West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1899-04-27
A MOUNTAIN GIRL.
A Sad, True Story Of Love and
Tragedy, as Related by a
United States Deputy Mar.
Shal.
By PRrsroN COUNTY AUTHOR.
rltten Specially for The Argus.
CHAPTER 1.

CHAPTER 4.
A solitary horseman. plodding his
lonely way over mountainous read in
one of the widest and most mountain
Gus regions of West Virginia, pauses
for moment as he reaches the crest of
"PiRey Knob" and turning his horses
head about, drinks i'm the beauty of the
scene. The time is near four olock of
an afternoon in late September; the
setting sun bathes the scene I'm bright
est hue, aud renders doubly striking
the autumual tints OF the foliage. For
miles and miles. as far as the eye can
reach, the scene is enc OF grandeur and
beauty
Away TO the west the mountains rise
one above another until the peaks are
lost in the clouds. To the east there
are miles Of level and unbroken forest.
and southwark n river winds its way
through fertile farms and quiet viii
lagos. From the travellers feet the
scene is one of beauty, unsurpassed
nowhere in fair America The suns
rays falls slantinRly on the magnificent
trees the sturdy oak, in its mantle of
darkest brown; the shIvering maple,
its foliage Rlittering blood-red, yellow
and gold, and upon the stately, waying
pine, whose dark green branches lend
enough sOmberness TO the scene to
make it interestingly mysterious. A
squirrel is chattering in tree nearby,
and overhead a solitary crow shrieks
forth shrill cav" The traveller
pays no attention TO these, the only
nearby signs of life; nor does he seem
to be deeply interested Ia the pam
Drama spread before him. While has
gaze is directed to the distant noun
tains, there is yet non-appreciable
expression in the eyes which peer forth
from gray. shaggy brows. Bright and
ferret-lilSe are these eyes and just now
they are glittering and swapping. as II
in expectancO of exciting scenes The
man looks To be n typical noun taineer.
and but for the brightness of his eyes
would be adjudged to be about sixty
five years OF age. He is clad in rough
garments of home-spun brown; high.
top boots encase mis- legs and into these
the breeches arc thrust without an eye
to artistic appearances. A bad-fitting
coat is buttoned about his "uppers"
and at the neck the collar OF wooleu
shirt is in evidence. The face is al
most entirely covered by crop of IRON
grey bushy wbiskers, extending 10 and
all about the throat and neck. A
slouch hat adorns his head and from
beneath il bulges forth mass OF iron
grey hair. The hands that grip the
bridle-rein are tanned to a dark brown
but they do not have the appearance
OF age Both man and horse look tired
and jaded. Presently the traveller
turns his horses head in the direction
they were first travelling, and as he
pauses a moment as II to get his bear
ings, he mutters to himself:
II must be near the place. My IN
structions say the headquarters are
but mile and a-half beyond this knob.
Let's see" consulting small card
which he took from his pocket, "the
by-path which leads to Frieze's cabin.
where poor Barnes met his death IS
but half-a-mile beyond this point
Now" 20 his horse--"Tobe, old boy,
for few adventures ] hope we will
be successful in catching the murder
ess Of our old friend. And IL we do.
| Further comment was unnecessary
The look IN the mans eyes completed
sentence. Touching his horse lightly
with the spur he wore on his boot the
two friends--man and horse passed
| slowly down she incline and around a
curve into the woods. When horse
and rider had passed from view all re-
mained quiet for a moment or two on
the knob, and then the figure OF a
woman bounded lightly over a dead
log and into the road. The spring she
gave to clear the LOG was as graceful
az that of g tiger, and her bare feet
I gave forth nc sound as they struck the
stony road. Tall OF stature was the
woman. with coal-black hair and ewes.
and face tanned as dark as an IN
dams. She was clad iu "a rough. short
SKIRT Of the native hone spun. a close
fitting Jersey" tightsned at the waist
by a leather belt, and in one dark.
strong hand she carried a calico bon
ret Ihe waist vas one Of ample pro-
portions, having never been rounded
oy the embrace OF corset, the hips
and shoulders were ptoportionatelg
large, and from beneath the msagre
slSirt a shapely ankle and we'll
formed foot caught the eye Of casual
observer Judging by Appearances.
the wewan was not more than fye and
twenty years of age. As she shaded
her eyes from the sunsets glow with
her brown right hand fierce express.
ion burned in the big, midnight eyes.
which were turned in the direction the
traveller had taken. She stood q mo-
ment in silence, then an exclamation
burst from her lips
"DurD yo i"--and she shook her am.
pie est ia the air-'W'at We want
hyar, ia lex to know Air ye neither
one o them deputies. LEX the last one
thet KEN iu ter the mountincs an