The pioneer press. (Miller, Hand County, S.D.) 1893-190?, 1899-07-27

also in that ship. Was not the infer
ence as clear as the MONDAY sun?
A black cloud fell upon my soul All
goodness, all purity, was blotted out
of the world for ever and ever!
Through all my trouble and misery
had chung, with strong, yearning
hands, to the rock of my wife's faith
fulness. Whatever CT sweetness came
into my life (Heaven knows there was
little enoughD after the last inter-
view with my mother, came to me
through the light of this belief in
Mabels innocence and purity. But for
that my soul would have been wrecked
many years ago. Better if it had been:
better if | had fallen; better if / had
died! For now the rock to which /
had chung, and on which grew flowers
which had brought a sad, sweet con-
ISOLATION to me, crumbled away to rot
tenness at the sight of dead mans
race; henceforth truth and virtue were
lying symbols. The waters round
about that rock had hitherto been
clear and bright, and in their depths
| had seen mirrored the stainless soul
OF pure woman, bringing to me Wis
ion of heaven in the future. Now the
waters were black and turbid. and
nothing but defilement and treachery
were there
| pressed my hands upon my eyes
and forehead 10 prevent myself from
going mad. Before that occurred, l
must look once more upon the face of
my enemy.
1t lay before me, gray and sinful
even in death. | had seen the face not
more than six times in my life, and
each time it had brought blight upon
me; but it had never been more pow
erful for evil than now, when the
treacherous eyes lacked light, and the
lying tongue was dumb. AS | gazed
at it, faith, hope, religion, died utterly
away, and left me reckless, despair
ing man. What could my wife have
seen in this villain to cause her to be
false to me? The basest and meanest
qualities in human nature never had
more fitting shell than the carcass
Of this man; and as | spurned it with
my foot, reflected with bitterness that
yenge. For / doubted not that If
had met him alive should nave killed
him, and | experienced no feeling of
gratefulness that | had been spared
the crime.
AS | disturbed the body, piece of
glittering metal on the ground at
tracted me. picked it up; it was
sovereign; and my attention was
drawn to the circumstance that the
earth upon which the body lay had
been newly turned over. | pushed the
;nanimate clay aside, and, scratching
the earth with my nails. | came upon
a treasure in gold l dug it up, and
calculated that the weight altogether,
in rough nuggets and soyereigns,
could not be less than thirty pounds.
II was for this my wife had betrayed
me; this was the virtue she saw in
him. My dear old mother was right.
Mabers heart was as good as gold;
no better: and such a poor thing as
love faded in its glitter. AS / ran my
fingers through the pile, l derived
savage pleasure from the reflection
that the worthless heap was mine, and
indeed a great part of it really did be-
long to me. Had not the villain stol-
en- it from me on the goldfields? /
removed it, and buried in in a secret
spot; and then, moodiiy, and with
changed heart. | walked to the camp,
RI
ing me approach. ran toward Inc, with
a glad look in her eyes. and raised her
face for the expected kiss. From the
impulse OF habit, more than from any
feeling of affection, stopped, and was
about to embrace her, when the like
ness in her to my false wife so Jared
upon me that pushed her aside rough
ly, with something like curse upon
my lips. Fair face, like Mabel's; fair
hair. like Mabeps; blue eyes, as hers
were. Had the girl been black and
ugly / might have tolerated her, al
though l felt / was no longer capable
of love; but her beauty made me Ioathe
her. Heaven forgive me for my
thoughts at that time. My heart was
filled with hatred toward all man
kind.
strobe toward my companions
"A man lies dead yonder," / said, in
a tone so hard and morose that they
stared at me in wonder and dismay.
Tom Wren will show you his body.
suppose you will choose to bury him,
though by rights he should be left to
rot where he lies. But there's no such
thing as justice in this world, nor in
the next. if there is one. And look
you, resign my command. You may
-nnlr ,rnci, n,n "a load for [ shall nnuor