The morning times., 1895-08-18

the upheaved strata, lay the charred and
calcined remains of dwelling house, lev
eled 10 the earth. Originally half hidden
by natural abatis OF growing myrtle and
ceanothus that covered this counterscarp
OF rock toward lhe tran, 1t must have stood
within a hundred feet of them during
their halt
Even in its utter and complete obliteration
by the furious furnace blast that must
have swept across it the evening before,
there was stin 10 be seen The unnlistak-
able ground plan and outline OF four
roomed house. While everything that was
combustible had succumbed TO that intense
heat, there was stiIl enough half-fused
and warped metal. fractured iron plate,
and twisted and broken bars to indicate
the kitchen and tool shed. Very little
had evidently been taken away; the house
and its contents were consumed where
il stood. With a feeling OF horror and
desperation Key at last yentured TO dis
turb two or three OF the blackened heaps
that lay before him. But there were only
veslges OF clothing, bedding, and crockers
there was no human trace that he could
detect. Nor was there any suggestion OF
the original condition and quality OF the
house, except its size; whether the usual
unsig htly cabin OF frontier partners"
or a sylvan cottage-there was nothing
left but the usual igDoble and unsayory
ruins or burned-out human habitation.
And yet its very existence was a mystery
II had been unknown TO Collinson's, its
nearest neighbor, and it was presuma BILE
that it was equally unknown to Skin
Der's. Neither he nor his companions had
detected 1t iD their first journey by day
through the hollow, and only the tell
tale window at night had been a hint OF
what was even then so successfully
concealed that they could not discover
even when they had blundered against
its rock foundations. For concealed it
certainly was, and Intentionally So But
for what purpose?
He gave has romance fun play for a few
minutes with this question recluse,
preferring the absolute simplicity of ma
ture, or perhaps wearied with the artifi-
cialiies of society, had secluded himself
here with the company OF his only daughter
Proficient as path finder, he had easily
discovered some other way of provision
ing his house from the settlements than
by the ordinary trails past CollinsOu's or
SINNERS. But TeCluseS are not usually
accompanied by young daughters, whose
relations with the world not being as
antagoniStic would make them uncertain
companions. Why not a wife? His pre-
sumption OF the extreme youth of tue
face be had seen at the window was
after all only based upon the slipper he
had found And II u Wife, whose ALSO
lutte acceptance of such confined secIu-
sion might be equally uncertain, why not
somebody's clse's wife? Here was a rea-
son for conoeaIment, and the ends of an
episode, not unknown even in the wilder
ness. And here was the Nemesis who had
overtaken them in their guilty content
meqt, The story, even TO its moral, was
complete. Ard yet it did not entirely
satisfy him, so superior is the absolutely
unknown 10 the most elaborate theory
HisattentiOn had been once ortwiced drawn
toward the crumbling wall OF outcrop, which
during the conflagration must have felt the