The Bottineau pioneer. (Bottineau, N.D.) 1885-1895, 1892-06-18

l wished to- replied Sir Edmund,
who, be it observed knew nothing of
the suspicion against the Judge. II
nm inclined to think that you will be
happier in seeking a new fortune than
in lingering about with the faint hope
OF recovering the old. If the diamond
is found, you will hear OF it wherever
you may be. Are you going to look
for another diamond?"
mo, Squire; Pm goin' to find that,
please God" Brace, replied; then,
after a moments pause, he said,
"There's a matter of business to
finish up before l go, sir: all the money
l have in my pocket belongs to YOU"
"It is a loan; keep it, Brace,-keep
it until you are in a position to pay
me; and l hope, for your sake, that
time may not be far hence"
"You're grit, Squire,-real grit! I
won't refuse your kindness. l shall
need q bit to start with. But I'll ask
you, sir, to hold this till | claim it,"
He went round to Sir Edmund.
"What is it, Brace?" asked the
Baronet, taking the paper Brace drew
from his pocket. He found it was the
Judges copy Of agreement. "Oh, I do
not need this, my good fellow" he
protested; 81 have your l O U, and
that is as good now as ave- it was"
eff you won't keep it for your own
security, Squire, III ask youto keepit
for my own. It's a kinder ce'tif'cate,
and if any one hes got any thin to
say agen me when I'm not here to de-
fend myelf, I'll ask you to let that up.
Goodbye, Squire"
He held out his hand, and said, as
Sir Edmund shook it cordially,
"Thank you, sir, thank you! You are
grit"
He strobe down the room, brushing
past Van Hoeck, who sat immovable
and silent as though he were carved
in stone, and came to where l was
standing. My face must have told
him that my heart had hardened.
But he stretched out his hand, and
said hoarsely,-
"Say goodbye to us, pardner."
l folded my arms and shook my
head. He dropped his hand by his
side.
"Prehaps you're right" he said re-
morsefully, "%prehaps you're not.
Time will show that I've got a clean
conscience, if heaven is just" He
paused; then in a still lower tone, and
with an accent Of %reproach, he added,
"Say yer hope so, pardner, say yer
hope So"
81 hope so," I said.
Ho shook his head ruefully.
"Taint yer OLD voice, Gentleman
Thorne,-there's no heart init. We've
roughed it together, and we've shared
our bacea out there, end,"-his chin
twitched convulsively, and turning
away, he muttered, at takes all the
pluck outer me to part like this"
Lola was standing in a. corner of
the DON by the door, with her eyes
fixed upon me. Brace vas about to
pass through on his way out, he
caught up her wrist savagely in his
hand. AS savagely she tore it away
and in her turn came and stood be-
fore me.
"I'm a-goin," she said.
"And a good riddance," | thought,
exasperated by the belief that she
knew where the diamond was and
could reveal the whole mystery if she
chose.
"You amt goin' to let me 60 like
him are yer?" she asked; "you amt
goin' to let me go without sayin'
good-bye?"
There was deep pathos in her voice.
The friendless little savage loved me.
She had saved my life. My heart
smote me for forgetting that. gave
her my two hands; she drew them
round her slight body, and then fling
ing her arms about my neck she
whispered, with tender impulsiveness:
"Shall / be good? Shall | tell you
where it ISL"
But just at that moment her fine
a caught the rustic OF a woman's
dress, and, catching sight OF Edith,
who was entering from the dining
room, she started back.
Scowling over her shoulder at Edith,
her eyes afame with hate, she said,
in q voice from which all tenderness
had gone:
For her sake? No." and without
looking again at me, she went from
the room and joined her father.
My engagement with Edith was
broken off that evening.
had not the f%aintest hopes OF re-
covering the lost diamond, and, when
1 told Sir Edmund my eason for
despairing, he did not attempt to con-
ceal his satisfaction with regard to my
determination.
= "a man should never be dependent
on his wife. It must necessarily be q
source of humiliation to him; and no
man suffers humiliation without in
time losing his own self-respect. That
will never, l hope, be your loss, Ber-
nard. Poor girl, it will be
a great grief to her; for, though she
has known you but a little while, she
has found in you a great deal to ad-
mire and love and her affection is SO
tenacious that 1 doubt if she will
ever a to love YOU" He sighed,
and for some moments sat in thought
full silence; then he said. awe must
not break her heart, my dearfellow,-
we must leave her some hope. AS
it is necessary that for some
time you should be separated,
it is right that you should
both be free to form other engage
ments, at the same time there may be
a tacit understanding that, should
you succeed in making a position for
yourself in a reasonablespace of time,
and then both are still warmly dis
posed toward each other, the engage
ment shall be renewed.
IA. M-~