The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1898-06-01

dH0 WILL LAO AOAS3 hA@N ~Ne~~>s 'S~~
ing around his manlys face
With. slow and mufned football he
stepped to the dark blue blanket which
served as hanging between the two
rooms. Tho chimneys of the two COM
partments Of the hut we're built back to
back, and a cherry wood fire YVES burn
ing in the inner room. AS he cropped
the hanging blanket and paused for a
moment in the half gloom Harry could
barely distinguish his surroundings by
the aid of the smeary, yellow, Pickering
flames of the logs. At the farther end
stood rough, low couch covered with
buffalo skins, and upon its rich, deep
brown shone the white face Of a woman
who had been beautiful before the agony
of hunger had dragged the rounded
cheeks into lined and angular forms and
had sucked the blood from the cherry
red lips The big gray blue eyes looked
nearly black in the dim light, and they
stared vacantly. The fingers, white and
worn to the bone, lay upon the bearskin
which covered her, like wax models OF
dead hands.
The young man approached the bed
as a repentant pilgrim of old might
have drawn nigh to the shrine OF the
enskied saint whose intercession he
craved. He. looked at her, and his
brawny limbs tremb1ed and shook as in
palsy while he pictured to himself the
lovely, loving and ldyable girl whom he
had hoped to call his own and whcm
the hand of heaven had thus sorely
stricken. She moved not on her couch,
nor Whispered a word, nor drew &
breath. But for the slight movement Of
the bosom and for the barely perceptible
tremor Of the lips she might have been
dead already. The big eyes stared. and
Harry thought they stared at him and
chided him softly, not harshly. The
gaze cut through his heartstrings like
red hot dagger, and ne rushed from
the room.
sshe is dyin!'' he cried in his agony.
'sAin't thar nuthin at all to eat In the
place-nuthin-nora drink Of whisky
nuthin, nuthin?''
His searching glance Travelled around
the room unavailingly. The shelves
were bare.
ssThar amt a morsel nor drop.
and thar hasn't bin these Two days, "
answered the old man. with choking
voice.
..An she'll de-" Harry cried, "if
she'll get no food?''
eyes, die," echoed the pioneer
"die, like Joe an Bill an Dick-an yew
an will follow her,.
The young man few at the cupboard
and flung the dishes and plates and
bottles and cups and jugs it contain
ed on the floor in a Gathering confu-
sion. He dived into every nook; he ran
sacked every corner; he swept the
boards for possible crumbs and turned
the bottles for any nourlshing drops
they might contain. Not mite, not
ain atom OF food, not drop Of liquor,
was there.
Then he took down the. rife which
hung on a peg on the wall, and, half
naked as he was, he opened the door
and walked out into the slush and the
snow. The wind, even in its weakened
forces, was icy and cut him like a thou
sand whips. He walked all round the
house, but no living thing, no bird or
game of any kind, was to be seen,
nothing anywhere but the great white
pail Of snow and the dark brown of the
rocks and trees below and the endless
gray sky above.
Shivering and trembling, he returned
to the hut and closed the door against
the glacial blast
cit amt no use, I" he said bitterly.
st knowed it warn't no use, but ]
thought I'd try
He sat down for a few minutes in
silent tremor, with his elbows upon the
table and his head upon his hands.
On sudden he jumped up like one
mad. His eyes glowed as with an in
spiration that might have been holy.
"By the livin God, - he cried, ''yew
shall net die, my Nell, my darlin
Neh! Yew shall not die OF hunger while
Panther Harry is alive.-no-no-no!
Thank God an his mercy that I've
thought Of it afore it warn't too late.
''What do yew mean? What are yew
goin to do?" Hays demanded, looking
at him with feyerish eyes.
"Don't ASK Earry replied. He
gasped for breath between each SEN
tence. ''I'll save her, hat don't ask.
Let me-and say nuthin. y
"But I'm dyin, too, y whined the old
man. "I'm goin blind, an-I'm-help,
help!"
The voice became fainter, and the pi-
oneer's wasted form slid from his seat
and rolled sideways on the floor
Harry bent over him and looked into
the starving mans face.
Then he rose slowly and haggardly.
His lids were tightly closed, and he bit
them.
"she first" he said after slight
pause. "My darlin first I'll save him
afterward"
He went to the table and opened the
drawer