The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1889-04-03
THE MINERS DAUGHTER.

Every morning when the miners en-
ployed in the mines at Bernard assem-
bled around the shaft TO answer to the
roll call there could be seen arriving last
of all, tall. sturdy looking fellow. who
led by the hand little girl or years
! old. They were Michael Pierron and his
daughter.
Before setting foot upon the platform
of the ear to descend, the man took the
child in his arms and kissed her, and then
replaced her on the ground. The little
one cried Goodbye. papa.'
When the signal for the descent was
given she clasped her hands and kept re-
peating the signal word papa" until she
was sure that papa could no longer hear
her. Then she went on to the school
house close by, where she spent the day.
When evening came she was always
the frst at the opening of the shaft, and
Michael Fierron was always the first man
who came up. As at his departure, he
lifted the child in his arms, and she threw
her arms around his neck, crying Pa
pa"
The miners had heard her repeat these
two syllables 50 often, and had been so
struck by the strange passion which she
put into them, that they gave her the
name of Miss Paya.
And certainly no name was ever more
applicable. Her father was everything to
her. Her mother had been dead 50 long
time she had scarcely known her; she
had only him. All the memories Of her
childhood were filed with him To her
his great rough hands bad been as gentle
as a woman's. For her his hard, grim
face always wore a tender smile. For
her this man had become woman and
child at the same time.
All how she loved her father, and how
terrified she was every morning when
she saw him descend into the great black
hole, of which no one could see the bot
tom.
One day a miner held her over the
mouth of the shaft, and she had gazed
down into the dark depths. Uttering a
cry of terror she drew back
Papa goes down there" she thought.
~Oh, if he should never come up"
And that day, when Michael took her
in his arms as usual and kissed her, she
clung more tightly than ever to his neck,
and said to him
You will come up, won't you?"
"Of course, my little one"
"Is there any danger, tell me papa -
"Why no, you little coward"
Does any one-can any one-die
down there
"Have no fear" replied Michael, laugh
ing. Il will not die without letting you
know"
An Goodbye, papa"
All that her father said was gospel
truth to her, and she went to school COM
pletely reassured.
But the memory of that black gulf in
to which her eyes had plunged could not
be efAced, and from that time she was
afraid every morning and trembled every
evening; she feared that her father would
never return from those mysterious
depths into which she had seen him de-
scend.
Was it presentment? Who knows
One day the report suddenly spread
that an explosion hal occurred in the
mine. In moments time a crowd
had gathered at the shaft. From all di-
rections the people, wild with terror,
came hocking to the spot. OF all those
buried far below how many would ever
see the light again?
Michaels daughter was at school. She
knew nothing of it, and besides, il anv
one had spoken of it before her, would
she have eomprehended
Could she know, poor little one, what
an explosion was2 No. BIT at her age
one knows already what death IS; one
understands, at her ags, when one sees
inanimate. mutilated bodies extended up
on the ground and the approaches to
the shaft were strewn with them when
she arrived that evening to meet her
father.
She was stupefed for a moment, and
then the truth suddenly flashed upon
her; she had seen those men 90 down
living-those men whom she knew well
who had kissed her many time and
now they were brought up dead Would
they bring up her faith er like them
This thought distracted her She began
to run wildly among the debris which
they had brought up from the mine,
crying, !" Papa. papa papa
There were, it is true, many others who
cried and called +" Papal" but not one in
such desperate accents. The others they
drove back, b 1t no one could be found to
push her away. They let her run, poor
child, from one body. to another, some
times stopping before a disdgured face
that she might recognize her father.
No, he was not among the dead. She
grew calmer and sought among the iiv-
ing. He was not there. She questioned
every one, bat no ons had seen him.
OF the sixty miners who went down in
the morning, forty-fve had come up
alive: fourteen were deal There re-
mained but one to be accounted for, that
one was Michael
She had made them explain all that to
her. and she understood. she clapDed
her hands joyously, as if they had said
to her He's all right. You will see him
again An how she hoped to see him.
Then she suddenly recoIIected the morn
ing on which her fathor had said to
her:
81 will not die without letting you
know"
4 chIld's faith is strong. 1t is not easy
30 drive out an idea which has one taken
root in their minds. So, when the next
morning-she had remained there ali
night-they tried to make her under
stand that there was no hope, that she
would never see her father, that they
had explored all the galleries. searched
every corner and could no: find him. she
shook her curly head and began to weep,
saving I" Seek for papa
They paid little attention to her. For