The times., 1901-03-10

Thank Heaven you are mott he ex-
claimed fervently. You are not one Of
those women who make hideouS their
womanhood by attempting what they are
not lifted for. Fancy you emuatlng tndt
creature Miss Grimm is always throwing
in my face-Olga Braun But / was just
going to ask you a question:, he Went
on, after short pause You know
Switzerland so well, and you seem TO me
10 be always watching people in your
quiet way. What do you think is the.
first qualification of a mountaineer?'
The first. she said, and there was
wistful note in her voice that made it's
music almost painfully sweet; the first,
/ think, is to love the mountains, not to
look on them as enemies to be conquered,
but friends to be won; not only TO think
Of the honor and glory of difficult
ascent, OF a new path discovered, or a
record made; to find the vast solitudes of
ice and snow not lonely but peOpled with
beautiful dreams and thoughts that help.
There are so many qualifications, but 1t
seems to me that is the first and greatest
to have the love of the mountains in
your heart
Valance did not answer at once. How
was il that she understood that, this
could put into words the vague things
that stirred within him, formiess, imma-
turc?
Before he found words she was gone,
with a hurried Goodnight
IT was dark still when he stood on the
veranda in the early hours of the next
morning, waiting for his guides
At the light sound of n fOOtstep he
turned. and met the brown-haired girl
as she came out of the hall
81 am u bad sleeper and very early
riser she said, in answer to his aston
ished greeting.
Have I your good wishes?" he asked.
Yes, indeed, she said. with a smile.
y wish YOU luck-and safe return.
Before his guides turned the corner Of
the street. by the little church, she had
vanished into the hotel again.
But she watched him from her window,
a he strobe off between his two stalwart
guides, not very stalwart himself, but
Well-knit, with his refined artist q face
in strange contrast to his rough clothes
and heavily nailed boots. Then she smil-
ed in her glass.
You are very foolish" she told herself.
You have never striven after so unwor-
thy an object-tO give man a lesson
y sigh battled with and mastered the
smile as she turned away.
Valance acquitted himself well during
tn" frst part Of the ascent As has been
said, he was not much Of a mountaineer,
, but he was level-hcaded and cautious,
and he Obeyed his guides in eVeryt thing
The passage of the glacier was made
with safety and celerity. and then came a
short but arduOuS bit of rock climbing,
which landed them on a narrow ridge
oNerhanglug PERCEPTIONS incline, where
the track they had followed was joined
by another, the starting point Of which
was about mile beyond the village.
Here they made their first halt and. as
( they stood, IeSning against a huge rock
valance espied a solitary figure climbing
up the second track. He looked more in
tentlY, and saw that il as a women. and
that she sprang up the ice-eiazed rocks
like chamOis.
AT the same moment the guides caught
sight Of her, and they raised their hats
almost as if they saw a vision.
The Frauleln! one of them muttered.
"Du hePer HimmeI the Fraulein;
know her? 1t Is the great Fraulein
| olga Braun,' the man answered, proud
ly. The two men w0rshiped the ia
nous mountainecr, they had been with
/ her on that far-famed ascent Of Kunchin-
! 1inga which had won for her her MEM
| bership Of every Alpine club.
Valance fixed his glasses on the wOm-
/ ans ngure, curious to see the much-dtS-
cuSsed, and by him cordially diapprOVed
Of olga Braun. He dropped them again
! ana gave vent TO a sharp exclamation 1t
! was the brOWn-haired girl from the In
| ternational," his quiet gentle ideal of
! womanhoodi She and the mOuntaineer
/ We're one and the same person. He could
| scarcely grasp the ovcrpoWering revela-
! tion; II came upon him like a thunder
/ boIt that the two personalities should be
/ identical. He wondered vaguely whether
! she had come up on purpose to teach him
! He leaned forward. his brain in a whirl,
| the glasses close to his eyes.
Achtungi cried one Of the guides
Don do that, mein Herr
! But 1t was too late. The glassed had
/ slipped from Vallance's hands. and, as
! he stopped to save them. his foot slipped
| on rock coated with thin ice. He lost
| his balance and fell over the side OF the
| precIpice; and at the same time the rope
/ broke between him and the foremost
/ guide.
! He fell like a stone the length of the
! rope between him and the second guide,
! who braced himself with feet planted
! firm and arms clinging to the rock 70
| stand the strain. a seconds GREATNESS
| suspense, and then cry Of horror from