The pioneer press. (Miller, Hand County, S.D.) 1893-190?, 1896-01-23

the further side of the yaWnlng
chasm loomed dark and fierce. fres-
emily a diminutive figure on horseback
seemed to crawl out Of the deep green
Of the Cedars beyond, and to move Ike
n fly along the preCipitous mountain
face until il disappeared around the
bend.
Hes more hensum than Dave,
Lucy said to herself; an smarter, an
| guess he looks like good grit
She rolled up her sleeves ana re-
turned to the small, round wash tuD
that stood on n block of wood by the
door of the log cabin. She dipped her
hands into the white II olal foam
that glistened with priSmatic colors III
the sunlight. and soon was busy at
her hOmely work.
From where she stood the rough
path led down the rugged mountain
face. across te broken and rOCk-Strewn
ground. to the vast plains that
stretched to the east; brown deserts
Of Sun-dried wilderness, where the
Scmi-trOpical heat had scorched the
sparse grass to cinderS, were even the
lazy wind stirred up myriadS OF little
clouds of brown. sandy dust. appear
ing. from the distance, like so many
smoking boniires. Looking backward,
looking to the right. looking to the left,
the ~stupcndOUS mountain solitude or
the Rockies rose in rugged. chaotic
piles Of dead browns ana blucS,aGainSt
which the blOtchpS of vegetation, mere
ANA there. glowrd darkly, while peak
on peak. looming uD more distinctly,
became fairer and bluer. until, there.
beyond. in the faintcSt outlines, gllSt-
cned in the summer sunshine.
Far away to the north and far away
to the south the great mountain chain
stretched out giant arms, nearly half
encircling the vast tract Of nrairie that
Swpllcd away from the foothills. To
the north n peak lifted its head high
pr than its peers. like a solemn Scntinel
guarding its mountain approach. TO
the south two twin peaks lowered,
seemingly from the base of tn" plains,
that there stretched, arid. sandy and
hungry with but n tiny thread OF
water gladdoning the eye by its re-
freShing CLEAN.
Around the m~OUntainPer'S hut, how
Y Nature had been liberal OF her
gifts. The mountain side was green
with pleasant foliage, and the soft.
thin mountain grass throve even where
the foot of mar and beast had done It's
best to crush it out of existence. Wild
flowers and luXuriant ferns intermin-
gled in welcome %prOfuSiOn, and behind
every rock and every boulder some
tiny. graceful greencry struggled for
life.
Il was a truly pleasant spot on that
glorious. blazing summer day, but 1t
made one shuddpr to think what 1t
would be like in winter, when the
great pine-clad ridges and the deep
gOrgVS would alike become as n home
Of the hurricane. where it would roar.
and rage and howl. and shrek. filling
the air with a hail of broken branches
and frozen snow. driving great drifts
Of to white. icy masses against the Bill
sides and piIing them against the
trees: while beyond, the great Whlte
plain would he as one white sheet. APP
palling with it's friGid mOnOtony. while
scattered rocks. uprOOted trees ana
huge. Jagged pine-StemS would shape
themselves into one chaotic .~treacher-
Gus mass underneath the snowy COW
erlet. while all traces of road or trail
would be efraced. and the intrepid
frontiersman would be left to fight
with the elements, in addition to his
natural enemies.
George Mclane was well seasoned in
Rocky Mountain experiences. He was
one of the first to build a stout and
rOomy log cabin. where previously but
trappers' hutS and Indian villages had
existed: and more than that, year i'll
o,,l ,,o,, 900. , n ~. Nvintpr
snow. he lived there with his child.
FrOntiersmen ,trappers and traders
asked themselves in wOnderment why
George Naturalization George
they called him-had chosen such
a place for his home, when all
the country between the San
gre de Christie and Pixies Peak
stood open to him, and m had it
that ''Freckled George" was searching
the mountains for gold. Men had
looked for the precious metal in these
rocky Businesses before that day. and
had come hack with heavy hearts and
light pouches. When the matter was
mentioned to Mclane. he grinned and
shook his head and said, Rot. Cayn't
a man abide whar he likes" he would
say. without a lot of lOatin' boosters
a-tryin' to stick their fingers in his
pie?" AS George was known to he not
slow with his pistol and his knife, the
inquiries invariably stopped at that
point.
Lucy had finished her task. and was
engaged in spreading out the tiannels
and other articles of household wear
upon a piece of smooth g~reensward
that seemed strangely out of place in
it's wild surroundings. That being
done. she emptied the tub and carried
it into the small clubhouse by the side
of the cabin. Then she wiped the log,
and. fetching her knitting from within
the cabin, she sat herself down.