The herald., 1893-07-12

deed he had eaten anything at all. The
miners had breakfasted long before.
Only few business men, gamblers and
idlers were at the table, and one by one
they finished their meal and departed,
until only he and the widow remained.
As he passed her chair on his way out
be stopped and hurriedly whispered,
'Fool, what are you doing with that
dress on? Were you supposed to know
that you were widow when you start
eda And If not, how the devil do you
expect to account for that dress between
last night and this morning." Then,
with suppressed oath, he strobe angrily
out from the room.
The widow looked frightened. She
hastily arose and went to her room.
The landlord out on the porch was
talking to Jerry and obviously shaking
his head. Nov, where in blixen did
she git them duds?" he said in manner
that impressed Jerry most painfully.
The latter slowly worked his jaws, ex-
pectorating in gloomy silence. At last:
''Fac' is," he replied, "these here women
is 'stonishin. Ne an you don't know no
more bout 'em than they do Of tun'ls,
drifts and WINES. I reckon that big
trunk of hern was full of clo'es, an she
come pervided fer ever contingency. OF
course, she couldn't a. knowed as how
Lowry had flunked till told er, an she
did carry on amazin, / tell you"
That mourning costume was the seed
from which sprang curiosity, doubt and
finally suspicion. Mrs. Lowry took pos
session of the little cabin in which her
husband had lived, and there she slept
and did her own cooking. She seldom
showed herself except to attend to busi-
ness in connection with the sale Of the
mine, transaction which she showed a
feverish anxiety to close. But she was
at all times gracious and pleasant to the
men, and half the camp were madly in
love with her. Independently of the
mine, which was worth cool $1o0, 900
if cent, and which Lowry had for
tunately located in her name, she could
have married any one of the magnates
of the camp offhand within two days
after her arrival, If she had been so dis
posed.
Jerry, whom she selected as her right
hand man, was alternately exultant and
depressed. He became her slave and
would have jumped down the deepest
shaft on the mountainside If she had
asked him to, and yet he was much of
the time troubled and perplexed. Grad
ually he became imbued with the idea
that he had seen Mrs. Lowry before, but
where or when he vainly cudgeled his
brain to remember. And so he went
about, doing her bidding. feeling amply
rewarded by the smiles she showered
upon him, her light, jesting talk, Of
which he only was the recipient, and her
friendly, familiar ways, that were kept
for him alone. But with his companions
he had become moody, taciturn, even ir-
ritable. He drank his whisky in silence,
drank often and deeply. He neglected
his claim and spent half his time knock
ing around Jim's cabin, choring for the
widow, running errands and negotiating
with Tom Carroll, the wealthiest mine
owner in all that region, for Mrs. Low
ry's mine.
From an offer of $50, 900 Carroll finally
rose to 1000, and there he stuck.
'It's like stealth it, an you know it,
durn your exclaimed Jerry wrathfully.
tits all can stand" was the bland
reply. "If the widow can get more, all
right. 4Tshant hegrudge her the money"
And Carroll tafnedsa~ay.
The widow was eager to accept the
amount offered.
"An throw away $So,oOOr growled
Jerry. Its q fortnn' in itself. You can
git what the naines worth if you don't
rush so blame fast Yer got all summer
before you. AKetch me lettin that swim
din Carroll get away with the mine like
that! It's worse'n stage robbin."
But the widow was obdurate. She
must return east; she needed money at
once; she had left dear sister almost on
her deathbed; she couldn't manage the
mine if she kept it, and If Carroll should
change his mind she would not probably
be able to sell it at ala dozen other
reasons that came promptly and plau-
sibly from her persuasive lips.
And SO, exactly one week from the
day of her arrival, the bargain was con-
cluded. The next day the papers were
to be prepared and the transfer duly
made, aud the following day Mrs. Lowry
was to start on her return trip east.
Jerry was in an ugly mood that even
ing, and even his most intimate compan-
ions let him severely alone. For three
hours he sat at poker game, and during
all that time he did not utter word ex-
cept to sullenly name his bets, call for
his cards and demand his drinks. He
drank heavily and lost heavily as he
drank. In the subsequsnt expressive
language of the barkeeper. Jerry played
the rottenes' game that ever disgraced
the house. He's worse than down on his
luck. Since the widow come he's got to
be a-blinl1in, blasted ijet. He ought To
swaller few ounces Of nitrogiycerin
an then set down hard on rock. 1t
might knock some sense into him."
When Jerry, bis last dollar gone, arose
from the gaming table, he stalked
straight out into the night. The stars
were shining large and luminous in that
clear mountain atmosphere. The air
was cool and sweet, and high up on the
mountainside the tall pines were peace
fully dreaming in the shadows. But the
glories of the night had no attractions for
Jerry. His mind dwelt solely upon the