Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-11-22
CHAPTER III.

B1enCe,
its close my hostess bade me good night in
Spanish and left the room.
"Shes gittln' pretty DID," explained
Thompson. "and always goes to bed right after
supper. She's asked me to tell yer this, so yer
won't think she amt been brought ND right
And now I'll tell yer that story. and es its a
leetle cold tonight, we'd best sit close to the
fire. Smoker
took the pipe he offered me, and together
we sat by the open fireplace in the glare of
its cracking logs OF pine.
Il come to Cali:orny in 49. long with FIRE.
mont When the war wuS over and thev de-
clared peace We WIS ali ordered home. But
I'd met my fust love by that time, and as she d
promised to marry me and wanted me to stay
l got my discharge from the colonel and
settled down in Monterey. This sweetheart o.
mine was heap bettern wot l wus for her
father WIS the alcalde, and only q sergeant
In Fremonts regiment. But we soon fixed the
matter up by havin' 'em call me 'Capitano'
(which means captain, you know. and that
made things sound better, even if they wasn't.
We was married by old Father Sabiano at
the Mission Church and moved over here
and went to ranchin. We wus happy enough
IN our young days. and our lives passed along
jest as smooth and calm as that river out
yonder in the moonlight. But no matter how
happy couple may he, no matter how deep
their love, l tell yer, mister, there's one
thing that's always cloud in the happiest
home. and that's the thought that you amt
got no little ones for to comfort you when
youv struck the shady side o. life
Fifteen years we lived under this cloud
ana, At last one Christmas mornin'. when the
birds was a-singin' in the vines outside our
door and the bells o the mission were pealin'
out their welcome for the birthday O. Christ
our little one came to u.s. l took the little
speck nature IN my arms for the first time
an kissed her little puckerin' lips and bap-
~ low -, L
Phoebe, after my mother.
sixteen years went by then so Quick we
couldn't count EN-. Sixteen years o. peace and
quiet and happiness; sixteen years O. low and
love and contentment Phoebe had growed ND
to be what all the people in the valley said was
the most beautiful human bein' tbey'd aver
come acrosst. and when she was confirmed the
parish priest told me to be careful and watch
her well, for such beauty as her'n was pretty
sure to end in a flood O. tears But didn't
dream o such thing till they built the big
hotel over IN Monterey and the crowds O. high.
toned people come down from the city. Eyery-
body used to go over thar to see the dressin'
and the sea bathin' and hear the music, and, o.
course, Phoebe went, too. She came home one
night to us with a look on her face I'd never
seen thar before. Her little lips seemed drawed
kinder into an expression o pain and thar wus
o sorter far OF, sad look inter her ewes we
asked her wot wus the matter o course. and
after thinkin' q moment and twirIing Of her
little myers, she sat down on my knee and told
me she was in love.
"Why, Mister Browning, il tibet ere roo, vas
ter fall right down on US this mint couldn't
be more surprised then wus then. ven orr
little gal told Us she's given her heart. what
we'd all along thought would be our'n forever.
to some one else.
But we didn't chide her, cause we'd neither
! nv us spoke one cross word to her since that
Christmas mornin' when she come 10 ma 7
didn't so to bed till late that night: not ontiI
my wife come to me as wus waIkin' the floor
and said she thought it wouldn't amount IN
anythin no how. The gal was only child
and the first infatuaton seldom if ever. lasts
Il couidn sleep through, and tossed about
all night and studied the stars a peepin' thro'
my window, waitIn' fur the day to come till
conId see her and mud out the whole truth.
wall, that truth come almost with the first
streaks o. dawn, fur when got ND she was
I a slttin thar on the doorstep. I found that
she was no longer a child-that her first in
| fatuation wus one O. the Kin / as creeps into a
woman's heart to stay thar forever
'She told me the mans name-Harry Rob-
erts 1t was-and she said she'd been n meetin'
him most every day for week He'd come
up TO her as he wus settln' alone on the
beach. and introduced hisself and thet's how
| they become acquainted. / didn't saw nothIn'
| to nobody as TO wot / intended to do. but as
soon as we'd EFT breakfast hitched up and
went over to the hotel to see the man whose
| handsome face and pretty words had brought
the nrst cloud 70 our hreslde. And he vas lest
| the kind nv D man, Mister Browning. tbet
! might win the hart Nv any woman for tell
yer, even with that great big load ca my hear
| he most won me. He was sorry, he said. that
what he called q chance Irritation should a
been took so serious, and il thar wus an thing
! he could do to make Phoebe tear him on, nv
| her heart he d act at once. thanked him. and
] when said goodbye thar wus q kind o. hon
est grasp in his hand wot told me he meant to
do the right thing by my little 'un.
II got acquainted with some people and thev
told me this man had got hisself talked abont
| on account of bein' too intimate with a mar.
ried lady from Frisco named Claveriuo.
told this to Phoebe that night, but she received
| it ez calm and Indifferent like ez il told her
soms bit O. everyday news, for che didn't
believe q word Nv il. With her to love vas 70
| trust, and she trusted him with all her heart.
Roberts didn't come over that day a. be prom
ised, nor the next, nor the next And pretty
| soon We heard thar wus to DO q picnic marty
| over on the bluff, wher We met this eyen,n'
For the fust time in her life our little Gal
deceived N. She told us she WIS goin' down
TO the river to read, but it wasn't long afore NJ
saw her in the boat out In the stream. Win
Sancho a-paddlin' Nv her over to the point. IN
/ was two hours afore she como back and vhen
| she did her eyes had wild look in 'em ard her
| face wus pale ez death. She throwed herself
on the sofa thar and cried ez Of her heart vouid
ha A.1 ~ IL