St. Tammany farmer., 1901-08-03
II MAID or THE

BY Edgar Weltsn Cooley.
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Copyright, 1901, by Authors Syndicate.)

MIGHT had settled over the noun
IN tains of Tennessee might with
the darkness intensified by the noun
tain mists. A lonely cabin nestled
amid the rocks on Pine mountain and
watched with it's one window an
other cabin on Snake mountain,
across the ravine, and from this win
dow light shone, like a star on the
mountain. Below, in the valley,
squatted the little village of Craig's
Hollow. A horseman rode up and
drew rein before the CABIN.
"Halloa!" he shouted.
The door was opened and the light
within revealed the form of a young
man in the doorway. A pistol shot
from the horseman was echoed by
yolley of rifles from behind the sur
rounding rocks.
The man in the doorway fell upon
his face with groan, and the light
within was Immediately extinguished.
Leaning on the weather-beatenf fence
that surrounded the cabin on Snake
mountain Blanche Burton stood. Bru-
no, her dog, lay sleeping at her
feet She had good view of Pine
mountain, and she could see the occa-
sional fash of rifle long before she
could hear the report.
And after awhile the shooting ceased
md all became quiet and dark, but still
she stood by the fence, the dog at her
feet and the night breeze tossing her
raven hair.
Out of the darkness finally came the
clatter of horses hoofs, and her three
brothers rode into the yard. The
eldest, noticing her white face, leaped
from his horse and threw his arms
around her.
eve air all safe an sound, SIS he
said, Though can't say as much for
them Ransoms. Sam, like fool,
opened the door, and L"
The e,.irl recoiled.
'enil you kill him?" she demanded,
almost fiercely. "Joe, did you kill
him?"
.'Wi,y, sis,'' replied her brother,
~what air the matter?"
"Oh, nothing" she replied, calmly;
"I thought, maybe, you were hurt.'
Near to the midnight hour, while her
brothers slept with their rifles within
easy reach, Blanche Burton opened the
door of the cabin and stepped out into
the darkness. No lights were visible
oneither mountain, and none in Craig's
Hollow. Above, solitary star shone
through rift in the clouds. Save for
the lonely cry of an owl, no sound
broke the solemn stiffness of the night.
She was alone on the mountain.
Slowly and with painful carefulness
the girl picked her way through the
dooryard, fearful lest some swapping
twig should awaken the slumberers
within and bring upon her indistinct
form in the darkness, the contents of a
deadly rife.
She breathed more freely when she
had passed the gate and was safely in
the road, and drawing her shawl tight
ly about her she walked rapidly down
the mountain side and across the ra-
vine. Here she slackened her pace and
finally stopped. How loud her heart
beat and how warm her cheeks were!
She sat down on small bowlder to
rest, but only for moment, and then
she was on her way again up Pine
mountain toward the Ransom cabin.
Noiseless1s carefully, that not a
whispc. should give notice of her ap-
proaeh, she crept onward, trembling,
feverish, anxious. Frequently she
paused to listen for any sound emanat-
ing from the cabin. but nothing
reached her ears. save the loud beating
of her own heart.
When at last she reached the little
ward that surrounded the cabin, she
sank upon the ground and crept on her
hands and knees to the window. She
thought she heard noise within. She
heard it again-the low moan of man.
sTh;,nk God!" she whispered to her
self. "Thank God, he is not dead
And she flattened her nose against the
pane in vain endeavor to pierce the
darkness.
Suddenly light flashed; some one
had struck a match. In the faint, flick
ering light she made out the form OF q
man stretched upon the floor, with
some one bending over him. His face
was turned directly toward her. 1t was
Sam Ransom, but how pale he looked,
and what agony was painted upon his
features!
"Oh. Joe, brother Joel" she said to
herself, 'what have you done?'
The eyes of the man holding the
match fell upon her face, pressed
against the window. Instantly the
match was extinguished, and Blanche,
realizing her peril, dropped nat upon
the ground, and u second later charge
of buckshot shattered the pane. A
niece of the broken glass, falling upon
her forehead, cut deep cash, from
which the blood flowed freely.