
MES at Gravel Hill.
At least she had arrayed herself on
the side of the companies: WAS engaged
To he married 10 one who was ip'erc>ted
in the continuance of the work which
WAS certain TO bring more loss and SUI
fcrinG 10 these people.
She was no longer of them or with
them: for from the moment she became
the wife of James Annel>cv her inter
eS,S would be opposed 10 those of every
one she had known since they had SET
tied in the valley.
Even ner father and mother. and
Era>tuS, must feel that she had del h
erately chosen II desert them in the
hour of their greatest loss. and had
gone oyer 10 their enemies in order 10
save herself from sharing in the hard
ships which might be coming upon
them.
All this passed through her mind in
An instant, and she sank down in her
seat with > feeling of shame. and q
hatred If herself which made it impos-
sible to say a word more.
NO wonder Eras;us Is silent" she
thought He can not bear even to
speak to n who seems so utterly
selfish. Oh! why did l never think
of it in that light before? II is thai
which has made him SO cold to me eve,
since Mr.. Annelsey first came. He has
thought all the time that l was trying