National Republican., 1885-11-14


pretty. Let me say IL for you, auntie.n
And she began, in q sweet, clear voice,
which had caught It's music from the wild
winds as Il rose in childish freedom while
the girl sprang lightly from crag to crag or
wandered among the heather OF the Scottish
hills
Come over the mountains,
Come over the sea;
wait for my lover,
| bCckOn to thee
But the old woman stopped her sternly.
"Na mair o. sic folly" she said. "It be ma
godly. Gin ye maun say IL, say II where
judith MacDodgnl telt ye to, an see what
will come TO ye. Girls maun all be fulos
till some lad comes, an then they maun
put on wedding rings an find theirsels
greater fules yet Gang awa' chel, an
dnna fash me vii yer folly"
So pretty Janet, with the ball of yarn in
her hand, went out TO the moonlight
silence, wrapped in heavy plaid.
"1iold the end OF the yarn and fling the
ball over cliff" judith had told her. "As
you rewind the yarn say the spell aloud,
again and again. IL will bring your lover
TO you, II he be on earth. When | tried
last year Donald stole up behind me and
kissed me on the cheek, and he and are 10
wed at Christmas"
SO Janet hurried along the path that led
TO the cliffs, as bonnie a lassie as Scotland
But when she had cast her ball into the
darkness and felt the thread tighten in her
fingers she cast a swift glance over her
shoulder before beginning the rhyme;
Come over the mountains,
Come over the sea;
wait for my lover,
beckon to thee
A moaring cry from the sands below
broke on her spell.
With white face and dilating eyes she
stated back, and at that moment the thread
was drawn from her hands, although she
had held II In convulsive grasp.
But she did not ly; perhaps some Of that
dauntless tide that had warmed the veins of
the Macivors was hers. At any rate, after
the first recoil she leaned over the cliff once
more, every sense on the alert.
"lf II be a spirit 1t Gamma harm me-" she
told herself, "but IL didna sound like that.
II had human sound "
Up from the sands below II came again
moaning cry for aid.
Throwing herself fiat on the rocks, the
girl bent forward and looked down.
| Many feet below, on the whiteness Of the
| sand, she could sec dark mass and once
| more, fainter this time, she heard that call
| for aid.
"Somebody has fallen from the rocks. II
maun be poor blind Dan," she whispered.
| "Ill e'en run down and see.n
She sprang to her feet, 1.-THE MS young
deer; gathered the plaid around her, aud
ran lightly along path, perilous to put less
sure than hers, which ran along the edge of
the cliff aud led directly to the white bar
renness below.
The fact that II was November night,
and she had come out to try spell of which
her aunt did not approve, was forgotten as
| she sped down the path, light and sure
| footed as chamois on its native hills.
At last she reached the base Of the cliffs,
and then some Of the dauntless courage
forsook her, and she shivered in the night
| air.
For great, black steed lay PROSTATE be-
| fore her, struggling and Kicking out the
sand, but evidently unable to rise.
| Near him, but beyond reach of the frantic
| hoofs, as though, having drawn himself so
far from danger, life and fear and all
things else had fallen from him, lay man,
with white face upturned to the smiling
calm Of the sky.
over her, hurried to the side of the fallen
figure, knelt, and scanned the features
closely.
SIT is the laird's son, Douglas Cameron!n
she cried, with start, ''and heaven befriend
him--he Is dead"
AT her voice pair Of heavy eyes opened
slowly and fixed themselves upon her face
| luty WCTC ulln Win pun luluJucbS, DuJ
| she could not know that In the moonlight.
"Nay, lass n he answered, laboredly. ~
am crushed a bit, and my leg is broken, but
| II takes much to kill Cameron
With the last word he tainted dead away.
Janet was no dainty maiden, beautiful
and useless; she had been taught early to
forget self often, and do for all who were
Ill or in need as much as in her lay; so,
never thinking Of shrielSing or fainting her
. | aalf eba draw off hpr p1af1 fnlIa1 A. and
placed II under his head. As she did 80 she
saw her ball of yarn clutched tightly in one
Of his rigid hands; and her pretty face
flushed
But she could no nothing for him there,
so she few up the steep path like swallow,
and on through the night to the cottage OF
old blind Dan, who had 'twa Draw lads"
1t was not long ere she was leading the
sturdy fellows to where she had left the
laird's son.
They found him conscious and able to tell
them how, In riding home, he had lost him
self In dream, and not needed that his
horse was on the very edge Of the cliff until
q stumble of the animals had sent steed
and rider over the rocks, down to the sands
below.
'My Bonnie Raven will ma harm mt
mair," he said, in conclusion. "He is In
pain. Can one Of you shootN'
"Nayln they told him.
MLift me little, then. Gamma lift my
self.n
"They did so, and he drew revolver
from his bosom. Janet, with shudder
turned away, us, with the weapon lifted and
his face white as death, he took aim at the
restless head Of the injured steed. A report
went echoing from cliff to cliff and thu
bonnie black animal lay dead
| Douglas Cameron had tainted again
also.
They lifted him as though he was a child
and bore him up the path. Janet ran be
fore to prepare her aunt.
81 kenned ma guide would COON o. sit
folly,n Nancy said, simply.
And then she began to prepare place fol
the injured man, her laird's son.
They laid him on the couch and ther
Nancy sent the lads in different directions
One hurried across the crags for DIR, Deane
the other took long strides toward the
residence Of the laird.
can tell him the lad be badly bruised
but ha' life in him yet" Nancy called aftei
her messenger.
The young man had very much life still
in him, as was proven by the week OF dc
lirlum, during which he was as one raYine
mad; but when consciousness returned and
he lay weak, banduged, with wounds on hin
which would leave their scars upon him al
his life, he did not seem unhappy in the
COltuBet DuJ WOulu HG lOlB Huutbi lOllOW
ing Janet's movements with his eyes, or
bidding her read, would close them ant
listen.
At last, when tho sleet was falling out
side, and rugged Scotland looked more thar
usually unlovely, the old laird drove dowr
TO see his son, as he had done daily since the
accident.
"Ye're weel enow to gang hame, my
lad, ~ he said, on leaving, "pll send TO
ye tomorrow
After his father had gone the young MAJ
lay long watching Janet's sweet face as 4
bent over her sewing. AT last he spoke:
"Yo heard 1t, lass,n he said, softly. g,
am weel enow to gang hame."
"Yes," she answered.
"Will ye miss me, lassleY''
No reply, but Janet's cheeks are burning
oh, how sadly she will miss the lairds sol
when he goes back to his people.
Lassie--Janet ~ He put out his hand
and took her own-not very white, not YER
fair, but tender hands and helpful, "Iwil