Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1890-09-26

CAICdN~tS AAN III tiAG NQOQS A1uOnk AIS
great pines, and their skins and heads
were at the courthouse. And it was told
in Scalp Ridge how when Kinghorn re-
ceived the reward offered for their de-
struction he sent it to the widow of
man who had been killed trying to dc
what he had succeeded in doing.
He had the pluck, poor fellow, and
had the luck. That is all. Kinghorr
had said. Then, when the Bassett home.
stead was burned down, who dashed into
the flames and brought out Grandms
Bassett, forgotten and left to roast in hei
bed by her frightened servant, her rheu
matte old husband being unable to d.
anything to help herr
Oh, so many things happened 10 prov
Kinghorn a good man aud true, TO make
Bess sorry that she had lost him; and
thinking of him and longing for him so
changed the girl that her own mother
hardly knew her. She took to roaming
about the woods alone, making all sorts
of excuses for doing SO.
One day poor Bess went out into the
woods as usual, with book in her hand
Ia romance. She had taken to reading
romances of late, and always found
something TO put her in mind of those old
DAYS when Kinghorn courted her.
Lovers said the same things in these
pages that he had said, though to be
sure, in much finer language. and girls
did the same things too, and were as
sorry for them as she was, and it was
comfort to find that this was so.
/ xxYoc q pnppfnYt
still to read of the happy endingo these
love affairs in the lastchapters, forsurely
writers knew the truth about such
things, and if everything ended well be-
tween those other pairs, why might not
all come right between Kingdom and
herself one day?
And this day she sat down to read her
new book with some hope in her heart.
But alasi the story robbed her of it, for
it ended badly, and the girl found herself
crying over little tragedy.
$50 it will be with me, she said. Il
shall never see James Kinghorn again,
or, at best, only as the husband of some
other woman.
And the tears gushed forth afresh, and
she arose and walked about wondering
if she had not better take her life, as the
girl in the novel had done, than live to
be so miserable.
And in this state of mind she roamed
on until she came to the entrance to a
great cave, which, though she had lived
near these woods all her life, she had
never seen before.
She entered it with a feeling that it
would be good place in which to lie
down and die of grief, when suddenly
she heard a queer little growing, and
knowing that some animal was there,
retreated to the entrance of the cave,
and saw crawling after her two little
bear cubs, just able to move. Funny
little creatures, all covered with the soft
est brown hair, and with little pink
paws like cushions. The sight of them
awakened her interest in moment.
She thought to herself that no doubt
the mother had been killed by hunters,
and that she would take them home
with her and keep them in little pen
and tame them. They were clumsy bur-
dens and hard to hold; and not until
she had taken the ribbons from her hair
and waist and tied their paws together,
did she manage to walk away with them.
Then they could no longer roll and
wrigele in her arms, under each of which
she tucked one of the cubs-a feat which
! it required Western strength and West
ern "grit" to perform. Once more In
the wood path she hurried on, anxious
to exhibit her prize, and had gone some
distance, when sud ,nly sound greeted
her ears that made her heart stand still
with terror-a savage wild beast cry,
the growl and roar of bear.
AT once Bessie knew that the mother
of these cubs had not been shot, but had
only left them for awhile, and returning
to find them gone, Lad followed her.
She strove to drop the bears, but the
ribbons were entangled in her belt, and
she had pinned her skirt up like a wash
Ierwona rs apron as a support for them.
The safety pin held, and before she could
! undo it the bear was upon her. She felt
the great claws str,Ie her shoulder, and
! gave herself up for lost.
J But at that instant stalwart form,
clad in red shirt and buskins, came in
sight.
J, Throw yourself DOWN." shouted a
; voice she knew" downl"
: She obeyed AS she did so shot vas
! fred. The bear, with hideous cry, left
Bessy and sprung toward this snew enemy.
! And crouching between the two cubs,
, who growled as if they knew that some
thing was wrong, Bess watched that ter
rible sight-a fight between savage
bear and hunter.
1t was Kinghorn who had come to her
rescue she knew from the first, and now
; his life was in peril for her sake-sin
peril!
J Oh. alas! lost, it seemed to her, as he
fell with the bear upon him. Then she
. knew nothing for awhile, but when she
opened her eyes she lay upon the grass,
: and her head was upon Kingdoms knee
. and her arm was bandaged. She had
{ guessed before that her arm was broken
bv the stroke the bear had given her,