The pioneer press. (Miller, Hand County, S.D.) 1893-190?, 1899-06-01

me off, and as / moved toward her,
a. wild shudder passed through her
form, the candle fell from her. hands,
and we were again in darkness.
| why, motherr' | said, in sooth-
ing tone, kneeling by her side. SIS
this the welcome you give me on my
return ?-andon Christmas night, too!'
l strove to raise her in my arms, but
she shrunk shudderingly from me.
Good Godv' / cried. "What is the
meaning of this? Where is my wife
where is Mabel? Do you not know me?
| am Amos, your SON.
The name brought glimmer Of light
| to her mind.
Amos she moanel mo, no! 1t is
the dead that is speaking to me. ] have
no son; he was killed, as his father
was, by the cruel sea. Lord, have pity
| on me! Lord, have pity on mer'
Killed as my father was, by the
cruel sea! What had occurred, then,
during my absence? Could it be pos
sible that the news Of our rescue in
the boats had failed to reach home?
No, it was impossible. There were my
letters to Mabel, relating all the cir
,2stances of our peril and our escape
1 caring for my old mothers reason,
/ searched about for matches, that she
MIGHT see me bodily, and so assure
herself. But could not find them, and
what passed between us took place
in the dark, neither seeing the others
face.
| knelt again by her side.
You foolish Old soulr' | said, in
tender and coaxing tone, "do you know
what you are saying? Nay, I'll not
touch you if my touch hurts you?
Steady yourself, mother; / am neither
dead nor drowned, or how could be
here talking to you?"
She could not have understood me.
my Amos"' she sobbed my boy.
that l loved and worshiped. The best,
the bravest sailor on all the queens
seas! My old eyes will never again
be blessed with sight of him-never
again, never again"
] had strong need to apply myself TO
the advice / gave to her. 1t was as
much as l could do to keep steady, so
as to get the heart of this mystery.
Although l was trribly shaken, | proved
myself equal to the occasion, and by
amt or tenderness and a good deal of
coaxing, | managed at length to con-
vince my mother that / was alive.
Then, to my amaZement, part of the
story was told and made clear to me.
The Blue Jacket that went down with
all hands when within two days sail
OF the Australian coast, was believed
by my mother TO have been the Blue
Jacket in which l served. To arrive
at this understanding occupied me fully
an hour, and by that time my mother
was sitting on my knee, soothed and
pacified and filled with a feeling OF
awe and gratitude at my escape.
could now turn my attention to those
matters nearest my heart. The whole
mystery was not yet cleared. Being
supposed to be dead was a sufficient
reason for my wife not being at home
to welcome me; but / had written to
her, twice from China and twice from
Melbourne. What had become of those
letters? Surely, if she had received
them-and why should she not? they
were addressed to her plainly at her
mothers house-she would not have
kept the good tidings of my safety and
promotion from my own mother. The
first thing | had to do, plainly. was
to question my mother upon this point.
N wo that | have convinced you.
mother" Isaid, that i am not lying
at the bottom of the sea, and that |
am no ghost, you must satisfy me upon
some point that are dark to me- Ma
bel-why, what's the matter with you,
dame, that you shrink from me? Are
you i'll again? / will light the candle
II you will tell me where | can find
the matches. We can talk better in
the light"
But she chung close to me again, with
something of terror expressed in her
manner-which ! set down to her not
having entirely recovered from her
fears-and murmured that she did not
want light; that the darkness suited
her best; and that sitting there with
me, with no other soul in the house
but ourselves, brought to her the men,
DRY of the time when / was child
and when we two were all in all to
each other, with no one to step in be-
tween US. These sentiments she ex-
pressed, not in SO coherent and consise
manner as | have written them, but
in way that rendered them not diff
cult to understand. humored her, and
continued:
mother, and never shall be. Mabel and
l are both your children, and my love
for her makes you dearer to me; for
with certain thoughts in my mind that
have been long cherishing, it seems