The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1901-10-04

| - HAA-'SA was ~ ms hSl hdI uuuCk
her round chin before a small
6Sss.Ts7Sa glass at her window. The
SSSg window gave upon a back
ground of serrated mountain and olive
shadoWed canyon, with a faint addi-
tional outline of a higher snow level,
the only dreamy suggestion of the
whole landscape. The foreground was
a glaringly fresh and unpicturesque
mining town, whose irregular attempts
at regularity were set forth with all the
cruel uncompromising clearness of the
| California atmosphere. There was the
straight Main street, with it's new brick
block of "stores," ending abruptly
against tangled bluff; there was the
ruthless clearing in the sedate pines
where the hideous spire of the new
| church initiated the soaring of tile sol
emn shafts it had displaced with al
most irreligious mockery. Yet this fore
| ground was Cissy's world-her life, her
sole girlish experience. She did not,
| however, bother her pretty head with
the view just then, but moved her
cheek up and down before the glass
the better to examine by the merciless
| glare of the sunlight few freckles
| that starred the hollows of her tenn
pies Like others of her sex, she was a
| poor critic of what was her real beauty
and quarreled with that peculiar tex
ture of her healthy skin which made
her face as eloquent in her sun kissed
cheek as in her bright eyes and express
| sion. Nevertheless she was somewhat
consoled by the ravishing effect of the
bowknot she had just tied and turned
away not wholly dissatisfied. Indeed
as the acknowledged belle of Canada
City and the daughter of it's principal
banker small wonder that a certain
frank vanity and childlike imperious-
ness were among her faults and her at
fractions.
She bounded down the stairs and into
the front parlor, for their house pos
sessed the unheard Of luxury of a dou-
| BILE drawing room, albeit the second
| apartment contained a desk and was
occasionally used by Cissy's father in
private business interviews with anx-
ious seekers of advances" who shun-
| ned the publicity of the bank. Here
| she instantly flew into the arms of her
bosom friend, Miss Piney Tibbs, girl
only shade or two less pretty than
herself, who, always more or less i'll at
ease in these splendors, was awaiting
her impatiently. For Miss Tibbs was
| merely the daughter of the hotel keep
er, and, although Tibbs was south
erner and had owned "his own mig
gers" in the states, she was of inferior
position and protegee of Cissy's.
"Thank goodness you've come" ex-
claimed Miss Tibbs, "for I've bin sittin
here till l nigh took root What KEEP
ye"
How does it look" responded Cissy
| as relevant reply.
The ''it' referred to Cissy's new hat,
and to the young girl the conference
was perfectly plain. Miss Tibbs looked
at ''it'' severely. 1t would not do for a
protegee to be too complaisant.
"Hem! Must have cost a heap O.
money"
"It did," said Cissy. "Came from the
best milliner in San Francisco"
| 'Of COURSE" said Pney, with half
assumed envy, "when your pepper runs
the bank and just wallows in goldv
| "Never mind, DEAR" said Cissy cheer
| fully. "So'n your pepper some day.
Pm going to get mine to let your pepper
into something-ditch stocks and SUCH
| Yesi True, o king! Popper'll do any
thing for me-" she added a little loftily.
Loyal as Piney was to her friend,
| she was by no means convinced of
this. She knew the difference between
the two men and had vivid recollec-
F! tion Of hearing her own father express
his opinion of Cissy's respected parent
as "gold shark" and quartz miner
crusher." 1t did not, however, affect
her friendship for Cissy. She only said,
Lets come" caught Cissy around the
waist, pranced with her out into the
veranda and gasped, out of breath.
"Where are we going first?"
| Down Main street." said Cissy
promptly.
"And let us stop at Markham's store.
They've got some new things in from
Sacramento" said Piney.
Country Styles" returned Cissy,
with supercilious air. "No. Besides
Markham's head clerk is getting too
presumptuous. Just guess! He asked
me, while l was buying something,
if enjoyed the dance last Monday"
"But you danced with him." said the
simple Piney in astonishment.
"But not in his store among his GUS
TONER'S" said Cissy sapiently. mo.
We're going down Main street past
Secamp's. Those Secamp girls are sure
to be at their windows looking out.
This hat will just turn 'em green
greener than ever"
you're Just horrid, Cissv' said Pi-
ney, with admiration.
"And then" continued Cissy, "we'll
just sail down past the new block to
the parsons and make call"
"Oh, see," said PineY archlY, eth
be just about the time when the new
engineer of the mill works has clean
shirt on and is smoking his cigar be-
fore the Office"
Cissy tossed her hat disdainfully.
"Much anybody cares whether he's
there or not. l haven't forgotten how
he showed us over the mill the other
day in pair of Overalls just like a
workman"
But they say he's awfully smart