The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1903-01-09
a Miners Lad
BY Frances Jerome


, had been obliged to lean over when he
first came in. and now it was about his
ankle. He CROPPED for the bucket, but cid
not reach it, made a misstep and fell, ex-
tinguishing his lamp.
Then the miners instinct rose strong in
Teddy. Grouping around, he finally Sc
cured a hold on the wooden Trace in the
gallery, and. supporting himself with one
ara, he sought in each and every pocket
for the matches he had brought, in vain;
in leaning over while he searched for the
chain that had fallen from it's insecure
resting place.
Serves me right" he muttered, "person
would think l was one of these greenies
who live up above"
But it was all up with Teddy: ever
climbing, cropping. feeling, he finally dis
covered that the bucket had parted COM
pany with the chain and fallen quietly
into the black stream, and reach as he
would, he could not get a secure hold on
the broken chain. So he settled back
against the wall and put in about as hard
a spell Of thinking as he had ever done
in his short, silent life. So that was the
way his lamp was going to be put out,
was it? Well, it served him right; he had
not been happy up there in the sunshine
and this ws& his reward. How nanny
would take on! He remembered her grief
when his older brothers body had been
borne out, and they had handed her the
soiled; torn paper on which poor Jim had
misspelled his last message.
It was tough; the life of nanny was
tough any way you looked at it, and she
J was like all the rest of the miners women.
They shaved and starved for years, and
every little while some one they loved was
brought out to them as Jim had been. He
fell to pondering as Caliban did over
Setebos; was there a God really, and did
He not care when his creatures suffered?
He supposed He cared for good people, but
miners and their children were not worth
caring for. Now look at him, Teddy
Burns. Was he worth caring for? Was
there anything in him to attract the notice
Of a great and powerful God? Apparent
ly not, for here he was dying like a rat
In a hole, as miners always die. He had
heard the minister ask his mother If Jim,
poor Jim, was ready to die" and she
had wept, "Oh, sir, he was always good
to his mother" But would that apply
to him, Teddy? He had been pretty cross
to mother sometimes, and to little Nell.
All! poor little Nell, the one bright spot
in his life, for whom he denied himself
his loved tobacco.
The tears wellcd up in Teddy's stoical
eyes, and he felt that if he were only
permitted to go up once more into that
blessed sunshine he would be a better
boy, and he would not resine and sigh for
the mines, put take what came. Die Of
starvation, maybe, witt Nells arms about
his neck.
My! but the water was cold. Up to his
waist now and ever rising. In a burst of
fury the oaths flew to his lips. "Wha
was that Bradford doing? Why had he
risked his life for one of those cursed
mine owners? What was his life or the
life of a hundred like him to them-and
something brushed poor Teddy's pallid
face. Something swung almost into his
frozen hands, and with the last bit Of rea-
son left in his poor brain Teddy climbed
into the near bucket and tainted dead
away.
The very first thing he saw was Gods
blessed sunshine" and the first thing he
felt were the tender kisses Of Nells rosy
lips.
And there were nanny and Mr.. Brad
ford saying eagerly, "Ted, old fellow, I'll
never forgive myself, and say, Ted, it's
the last time you ever go down in that
cursed hole. I'm going to get you a good
job above ground, old man."
And, strange as it may seem, Teddy,
who loved the mines, did not say him nay.