Evening star., 1897-05-29

proachfully, or even wonderingly, yet as
he dismounted ard tethered his horse Step
toe answered evasively, IT'S big thing,
sonny: maybe we'll make our eternal for
tune, and then we'll light out from this
Eole and have u gay time elsewhere. Come
alcng."
his own powerful grasp, and together they
clambered up the steep hillside to rocky
ledge. on which fallen pine from above
had crashed, snapped itself In twain, and
then left its withered crown to hang half
down the slope, while the other half rested
on the ledge. On this they sat. looking
down upon the road and the tethered horse.
gentle breeze moved the treetopS above
their heads and the westering sun played
hide and seek with the shifting shadows.
The boys face was quick and alert with all
that moved around him, but without
thought: the fathers face was heavy. ex-
cept for the eyes, that were fixed upon
his son.
Van Loo came to the mission he said
suddenly.
The boys eyes glittered quickly. like a
steel that pierced the fathers heart "Oh,"
he said simply. then the padre told your
How did he know you were here?'
Il don't know" said the boy. quickly
Il think he said something. but I've for
gotten 1t. 1t was mighty good Of him to
come. for / thought, you know, that he
did not care to see me after Heavy Tree
and that he'd gone back on u.s."
What did he tell your continued Step
toe: Did he talk of me or your mother?"
NO. said the boy, but without any
show of interest or sympathy, we talked
mostly about old times"
Tell me about those old times, Eddy.
You never told me anything about them"
The boy. momentaruy arrested more by
something in the tone Of his fathers voice
weakness he had never noticed before
than by any suggestion of his words said
with a laugh. ''Oh. only about what we
used to do when / was very little and used
to call myself his little brother don't you
remember long before the big strike on
Heavy Tree. They were gay times we had
And how he used to teach you to imi-
tate other peoples handwriting?" said
Steptoe.
What made you think of that, pop?"
said the boy, with slight wonder in his
talk about"
But you didn't do it again: you ain't
done 1t SINCE" said steptoe, quickly.
Lord! no." said the boy contemptuously.
There amt no chance now, and there
wouldn't be any fun in it. 1t isn't like the
Old times when him and me were all alone,
and we used to write letters as coming
Heavy Tree and the Bar and sometimes
| as far as Boomville, to get them TO do
things, and they'd think the letters were
real and they'd do 'em. And there'd be the
| knew who did it,"
Steptoe stared at this flesh of his own
| mesh half In relief. half in frightened ad-
| miration. Sitting astride the log, his ell
| BOWS on his knees and his gloved hands
supporting his round cheeks, the bow s
handsome face became Illuminated with an
| impish deviltry which the father had never
| seen before. With dancing eyes he went
| on: 1T was one Of those very games we
played SO long ago that he wanted to see
| me about and wanted me to keep mum
| about, for some of the folks that he played
1t on were around here now. 1t was q
| game we got off on one of the big strike
partners long before the strike. I'll tell
| you. dad, for you know what happened af-
| terward, and you'll be glad. Well, that
| partner. Demorest, was kind of silly, you
| remember. a sort of Miss Nancyish fellow
| always gloomy and lovesick after his girl
In the states. Well. we'd written lots OF
| letters to girls from their chaps before and
got lots of fun out it, but we had even :
better show for a game here. for 1t hap
pened that Van Loo knew all about the
gfrl-things that even the mans own part.
ner didn't, for Van Loo's mother was n
sort of friend of the girls family. and
travelled about with her, and knew that the
| girl was spoony over this Demorest and
that they corresponded. So. knowing thai
Van Loo was employed at Heavy Tree. sfe
wrote to him to find out all about Demores
and how TO stop this foolish nonsense, fol
| the girls parents didn't want her to marry
a broken-down miner like him. 90 We
thought we'd do 1t our own way and write
letter to her as II It was from him. don
you see? / wanted to make him celi heI
awful names and say that he hated her
that he was murderer and q horse thief
and that he had killed polic6ilAn. enf
that he was thinking OF becoming . Dig
ger Indian and OF having q Digger sQuav