Waterbury evening Democrat., 1895-08-19
THAT GOLD MINE.
fConvrirht. 1895. E

on t'Pluck' was the best thing of the evening. He had long regarded Amelia as a girl of good judgment. Also he had long felt that the 'future" about which they were all talking and thinking just now was composed of about one part inciden. tals and nine parts Amelia.
 He bade her goodby in day or two. They understood he was to go out west and win his fortune, and then come back and find her ready and faithfully waiting.
 Young people arrive at this understand ing usually without Q single direct ques- tion or answer. It is what the lawyers would call an implied contract.
 suppose if there were no weddings ex- cept thoso in which the man says, Twill you marry mel" and tho woman says, ''Yes," that orange blossoms would go out of fashion.
 He had S5, 900 when he quit school, the carefully nurtured remnant of his fathers estate but he would not risk it in any business venture. He had studied metal lurgy, and he now resolved to follow that line of labor.
 But there was nothing in his home town, and the nearest he could get was in the foundry of Hammett Bros, in a western city.
 Hanimett Bros. was represented by the younger member of that family, a bustl;ng, laughing, rapid travelling young fellow, who rode good deal on the rail- road trains. Whenever he came home, he spent good deal of money and the people liked him.
 He told of gold mine in which he was interested, and they said they would bet it was worth a million if it was worth 8 cent. They were very wise fellows-those townspeoplc.
 Hammctt came home one time and told Rae what a bonanza he owned. Rae was delighted He advised Rao to buy stock, but the hardworking, high minded young fellow felt he dared not risk his patrimony. 'Then lend mo the money, and will give you my note"
 Hammett was commonly reported "as good as gold," and Rae accommodated him with thousand.
 Next morning Hammctt appeared in a new suit of clothes, the third within a fortnight, and his steps were unsteady. Nevertheless, after little he 8ot a sec ond thousand, and then, because the rest of the stockholders were trying to "freeze him out, |" Hammett needed another thou 1 sand to protect his rich estate. So he got that. When the fourth loan was expended, Rao stopped. He refused to advance any more. And then one day Hammett came to him, laughing, and showed whore he
  now drawn and spent the whole of that | little fortune.
 Rae was fcarfully angry. For q time | Hammctt was afraid of him. Then Inc went to his tcsll and took out an envelope l full of papers. Among them was q ccrtiti i cate proving him owner of 51 shares ir | the Sunrise gold mine in Nevada county | Cal.
 "Tallc that, he said. "It represents 1O( 1 times much as I have received iron | you.'' And he assigned it formally. Represents, yes; but it isn't wortt anything. Those shares wouldn't sell any l where on carth.''
 "All right, said Hammett, still laugh Ing, ''It's all I've got, You can have mt arrested, but it won't pay you" | So Rar too angry to feel the weight O l the blow, cursed his employer r0undly ant | carried his envelope down to thc foundry I There a s;tturnine sort of humOr came tC l him, and he nailed up the green and golC | certificate against the smoky wall of thu | forgrrunm and went on with his work l He wanted a little labor to pull himsel | togct her.
 | Of course tho cxposuro followed. Whel | Hummrtt was gone, the tOWnSpc0ple dis | covered lis several infamicS, and crAdito took the foundry. Rae went on wOrkin! | there for a month or two, browning him | self with the fOr;.VruOIn smoke and com | ing almost to grin at the g,ludy thougl darllening cert ilcatc against the wall. Then he went out in the world and be gan to make another place for himself not discouraged, only hardened a bit
 Meanwhile Amelia Woolcroft's letter were just as tender, just as hopeful. Sh consoled him in his disappointment an told him over and over again he was to ! Strunr IraNp and tO0 nblc tO be de fCatcd.
 And her confidence was not misplaced He worked hard, saved carefully as tw years went by, though he did dimly real iZo that man without money must pos scss a very decided talent indeed if he rise in this world.
 One by one he had parted with his am bitions. We all do that as we grow older Only he felt guilty about Amelia. seemed sho was growing old, a sacrifice t him.
 Then camo note from hcr-a patheti attempt to maintain a cheerful tone whil | she told him of her father s failure in bus ness and her own views of the new hom | they must accept. Sho did not wish 1 burden him with her sorrows. She trie | to convince him she had none.
 That was a dismal day indeed for homes Rac-hard handed Rae, working for me l chaniC's wages in q great machine shop.
 In the evening he met a man from til town once graccd and omhcllishcd by th | younger liammCtt.
 Funny that gold mine of his shoul have turned out well, after all, isn't it.? said Rae's old friend.
 ''I3ut did it:'' Was the rrjoindcr.
 "Ccrtainlv, and cur people are Clubbin | themselves now b"rau@o they didu t hu stock Why, the thing went to par abol six months ago and it's worth now abor s for $1'
 Rae said he. was thirsts and So escape from his friend He took night trai back to his old home town and arrive there just as the foundry whistle w. blowing for : o'clock in the morning
 Ho walked ill the smoky old forgorool and looked along the wall. It was or black and sooty expanse Ho recallc where his forge had been, and then he fe along the planking for the hidden na heads. He found thcm
 They had held his fortune faithfully. He took the placo at the head of h company to which his shares entitled hin They offered him a rich compromise, bI he would not accept it. Buffetings ha made him stubborn.
 And then they bought his stock at u market price, and he went back to his ol , college town richer than the banker i the money lender or any magnate in tf ; | courthouse.
 Amelia WOolcrRft often reminded hil as they watched the furnishing of the | new home of the high estimate her lettel had placed upon him. LIE ROY A ARMSTRONG;.