, 1891-08-28
THE RING OF GOLD

LIE hlNU Uf UULD
Martin DAILY had become discouraged
Like many another miner in the far
west, he had made money and lost it.
had prospected for mines, found ore and
been cheated out of his rights, had
grown poor and i'll, and had thrown him
self under a tree, careless whether he
lived or died.
The great snowy mountain peaks and
the rich verdure had lost their attraction
for him. He had hoped and been disap-
pointed so many times that he had come
to believe himself unlucky; that he
should never possess n dollar; that there
was neither happiness nor home for him.
He had seen better days. His large
dark eyes, his broad brow, his well
shaped mouth and chin bespoke refine
ment in the years that were gone. He
had been well educated, had tried many
thing and failed in them, not from lack
of energy, not from lack of Judgment.
but his fate seemed to be an adverse
one.
He had done many good acts, had al
ways helped his brother miners, had
tried to look on the bright side of life.
had fought manfully and been defeated
in the battle. He had imagined some
times that the clouds had n silver lining,
but the storms always came sooner or
later. He meditated thus rs he lay I'M
der the tree, and finally, more dead than
alive from want and exhaustion. fell
asleep,
Two men passed along under the brow
of the mountain, by the tree. They We're
tall and straight, and from their dark
hair and skin it was easy to perceive
their Indian blood.
''rhe white man is dead" said one OF
the men as he bent on his knee beside
the sleeper.
mo, there is n twitching of the eye.
lids" said the other. He is pale and
sick. / will take him home and Mimosa
will care for him"
The conversation. carried ON in n low
tone, awakened the miner.
Come with us and you shall have
food and shelter" said the friendly In
dian.
Scarcely able to bear his weight Mar
tin leaned upon the arms of the two
men, and soon found himself in the
humble Indian cabin.
''Mimosa, here is n stranger. Take
care of him. Red Cloud never left a hui
man being to die. He will get well, and
then we will send him back to his peo-
pie"
A shy, pale Indian girl came forward
and did as she was hidden. She did not
speak, but looked very pityingly out of
her fawnlike dark eyes. When Martin
had been placed in the simple bed she
prepared food for him and fed him us
though he were a child. Day by day
she came and went, speaking little, but
doing gently the things which only n
woman's hands can do.
After n time the miner, still IA young
man, gained in strength and began once
more to hope for a successful future.
'Mimosa," he said one day, Il owe
my life TO you, and if | am ever rich |
will come back and reward you"
81 shall miss you" said the girl shyly.
But | want no money. | shall lie
happy because you are well again and
happy"
81 shall yet find gold, Mimosa. | used
to think ! should be rich, and then | be-
came poor and sick and lost heart. You
wear a ring on your finger and some
times a chain about your neck, both Of
beaten gold. Did the metal come from
mines near herey"
my father gave them to me" she re-
piled, and nothing more could be learned
from her on the subject.
Would you care, Mimosa, if | wore
the ring until / went away Perhaps |
ran En1 t1,a ,1n,n ,,Lnr, a.. ..11 .,..z
from
"You may wear it till you come back
rich" she said smiling.
Days grew into weeks, and the time
drew near for the miner to say goodby
to the girl who had become his comrade
as well as deliverer. Tears filed her
eyes as they parted. you will forget
Mimosa," she said.
mo, | will bring back the ring. and
you shall give it to the man who makes
you his bride. | shall never forget Red
Cloud nor his daughter"
Strong and hopeful again, Martin took
up life, obtained work and believed once
more that he should find gold. So sweet
and blessed a thing is hope, giving luster
to the eyes and quickening the flow of
blood along the veins.
Blu he missed the Indian girl. The
pines on the snowy mountain peaks
whispered OF her. The evenings seemed
longer than formerly; the conversation
of the miners less interesting. He was
lonely. He was earning a fair living,
but OF what use was money to him if he
was to feel d~esolate in heart? Mimosa
was not OF his race, but she had n Iowa
BILE nature. He remembered that she
looked sad at his going away. He won
dered If she ever thought about him. If
she had some Indian sutton. would she
not wish for the ring again2 He would
like, at least, to see the man and his
daughter who had saved his life. He
would carry back the ring. Ahl If he
knew where the gold in it came from,
perhaps he could indeed become rich,
and then who could make him so happy
as Mimosa?
Months only ir creased the l~oneliness.in
Martins heart. He was becoming dis
couraged again He even began to fear
Now Try This