The Neihart herald. [volume] (Neihart, Mont.) 1890-1901, 1899-08-12
CHAPTER V.

but, after going a few yards, had to
come to an ignominious halt, clinging
wildly to a clump of gorse. My hat
went rolling steadily down to the
shore, several hundred feet below,
whilst my face and hands were
scratched and bleeding, and my feet
constantly slipping from under me.
At last, damned in between two bush
es, 1 crouched cautiously forward to
review my position. My sprightly
guide had reached the sheep track,
then, after looking hastily round for
me, l saw her suddenly spring up the
side of a block of granite, as bald as
the palm of my hand, and disappear
Stewards over the summit.
by Jove!" 1 exclaimed in utter
establishment. why, she's an ante
lope, a mountain cat, the old witch's
granddaughter! l wish l had never
come across either of them! l sup
pose l must get down somehow"
Half kneeling, half sitting, 1 de-
scended slowly, swinging myself from
bush to bush, needless Of the singing
blows from furze and thistle, keeping
my clumsy heels we'll off the treach-
erous soil, when suddenly, almost
halfway down, from under a bed of
bracken that covered her to the chin,
Helen's face looked up at me full of
eager, contrite concern, her strange
dark eyes sweeping my disfigured, per-
spring face with a look that thrilled
me almost uncannily.
81 am so sorry" she painted; "oh,
SO sorry! 1 quite forgot you were a
stranger and u~naccustomed to the
cliffs; they are dreadfully slippery this
weather. l have to go after the sheep
for Mike every day now-he can't hold
on a bit, though he was born on the
mountain. All, how you have hurt
yourself, to be sure! Those dreadful
furze bushes! Put your hand on my
shoulder, 1 will guide you down the
rest; we have only the ferns to work
through now to the path. Here's
your hat; it's not spoiled a bit
picked it up on the beach before the
water had time to reach it."
at was after my hat you were seal
ing that cliff"
eyes, l had nc time to go around by
the path; the tide is on the turn and
would have taken it off to America in
two minutes more"
you're not going away now, are
your" l asked eagerly, lifting my hand
from her slender shoulder. you'll
see me beyond the first point, won't
your"
Eyes, yes-for sure, yes," she an
swered quickly; Il will go with you tc
the Goats Back, if o like-ay, and
beyond it. Oh, Mr.. Dennys, what
rude, wild, ill-mannered girl you must
think me to fly off and leave you like
that after you being so kind to COM
that long way-from London itself
just to tell granny about poor Uncle
Brian! Will you forgive me, please?'
l pressed the childish hand, saying
smilingly-
Eyes, yes, 1 forgive you, Miss
Helen"
And you will let me wipe the BLOOD
from your poor face, won't you?" she
pleaded, dipping a large cool leaf into
a little crystal pool under a rock
handkerchief this child of nature hat
none, I suspected-and passing it ovel
my hot and blood-stained face.
After this we marched on side by
side and became fast friends. Lons
hofo,a W. raochad thu r,inol aoL;a
knew the whole story of her lonely
neglected life. l knew that she haC
been born or the mountain-had LIVED
there all the eighteen years Of he
u%neventful life, never once having Wis
tied the p%ost-town of Droomlaguei
that she had no father or mother
brothers nor sisters, but lived all alon,
with her grandmother and two serv
ants, Mike Doolan and his wife Bid
dy; and finally, though the poor chill
made no complaint of her natura
guardian or indeed seemed aware Their
was cause for any, yet I clearly say
that she was ~shamefully neglected b,
her, and no more concern paid to he
bodily or her mental w~ell-being thai
if she had been a goat browsing on tn
mountain-side, instead of a deat
daughters only child.
After helping for a couple of hour
every morning in the dairy and farm
yard, she told me she wal free to d
what she pleased, wander whittier sh
would the whole day long, make wha
chance acquaintance she liked, com
in at any hour of the evening unques
toned, Observation-Disclosures she ha,
often spent the whole night lying O
the cliff, when she found her ill-ven
tilated attic too hot and close to sleel
in, and no one had been any the wiser
and even If they were, she argued-il
answer to my dissenting look-Bidd,
wouldn't mind, and granny wouldn'
care-not she! And, besides, wha
harm was it? Sure nothing in tn
world made her feel so good and hap
py as lying there all alone in the grea
stiffness, waiting for the first streal
of dawn to wake up the sleeping sea
watching the white-winged sea-bird
sailing in and out among the grea
dark rocksi
And now I must be going, Mr.. Den
nys," she said, when a cluster @
matched roofs lying close to the shor
came within view" for there's BalIy
killagan before Won. How nuiekIv w