The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1898-12-14

Notlu hot " ~ uiAu - II you cOuiI
choose nothing else"
II was short handled, long dashed
whip, the nearest approach to raw
hide quirt that Ben could find, but of
unusual size. and it looked strangely
out Of place with its present surround
ings. But Mat took it in hand as If she
knew its use. Notwithstanding her
protest, there had grown up in her
mind conviction that Ben had faith
omed her desire for that pin, and in
tended TO surprise her with it, hence
the disappointment she was fighting
down. But the utter inappropriateness
of such whip as Paula described made
her laugh, and helped her 70 say:
This will be of more use on the
ranch. Thank you, Ben; l am glad
you gave it to me.p And she was glad,
for she considered her longing for the
pin a weakness, such as might be ex-
pected of Paula, but not of her
Excitement kept her eyes open long
after she had gone to bed, and the
house had become still, but she dozed
off at last, and was dreaming of rus
tiers aud stampeding cattle and prairie
winds, when she woke with a shiver,
to find strong draught blowing over
her, and realized that there was an
open window somewhere that needed
closing.
She crept out of bed softly and made
for the dressing room, where light
was kept burning. There was the win
dow, wide open, sure enough and
there was something more-the stink
ing figure Of man just coming from
the chamber occupied by her uncle and
aunt The table laden with birthday
gifts stood before him, and he paused
TO glance over it, though he had found
richer booty in the room beyond. But
he was not TO escape with it through
the way he had left open.
He found himself unexpectedly con-
fronted by little night-gowned erea-
ture, whom he could have crushed with
one hand, could he only have got at
her, but the creature had caught up
that providential gift Of Ben's aud was
showering him with such blows as she
would have rained upon an unruly
long-horn breaking from the herd,
keeping the table between them, blind
ing him with the very first stroke
keeping that Kissing, biting, stinging
lash playing about his head and hands
as he strove vainly to fightit Off thank
fuI-oh, so thankful for the hardy
strength of her prairie training, driv-
ing him around and around, till ne
made final dash in the direction of
the window in his desperate effort to
escape.
But Mat was so close after him that
she pulled down the heavy sash upon
him, and held him prisoner there till
her uncle aud Ben, aroused by the fra
cas-, came to her aid.
And how they pfaised her when it
was all over! 1t was almost incredible
to them that she could have done the
thing, even with the evidences before
them. That burly ruflian to be taken
by girl like heri Why, if it had been
Panla--
"I should have tainted dead away at
first sight of him. Paula admitted.
.sAnd Mat did not even faint after
wards, as all heroines do.
+ because / am not heroine, and be-
cause it pays to keep strong, even here
in the East. Yet could have done
nothing without Ben's lucky gift.
"And that" confessed Ben, twas
half joke and half test. / thought
you might give Paula one lesson more
by showing her how well you could
bear disappointment, for every one but
yourself expected some sort Of gewgaw
from me-" There was a twinkle in
Ben's eyes as he said it that showed he
was not 50 ignorant of Mats state of
mind as he pretended to be. "But 1
see you have not mastered all the se-
crets of your whip yet" and he un-
screwed the end of the handle TO ex-
tract something from its hollow, which
dropped into Mats hand 10 flash up at
her, a real surprise now-the coveted
pin.