Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1889-01-24

going away, and l shall cost nothing
more"
The troubled eyes of the old man met
the clear and disdainful glance of the
young girl Within the hour she had
drained the bitter cup; drop more or
less mattered little.
$50 where You like, child of the deviiW
screamed James furious at seeing her
bold up her head before him, "nobody
wants you herel You must be witoh's
daughterw
perhaps sov answered the little ser
want, lifting the latch of the door. Good
by, master; may God give you back the
luck which | have made You lose"
She opened the door. Her outlines,
slim and delicate in spite Of the coarse
wooden clothes she wore, were drawn for
an instant upon the white depth of the
new-fallen snow. II did not snow at all,
but the air Of approaching evening seem
ed fnll of nameless grief, like the eyes
and the mouth of child ready to burst
into tears.
The door closed James left alone, NUT
tered, Good riddauce"
Taking off the clothes which he had
worn on his Journey he put on those which
for the daylight was rapidly decreasing,
and returned to the dead COY. He touched
her with his hand, assured himself that
she was certainly dead, and came back in
to the house, still grumbling and COM
planning.
The supper hour came, there was no
one to think of 1t for him; he got sauce
pan and some vegetables in basket,
seated himself on low stool, the basket
between his knees, aud began to prepare
his own supper. While with awkward ef-
forts he slowly peeled some potatoes; he
began to think of ali that had jus. hap
pened.
She was gone! Wen, 40 much the bet
teri With her little hands and her little
feet, for which there were no sabots small
enough, she was a miserable servant.
What one wants on a farm is stout girl
with big hands and big feet, wSc will net
bend under the heaviest pals of milk.
And then, she was headstroug, this
'Melia. 1t didn't take much to make her
angry. If you so much as spoke of her
birth, she got as red as turkey cock and
her eyes shone like fire. She was not
born for servant, surely, for she did not
know how TO bear gcolding.
SO all at once she Was gone-God
knows where. Wouldn't it have been
better quietly to go about getting the
support But she always had a devil of a
temper.
Always9 No. What gentle little
creature she was when she was little
thiLg; when she sat in his lap and called
him Papa James. She was very good
then, and long afterUard, In that sick
ness which ne had, she had obeyed the
doctors instructions like little woman,
80 that one day the doctor himself had
stroke her head and tod her that it was
she who had saved the old mans life.
How old was she thcn About II or 10
years. 1t was at that time that james,
who had neither children nor near rela-
tions, had thought about making a will
and leaving his property to his little
maid. But he had never told any one,
for they say it is bad luck to make will,
and James didn't want to die before his
time.
Was it after that sickness that she
had grown so pretty? II must have been
after that, for when the doctor had
praised her, she was very pale and thin.
slept for 15tnights, and she did not get
over it until the next winter. Yes, she
grew very pretty; If the yoang men had
noticed her, James might have had
trouble enough, but the young men paid
no attention and that is easy to under
stand. A founding.
She would never marry, OF course.
Who the devil had been coartIpg herr
Well, it made no difference now that she
was gone. Gone? BAIL )lks say that
they are going, but then, they think bet
ter of it when supper time comes. She
would soon come back.
The minutes rolled on. Father James
went on peeling potatoes, and naturally
he peeled enough for two, since she must
be coming back. When he thought that
he had enough he listened, expecting TO
hear the latch lifted. Bot nobody came.
"She is outside the door," he said 60
himself, "afraid TO come in. BAIL We
must put up with the faults of youth,
aud she must be cold" He got up, shut
his knife and put it it in his pocket, an
Old habit with a peasant then waited
moment longer.
"She won't come in alone" he mutter-
ed. "I1l open the door for her" He
stole TO the door as softly as his wooden
shoes allowed, and opened it.
There wac nobody there.
tie recoiled in alright as if he had seen
a ghost, and an applicable fear made
his gray hair rise under his wool hat.
He was not coward, however and he
took two steps forward. His tracks made
IN returning from town were almost
effaced by the snow; other fresh tracks
took the same road IN the opposite di
rsction. They we're Amelia's, recognized
Ey the smallness Of the print; for the
snow had ceased to fall. They we're
rather wide apart, deep, the heel wall
marked like those of q person running.
The old man rubbed his eyes, anc said
aloud
"She must be somewhere in the vii
lage" He turned his head toward the
houses, but no track was to be seen in
that direction.
In spite of himself, denying 9 he evil
dence, he exclaimed, ut cannot be!'
Day had already disappeared, bat the
gray sky, full of snow, was not dark, and
the wilderness OF the earth made the least
track easily recognizable, Forgetting to
shut the doo- of his house behind him,
poor Father James followed the marks Of