Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-06-16

III,
rest of the day bore herself cheerfully and
with patience. But neither of us now re-
member that days journey. We gazed out
the window, and talked of what we saw, but
nothing was real to u.s. 1 felt as though we
had shut some horrid thing into closet,
and were holding the door to keep it in.
The day passed, the sun set, the twilight
fell, and Margaret and sat silent as we
drew near our journeys end.
Tiger Hill was shrouded in mist and dark
ness when we entered it. By lamp in the
station a surly agent was making up re-
port from which he was loath to separate
himself to do more than mutter that there
was hotel up the street where we might
answered, he buried himself again in his
papers, but looking back as we left the
room, 1 caught his eyes fixed upon us with
serious, suspicious expression that was
not pleasant to me. But Of this l did not
speak to Margaret. She took my arm as we
went out into the darkness. ''Do you
know" she said, (which is up and which
DOWN."
We stood on the little platform and
looked around us. The clouds had light
ened enough for us to see the great hills
vaguely outlined against the sky. The
wind was rising and rustled in the treetops,
out into the middle of woods. Suddenly
of in the distance.
''That," SAID, ''must be a lamp, and
lamp generally betokens house. Don't
you believe.that direction is 'up?'"
''It came out of the darkness like sig
nal, answered the girl, "and there is moth
ing for us to do but to go to it. We cannot
plunge into darkness without some guide.
So we stepped off the boards and went
warily along path, which was not difficult
to keep, so well trodden was it. We soon
discovered, as our eyes grew accustomed to
the darkness, that we were going through
small woods, and when after time we came
out of it we found pathway of boards SO
narrow that we could not walk abreast, but
1t gave us comfort, making us sure that we
were on the right road. And so after time
we came to the light, and behold it was the
hotel to which we had been so vaguly di-
rected. The house was q small wooden af-
fair, not over clean, and smelling of tobacco,
but the only smoker was a woman who sat
by a stove with a pipe in her mouth. When
we entered the open door, she looked up,
stared moment, and then called Glib
ertvr'
Whether this was the goddess or not we
did not know, but there was no answer. The
woman then knocked the ashes out of her
pipe into the sanded box in which the stove
stood, and giving her voice higher pitch,
screamed again "LibertyP' This invoca-
ton was more successful, and thin, pale
haired youth strolled into the room. The
woman nodded toward us. The boy looked
at Margaret, and his whole face flushed, and
indeed I do not believe his eyes had ever
rested on anything so fair as this girl in her
dark dress, tired and silent, standing there.
"We were told," said I. that we could
have lodging here, and we should also like
some supper"
tSit down." said Liberty, and he at once
disappeared.
So we sat down side by side on an old
wooden settle, and it was not many minutes
before Margaret's hand stole into mine. L
looked at her with apprehension, and to my
surprise she said clearly and boldly: 81 am
not afraid. 1 am only hungry"
The woman looked at her.
SIS she your daughter?" she asked.
MY niece" promptly answered.
"She doesn't favor you" said she, and
there was again silence.
After what seemed to us, a very long
time, man looking like q Presbyterian
clergyman in miners clothes came in and
in his turn stared at us, gave little nod,
and went out. Then the woman arose, took
two plates from closet, two cups and sau-
GERS, and began to prepare a table for us.
She spread no cloth, and she put the bacon
and potatoes which she fried together upon
our plates, dispensing with the formality of
a meet-dish. The coffee pot she pulled for
ward, poured some water on what was al
ready in it, and let it boil, She put bread
and butter and some picked tripe on
the table, and bade us come and eat. And
- 40 To Hha
fat and bitter, and neither one of us would
have ordered fried bacon from bill of fare,
but it was all hot, and we were so in need
of food having had nothing 10 eat since a
hasty noon meal, that the mere nourish-
ment was comforting and helpful.
Then when we had finished, the woman
lighted two candles and we arose and fol-
lowed her to two reasonably clean bed
rooms on the other side of the hall. After
she had left US, we sat down and talked.
Now that we were in Tiger Hill we had
no idea what to do, or where to turn. But
we agreed that we had best be silent and
say nothing of Jack until we knew what we
should say, and to whom we should say it.
''In the morning." said l, 1--WE will see
the place, and learn something Of the peo-
pie. There must be someone in authority
here, and someone who has some sense of
law. The very gossip may tell us where
Jack is, and just what has happened. In
the meantime, we have come because am
interested in the mines, and you are nv
niece-as indeed, dear child, from this mo-
meHt, you must be.
And Margaret, leaning over, took nv
hand and kissed it, but drew it away, and
laid it on her pretty head. and prayed to
God that she might in this adventure be
kept from harm and from sorrow.
And indeed it was but few hours after
that there was need Of an instant answer to
this prayer.
had been asleep about an hour when
suddenly awakened. It seemed to me
that something had happened to arouse me,
but everything was perfectly still. The
stars were now shining, heard an owl hoot,
and the cry of a lonely cricket; was just
falling off to sleep again when the very skies
seemed rent by woman's screaml The
sound was not in the house, it was far off
and in the open air, but instantly knew it
was Margaret's voicel Out of bed sprang
and into her room, which was empty, and
her clothing was gone. On chair BY the
bed stood her little satchel and few toilet
articles. 1t took me but moment to fling
on nv clothes and dash out OF the silent.
dark house, and here and there ran trying
to find some token of her, but did not call,
nor speak. 1 am not young, but am
strong. have been man of temperate
athletic habits, and have the use of body
nearly six feet in height, well-kept, and
when carried fewer years L asked nothing
of my strength or endurance which 1 did
not get. Bot at this moment I thought of
neither strength nor weakness, but l sped
on meaning to find nv precious charge,
water, L tripped over stones, but
nothing bafied me, and my speed