The Goodland republic. [volume] (Goodland, Kan.) 1891-1907, 1895-03-08

ana sensitive though selfish heart was
breaking.
Sitting alone under the trees, he had
taken a sheet Of paper from his pocket
case and was writing by the light Of the
rising moon. One letter was short and
easily written, for. with a few words,
he had brought it to a close, then fold
ed and in q bold and vigorous hand ad-
dressed it. The other was far longer,
and over this one, thinking deeply,
erasing some words and pondering much
over others, he spent a long hour. It
was nearly midnight, and he was chilled
to the heart when be stiff1y rose and
took his way among the blanketed
groups to the campfire, around which
so many of his wearied comrades were
sleeping the sleep Of the tired soldier.
Here he tore to fragments and scattered
in the embers some notes and letters
that were in his pockets. They blazed
up brightly, and by the glare he stood
one moment Studying young Rollins
smooth and placid features. Then he
looked around on the unconscious circle
Of bronzed and bearded faces. There
were many types Of soldier there-men
who had led brigades through the great
war and gone back to the humble bars
Of the line officer at its close; men who
had led fierce charges against the swarm
ing Indians IN the rough. old days of
the first prairie railways; men who had
won distinction and honorable mention
in hard and trying frontier service; men
who had their faults and foibles and
weaknesses like other men and were ag-
gressive OF compliant, strong Willed or
yielding, OYerbearing or meek, as are
their brethren in other walks Of life;
men who werO simple in heart, single
in purpose and ambition, diverse in
characteristics, but unanimous in one
trait-no meanness could live alnGag
them-and JerrOId's heart sank within
him, colder, lower, 6tonier than before,
as he looked from face to face and cast
up mentally the sum of each mans
character.
His hospitality had been boundless,
his bounty lavish; one and all they had
eaten Of his loaf and drunk Of his cup,
but was there among them one who
could say Of him, He is generous, and
I stand his friend?" Was there ono of
them, ore of theirs, for whom he lad
ever denied himself q pleasure, great or
small? He looked ct poor Old Gray. with
his wrinkled, anxious face, ard thought
Of his distress of mind. Only lew
thousands-not three years pay-had
the veteran scraped and saved and stored
away for his little girl, whose heart
was aching with its first cruel sorow-
his work, his undoing, his cursed, self
ish greed for adulation, his reckless
love Of love. The morroW's battle, if
it came, might leave her orphaned ard
alone, and, poor as it was, a fathers
plying sympathy could not be her help
with the coming year Woald Gray
mourn him if the fortune Of war made
him the victim? Would any enc Of those
aYerted faces look with pity and regret
upon his stiffening form? Would there
be any one on earth to whom Lis death
would be sorrow but Nina? Would
it even be a blow to her? She loved him
wildly, he knew that, bat woaId she
We're she to dream the truth? Ho knew
her nature we'll. He knew how quickly
such burning love couId turn 10 feTcest
hate when convinced that the object was
utterly untrue. Ho had said nothing to
her Of the photograph nothing a5 all Of
Alice, except to protest time and again
that his attentions 10 her were solely to
win the good will Of the coloneI's fam
lily and Of the colonel himself, so that
he might be proof against the machina-
tons Of his foes. And yet had he not
that very night on which he crossed the
stream and let her peril her name and
honor for one stolen interview-bad ho
not gone to her exultant welcome viii.
a traitorous knowledge gnawing at his
heart? That very night, before they
parted at tho colonel's door. had he not
lied to Alice Renwict, had he not de-
MED the story Of his devotion to Miss
Beaabien, and was not his practiced
eye watching eagerly the beautiful
dark face for one sign that the news
was welcome and so precipitato the
ayowal trembling on his lips that II
was her be madIy IOyed-DOJ Nina:
Though she hurriedly bado him Good
night, though she was unprepared foE
any such announcement, ne well knew
that Alice Renwick's heart auttered az
the earnestness of his manner, and thay
he had indicated FAR more than ne ha,.
said.
Fear, not love, had drawn him "a
Nina Beaubien that night ald hogs
had eentercd On her moro beautiIn-
rival when the discoveries OF the niEhr
involved him III the first trenbila
symptoms Of the downfall to cont.
And he was to have spent the m0EIi,,,
with her, the woman to whom he l.H.
lied n word. whilo she toVhoa he l2,.
! lied IN word and decd was going from
him, not to ratuTn until the german,
and even then be planned trcacheEy-
He meant to lead with Alice Ee1sy7;cl
and claim that it must bawita tho colo
nel's daughter because the ladies' OF
the garrison were the giyers. Then he
knew Nina would not come at all and
possibly might quarrel with linn on
that ground. What could have been al
easier solution OF his tgoHbloD3 psedica-
ment? She Wonid break their secret ell-
+ gageaent; he would refuse alITeconclI-
alton and ss free to devote himself to
/ Alice. But all these grave complioe-
/ tons had arisen Alice would not come.
+ Nina wrote demanding that ke should
+ lead with her aud that he shoGle meet
her at ST. Croix, and then ee-.o the
/ crash he owed ms safety te ~ se5
sacrifice aud now must give SsE1 ~ i2s5lis
+ OF Alec EenWicz He had accepted IL
announcements OF tilelT engagement e.: