Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1894-07-03

all emotions joys sorrow. anger. awe.
hops AMI pnac murmur from tho val.
lcys thunder from the canyons and
sp-ak frum the heights
Tciay-,his sunny. glorious July day
-sorrUw and anger only found voices
for pcur Zen Tribble lie was alone,
away up near the timbr line. sitting near
the mouth 10 his tunnel. wondering
what hal h-rome IL his dog. the only
friend he had left In Oh. world
Ben was one ~ the unlucky ones of
earth since 1879 he had ben toiling
alone up therc In the mountains. hunt
ing fortune When he cam. west from
Iowa with only hi- do. Jonah and the
old rife Betsy he had carried through
the war for company. hc hal stakcd out
his claim In the San Juan. built his lit.
tie cabin on the mountain side and gonc
sh..rfully 90 work. with his pick and
hand drill. confidently expecting io strike
q lead soon. Ill cut AMI 20 hack 10 his
wife and loy with bag full ~ gold
dust The letters he got weekly help'd
him amazingly. They wcrc his inc.n'
tive, his .timulant Jonah was faithful
aud Betsy was useful Occasionally B.n
would leave the tunnel and the cabin
and 20 down the mountain to Pay Dirt
camp where hc soon hcame popular
among the many god fellows And -
nj first, while hc was strong. ambitious
and hopeful. everything went very we'll
Aftcrwarii
The years went by. and Ben did not
ind his silver mine Not that he was
not diligont Never n man In the San
Juan worked harder than Tribble He
staked two other claims BESIDES the orig.
inal one, and In turns worked all
His stalwart figure began to stop; the
furrows despcned ON his forehead; sil.
yer b~prinkled his long. tangled. rel
b-ar,i. but still fortune was shy The
long summers drifted by his door. and
the winter SHOWS hid his tunnels Ev-
cry fall he said. by spring. ] reckon. :"
and every spring he said. II calc'laie by
fall I kin 20 hum. but he never went
His wife wrote regularly the news of
her simple village life Ills boy was
grown up and earning fair living
his boy, whom he remembered n lit.
tie sunny haired youngster stamping
about la his first pair of boots Tribble
would lit alone night after night pic
turing the two he had left behind, won
dering about them. dreaming Of them.
longing for them. Sometimes he started
up in frenzy. crying out that he would
go-,hat day. that hour-back 20 them
What matter II he had no money! He
could tramp over the mountains, the
plains, 10 find Molly and the boy. Then
his eyes would fall on the mouth Of the
tunnel. and mechanically he would
shoulder his pick. take his lantern and
10 back to his dreary search
Then. one day, Tribble struck lead
Struck a fair vein IL silver! The very
se,t week the silver panic came
Tribblo was dazcd lie could not un.
derstand Day after day he gropcd his
way down TO Pay Dirt TO hear the news
from the east. He joined the circle Of
hopeless. despairing men who sat watch
ing oliver 20 down. down. feeling ~ II
the bottonlsas pit were yawning at
their feet.
Then suddenly Molly's letters stop.
ped. Tribble wrote again and again.
but could get no answer A silence as
vast and awful as that which reigncd
on the mountains swept between him
and the two he loved
Tribble grew moro-e. sullen and sus.
picious After q little he ceased going
down 10 the camp. but dwelt apart from
all men, with no friend save Jonah
And now, here on this balmy. heavenly
day, when all nature brcathed peac'
and Joy, Ben sat alone. deserted by all.
Fortune. family. friends-ycs, even hi
dog. for Jonah had Misrepresentation
ished, and no whistle of his mas'el
could lure him frum the canyon
Tribble sat absorbed In bitter reveri'
when suddenly crashing In the thicke'
made him start and lift his heavy eyes
A good humorcl. smiling face met hi
-ths face Of Joyful jerry. awell known
character from the camp below. lazy,
happy go lucky fellow. with few braiu
and kindly heart.
"Hello. Ben!" he called.
"Heliof" modify from Ben =,
Thought I'd pay ye a avisit. !" said
Jerry. dropping down upon the grouIf
beside Tribble ~ tell ye, pard. yer
too lonesum uk here Why don't y
como down ter the camp! The boy
low ter hev celebrashun On the Fourth
Ye'd orter ter como down. They've sem
10 silvertnn fcr fireworks IN powder Al
Q cannon. Lord, but they'll whooI
things upi Ye'd orter come down"
To Joyful Jer1y's pressing invitatios
Tsibbls rsturusd no answss. but sud