The Press., 1895-12-05

as it had been He had led me to a sort of cave formed by shelf of rock pro- jecting from the bank. and there, wrap ped in a tartan shawl, was a. sight that. brought my heart to my mouth. A girl, B hit 1assie. so sore1y wasted and spent that lifted her up in my arms like child and carried her out to the open. Her eyes were closed, and she seemed too far gone for speech. but there was life in her still, as could. see, by the Pickering of her eyelids when stopped down to look at her. .....,
 ''As for the dog, who had crawled after us, he looked up in my face with his pathetic eyes full of dumb prayer for help, and then, for he was fairly beat and could not, believe, have dragged his trembling limbs another step, he stretched himself out on the grass beside her and licked her little wasted hand. I was in such state of excitement myself that I fairly trem- bled. scarcely knew what to do, but I got some water and laved her face and moistened her lips, and when she had swallowed few drops she came round so far that she could utter 8 word or two in faint whisper. ~~~7>-.-,
 ''Thus, bit by bit, I got her story. She and her father had been on their way home from the goldfelds, and he had 8 considerable sum of money on him, how much she scarcely knew, and 1t made little matter, for it was all gone. In darksome gully on the road he had been set upon and robbed and murdered, and she had fed to the bush like dis tracted creature and wandered about day and night till Bill had come back to her, and she had followed him to this cave, where she had lived for some weeks on such berries and roots as she could find. She was afraid to leave its poor shelter, for she had lost her way completely and was thoroughly bewi ldered, and SO when the supplies of roots and berries, never very plentiful in an Australian bush, began to run short she gave herself up for lost and lay down in despair to die,
 ''Poor thingl My heart was in my mouth as listened. Gaunt and haggard as she was, it was easy to see that she had been bonnie lassie, and her voice was so soft and sweet that it was like a song from paradise. You must not speak of dying, said, you that have all your life before you and can scarcely tell yet how pleasant thing it is to live
 I have no desire to live longer, she said I have nothing to live for, now that my father is gone: and she closed her eyes and shuddered.
 "She spoke with pretty accent, and her voice sounded in my lonely ears like the sweetest music I had ever heard, but although she was so gentle and sweet she quite knocked all the conceit out of mo, and could only stare at her and humble: No, mo- You must not talk of dying.
 "When she revived a little, l carried her down to the place where I had left my horse, and by his aid had got her home to my hut, where she lay for many days more dead than alive. She wanted nothing but a sip of water or tea, and when she came around little a mouthful of damper. It was d peor fare for an invalid, and one too, who had evidently been daintily nurtured, and l expected nothing but what it would kill her outright. She rallied, however, and got up at last, and crept to the door, and the fresh air helped to strengthen her, and, as was natural for so young 8 creature, the heavy cloud of grief that had overshadowed her 7 frightened lit tie, and she began to sing softly to her self in D sorrowful, heartbroken way that saddened me to heakr but was bet ter for herself maybe than the silent de- spair in which sh8 had been since tIe day found her. '%
 ''As for Bill here, he had got better long before she was able to move about, and although he. always took charge of her he showed a great affection for me and liked nothing better than to follow me about.
 II could make out nothing clearly about Katie-for that she told me was her name except that she was the daughter of 8 poor gentleman; that her mother was dead, and that she and her father had always been all in all to each other. He had made money at the dig gings, but that was gone. She was all that was left, and could see for myself that she was the bonniest bit lassie that ever gladdened 8 mans heart Her eyes were bright and blue, like the dewy bluebells used to gather when I was a laddie on the Godscroft rigs. Her hair had the color and glint of burnished gold, and her cheeks began to show the loveliest. color, like that of the sweet, fresh wild rose.
 II think see her as if it were but yesterday, shaking back the curling hair from her brow and lifting her bonny. bit face to mine and asking how she was to do this and what she was to make of that, for she had never been used to work, and I had to show her how the simplest things were done, but she was quick at the uptake and never needed to be told thing twice, and liked her to ask my advice, for when she did so her eyes would shine like gems and her face would flush up almost as if she liked me, but that, l told myself, WAS impos- 'sib1e @~
 ''The long and the short of it was that ! began to like her too we'll for my own peace. The only happy moments in my life were spent in watching Der or listening with the keenest delight to every word she uttered. ......
 ''She told me often about the books she had read, and she spoke sometimes of the life she had led-a life altogether unlike mine. My heart sank within me when thought it over. What was l that I should think of winning her love /? I had nothing to offer her but the. true affection of a fond. loving heart.. I could not even tell her how we'll I liked her. trembled before her likean aspen leaf and could scarcely get out g word d if it were to save my life. That was a rough time on me, mates. I was so wretched that got sour and gruff anh spoke sharply to the very creature I could have fallen down and worshiped. So from less to more she gok to think that I, was tired of her presence there, and one evening -how we'll ! remember