Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1896-11-25

Miller, the pfett1est ana most charm'
ing young lady in the whole county.
People said her father was immensely
rich, and that she would come in for
3 handsome fortune at his death; buI
what cared about that? For had
not sufficient for rs both, even if she
were penniless? And did I not love
her with the whole strength of pure
and disinterested love? 1 cannot be.
gin to describe her to you, for the
task is quite beyond me. Suffice it to
say that she was admired by all who
knew her, and loved by not few.
The latter circumstances ceased to
disturb me when once became her
accepted lover, though before that
time it occasioned me great deal OF
anxiety, and caused me to spend many
a restless night.
OF one lover in particular had been
jealous, for to my excited and fear.
laden Imagination he seemed to pos
sess everything that a young laly could
desire. He was tall, broad-shoul.
dered, handsome, with pleasing man
ner and faultless dress, aud in ad-
dition to all this, he was endowed with
more than an average share of this
worlds goods.
He was madly in love with Ada, but
conducted his wooing in way with
which not even his closest rival could
find fault. Kind, considerate, and
gentlemanly, never obtruding his
presence unnecessarily, he yet man
aged to pay her considerable attention,
and many an anxious time did l spend,
fearing that his superior attractions
would put me in 5he shade.
Fate, however. decided otherwise,
for when summoned up courage to
put my fortunes to the test, Ada sbyly
accepted me, informing me in most
engaging manner that she had never
loved any one else. You may be sure
that was in ecstasies, and scarcely
knew for the next few months whether
] walked upon air or upon solid
ground.
Our engagement was to last year,
at the eud of which time our marriage
was to take place.
The time had almost elapsed, and
nothing had occurred to maj the har-
mony of the scene, when, quite unex.
pectedly, something happened which
filled me with the deepest horror, and
which causes me to shudder even now
as I recall it.
1t has partly to do with my rival,
Horace RishtoD, ghose existence for
the timeI had almost forgotten.
he had received the news of Our en-
gagement in an apparently calm and
quiet manner, and his subsequent be-
havior had led us to regard him as be-
ing more than ordinarily affected by
it, but in the event am about to de.
scribe, l was enabled to see how deep
and tragic the effect upon him really
was.
The revelation came in this wise.
It wanted but two days to our wed.
ding, and / had oocasion to 60 on 8
little business connected with it to 9
neighboring town, place some four
miller distant from my home. Having
accomplished my errand, and finding
that had some considerable time to
wait for train, resolved to walk
back, SO, striking out, ! soon left the
town behind me.
1t was fine moonlight night, and as
it promised TO continue 80, deter.
mined to take o short cut across the
country, which i reckoned would save
q quarter Of an hour at the least. The
road would be very lonely, for it wa:
path that WAS seldom used, but thai
troubled me little, for my thought:
were company enough that night.
/ had gone somewhere about two
miles when the moon suddenly cloud
ed over, and I was left in comparative
darkness.
As I knew the way, however.
thought nothing OF it, but trudget
cheerfully along, thinking only of Ada
and our approaching union. Sudden
ly, and without moments warning
the ground gave way from under my
feet and ] felt myself falling headlonl
down, down into The depths of The
earth. How far I fell knew not al
the time-I learned afterward that i
was about thirty eet-but L expected
instant death when / reached the bot
tom, and without doubt that would
have been my late had not the bottom
of the hole been filed with water to 6
considerable depth. This broke my
fall, and also by its coldness restored
me to my senses.
I struck out on coming to the sur
face, and swan around to find some
thing to which could hold on. After
considerable time spent in searching
during which the full horror of tho
situation began to dawn upon me, / a
last discovered q piece of woodwork
fixed in the side OF the pit.
This I eagerly grasped, and, resting
partially on it with half my body il
the water, I began 10 consider my po
sition.
knew at once the place into which
/ had fallen, and as the knowledge
flashed across my mind I cursed my
self for having been SO careless tt
stumble into it. 1t was an old, disuset
shaft, which had been there for gen
erations. Not many people were
aware Of its existence, for it was in {
wild and solitary spot scarcely evcl
visited by any one. I, however, hat
seen it several times in my moorlanc
wanderings, and had always regarded
it as dangerous place. 1t was par
TALLY fenced round, but 1 must have
wandered in through one of the gaps
There was no footpath anywhere
near it, so / must, in the darkness
have lost my way. However, here 4
was, and the question confronted me
how was to get out?
tried to discover il it was possible
to climb out, but the sides of the ri
offered no hold of any kind, so [ hat
to abandon that idea.
next shouted, IN the hopes tina
some solitary wanderer might hear m,