The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1899-12-23
BY MARY T. wAGGAArAN

1t was a bitter Christmas on Noun
Manitou. Never had there been s
cruel a winter" the old people mum
/. bled, as they bent shivering and chat
tering over their ashen hearths
Even old Manitou himself seemed t
feel the general strain and stress
Usually he silenced his noisy litti
streams, tucked in his riotous draperie
of vine ana shrubbery, and mufflins
himself comfortably in a fleecy blan
ket Of SNOW, slept undisturbed from No
Vember until April.
But this year the pitiless wind:
sweeping from the sea tore away his
covering; black rocks and witheret
shrubs were left stark and bare; there
were meanings and whispers in the
gorges, and among the prisoned
streams the mountain seemed stirring
in fierce unrest. But more portentous
! still arose the fireless furnaces and
smokelesS shafts of the great Dunmore
Iron Works, that had shut down for
the winter, leaving 600 men out OF
work
There was little Christmas cheer or
| Christmas gladnesS in the three score
cabins that huddled around the huge
foundry, little of the sweet Christmas
spirit in the hearts of the rough, low
! broWed men who lounged or gathered
! at store and street corner in muttering
! groups.
! But a mile away, on the sunny side
! of the ridge, sheltered by granite walls
and evergreen hedges, Dunmore Hall
rose like a beautiful Christmas picture,
its quaint gables wreathed with snow
flecked ivy, its quaint diamond paned
windows winking back the sunlight, it's
broad, oak-ribbed halls aglow with
light and warmth and cheer. For the
young DunmoreS had come home for
the holidays, and the usually silent old
house had Weakened into youthful life
and gladness. There was sweet, 10
year-old Elsie, with two pretty class
mates from st. Ursule's, and her cou-
sins-Dolly, and Grace and Sue. There
was Jack with two of his football team
from Georgetown, and Dick Thurston
and Harry Lee from the Military AGA
denny, as sturdy a set Of young squires
as ever held a mountain keep in the
days of old. Rumors Of brown bear
in the west summit had sent them all
off on a hunting expedition this morn
ing; so the girls were left to feStoon
pictures and walls with holly and ivy,
and make the old house gay with
Christmas green. Down in pantry and
houSekeeper'S room there were fat tur-
keys and plump geese in hetacombS,
and rounds OF, spiced beef and home
cured hams; buildings and pies and
cakes galore were being turned out
from the big kitchen, while Aunt Janet
still weighed and measured and gave
out from the great store rooms, for
there was to be a meeting of stockhold-
ers at Dunmore Hall tomorrow, and it
was rumored that the works were to
be reopened with 500 new hands on the
first of the coming year. There was no
mothers voice in the Dunmore house
hold. Five years ago those sweet tones
had been silenced in death. Instead,
there was Aunt Janet's word of COM
mand-Aunt Janet, who had grown up
in the good "befo' the war" days, when
half a hundred servants answered to
her cali. Aunt Janet, who, hard-voiced,
featured, keen-eyed-had the
stern, uncompromising, thrifty soul of
her Covenanting ancestors, and with
her iron gray curls pinned back, her
apron on, and her scales
and keys in hand, was an epitome of
virtue that made every slip
shod sinner black or white, tremble.
They were trembling today. Pretty
little Elsie, tripping down the stairs, !
heard Aunt Janet's voice rising above |
a domestic babel, and knew that there
was some stern court of inquiry in
progress. =
Sugar. flour! raisins! my best Mus
catel raisins-a good pound of them. |
Such bold-faced thieving ] never saw |
in my life, under my very nose-my |
very nose" added Aunt Janet, as if the |
dignity of that important feature had |
been unpardonably outraged.
Il not know, l not know, sobbed the |
culprit, a pale-faced girl of Is, who I
stood in the midst of an open-eyed cir
Gle of servants, while Aunt Janet,
sternly diving into the capacious pock- |
cts of her overskirt, brought out the |
pilfered stores. Elsie stopped at the
doorway, looking in with astonished |
pity The luckless sinner was Treda,
poor little Alsatian Freda, who could
speak a word of English, but
who had come up to the great house to
ind work during the holidays.
u not know, l not know" repeated
Freda, piteously, and she burst out in
l torrent of excited patois, which only
little Elsie, who was good French
and German scholar, could at all COM
1rehend.
You don't know" repeated Aunt
Janet, sternly; don't tell me any such
lie as that you don't know when you
ire stealing
20, Aunt Janet, she didn't" inter-
posed Elsie eagerly. she didn't I'M
at all, she thought you were
glNlIlR d 0uIlSlIldS least ike IneV DO
n her country, and it was no harm to
axe her share home to her little broth
+ Otto
Il don't believe a word of it. not a
word" said Aunt Janet, shutting her
ips with a click. And whether she
understands or not, she leaves this
louse tonight. I am sure we have
hieves and cUt-throats enough around
IS without taking them to our hearts
nd homes. So you are to go, you I'M
erstand?" and she took Freda roughly
" the shoulder and whirled her round
o the door. go, go, and never come
ear this house again, you miserable
title thief If l catch you on this
lace again, I'll have you locked up.'
The girls dark eyes flashed. The ,
ude touch. the harsh tone, were not to !
e misapprehended. {
II co. she said. Madame, fear not.
7reda come back nevare-nevareu- Z
md. with flushed cheeks and blazing
yes she was hurrying out of the big !
over hall, when Elsie's gentle hand +
ras laid on her arm. /
wait. Freda, poor Fredo 1 under =.
tand. 1 believe you, Freda, if, Aunt /
anet doesn't"
u die before come back" burst
orth Freda, paseionately S
Il know, 1 know" said Elsie, sooth- 9