The Savannah morning news., 1901-08-19
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] Our Daily Short Stories
tM HENLEY, REMITTANCE MAN
BY WILLIAM MLEoD RAINE.
Copyright. 1901. by Authors syndicate.)

was from New England, and at heart
the Puritan instincts of her ancestors
sun swayed her. She understood him
TO mean that he had been intoxicated
at the time, and her heart rebelled
against the weakness of this debonair
young man with the splendid eyes of
nre. 1t was bad enough for the other
cowmen to get on their yearly tears"
but for man with dormant possibili-
ties like this one the sin was the
greater AT the same time she confess
ed to herself that she was very great
ly interested in the young fellow lying
on the ground before her and looking
up at her with the cynical sardonic
smile and the eyes so full of scorn at
himself.
Henley on his part was also very
much taken with this rather fine-look-
ing young woman whose manner was
uEconsciously so eloquent of Judgment
on him. 1t had been a long time since
any woman of that type had been in
terested enough in him to care whether
he went to the dogs or not. Indeed, a
woman had started him there in the
hrst place by pilting him for a more
eligible match. Some appealing quality
in her gray eyes stirred him now to
say, with the ironic gleam in his eye
"A fine specimen, is it not, Miss
Forsyth? You'll have a chance to study
the remittance man it his best, you
Know. One of the most prolific products
OF the Rocky mountain region is the
remittance man, originally an exotic
transplanted at great expense from
England for his family's good
You mustn't talk that way-as If
you didn't care" she said, gently.
DO you happen to care?" he asked
hnr 90
eyes.
She flushed uneasily. 'Of course 1
care at seeing such a waste of human
life. 1t is one of the saddest things l
have ever seem"
He drew long breath and groaned.
is your arm paining you very
much?" she asked. >
Arm? MOI" he said savagely.
What's broken arm to shout about?
I'm doing the baby act because Heav-
ems opened to me after I've elected
hell"
That was the last of Jim Henlcy's
"sprees." He fought his fight out
grimly and won. Even the Christmas
season passed without the usual jcll-
tication. But oddly enough, the
friendship between Henley and Miss
Forsyth did not progress. Perhaps the
memory of that morning when she had
found him a victim of his own weak
ness rose as a barrier between them.
ut any rate there was a subtle reserve
ir their speech and manner that grew
greater rather than less.
Then came the great blizzard in the
San Joaquin valley. All day the storm
had been growing worse and by the
afternoon it had developed into a bliz-
zard in which no living thing could be
out and retain life. At the Bar Y
ranch they worked like Trojans to get
things ship-shape for the night, and
just before dusk Henry dropped into
his chair a weary man.
He was up again like a flash, for it
had come to him suddenly that Miss
Forsyth might be still at the school
house. To the amazement of his men
and despite their protests he mounted
and rode to the ranch house where she
stayed. She had not arrived. They
were in great fear for her, but no man
cared to venture out into the bowling
blizzard, for they counted it sure
death.
How, Jim Henley fought his way to
the school house; how his horse sue
cumbed and he pushed on alone; how
the bitter cold and the uncomfortable
wind took the sap of life out of him;
how he fell and rose and fell again,
still fighting forward step by step
against the grimmest enemy that ever
man conquered how he found Lyndona
Forsyth in the drift all but dead. and
won al length to the school house with
her; how they were together for three
days without food except some few
scraps, cut off from rescue by the
raging blizzard, and how next spring
the Methodist minister at the Half
Way house joined in wedlock James
Marlborough Henley and Lyndona For
syth, the ranchers of the valley still
delight to tell.