The Holly chieftain., 1903-08-14


She met no one on her way; there
was little travel on the mountain; the
thriving town over on the other side
had connection with the world In an
other direction.
In all the twenty years of her life
Dolores had never been over the
mountain; what lay beyond 1t she did
not know except from the rumors that
drifted into them from the men who
had been there-men who had strayed
in hunting, going around to the oppos-
ite mountain and returning across the
town.
Sometimes when the atmosphere
was heavy and the wind in the right
direction, the smoke from the tall fac
tory chimneys drifted around to the
settlement and tangled in the pines
like gray specters waving their shad-
owy banners above the scattered
houses down toward the valley. Many
time Dolores had watched these
smoke wreaths, and her mind had
gone to the place from whence they
came, and she wove from them fan
tastic shadows born of dreams, and
she clothed them in garments of the
living, and they brought her many
many fancies Of the life pulsing just
beyond the piny peaks.
Now her mind was filed with the
one subject so much discussed; she
turned it over and over, viewing it otl
all sides; now reasoning with herself
as to this or that possibility, this or
that decision, but eventually return
ing to the first conclusion which was
to her SO convincing that it sent her
over the mountain to the town to dis
cover if possible the truth, s'd at the
court was the place to learn what she
wished to know-if there were any
place to learn it ere the whole world
should know.
and down on the other side the town
lay out before her; a thriving town:
smoke arose black from the towering
chimneys, the whir of machinery, the
rattle of wagons and din on everyday
life were borne up to her as sounds
of a strange land The knowledge be-
gan to grow in her mind that the life
in the slow little settlemeE. beyond
| the mountain was too narrow, too
shut into itself, too lacking in energy
and growth. But this was new
world to her and she shrank from ii,
not from any foolish feeling of inferi.
ority; such thought could hold 40
room In her mind, but as wild AM.
NAL instinctively shrinks back to its
natural world. Then the feeling LEFT
her; the old thought drove every. fea4,
every other feeling away; she had
come for purpose and as yet it was
not accomplished.
She passed steadily down the road
looking neither to right nor left The
court house was at the farther end of
the town; she had heard them say So
A long, low, white building with wide
steps and bell in the tower.
At length she came to it; she knew
she was right; long, low, white
building with wide steps and bell in
the tower
She walked up the steps and turned
the handle of the door, but could not
open it. This ending of her journey
had not entered her head. For mo-
ment she stood in doubt what to do.
People passing on the street looked
curiously at her. A boy who was
sitting astride of the fence called to
her that the door was locked; but if
she wanted the lookup it was down
around the corner.
She did not krsw he was laughing
at her; she walked down the steps
and spoke to him. She asked him
, where she could find the Judge. She
was looking at him with her straight,
level glance, and he was disconnected.
The judge, he said, lived in the house
on the HIN; if she came down the
main street she must have passed it.
Not bit of her resolution was
gone as she retraced her steps, but
she walked swiftly for it was grow
ing late. She found it without trou-
BILE; she mounted the steps and knock
ed at the big door. She did not know
she should ring the bell. No one
came She knocked again and louder,
then again she waited. No one came
If the judge We're gone where should
she find him?
A step sounded on the gravel at the
side Of the house; she turned and
faced the newcomer
Dolores" exclaimed young Green,
in astonishmert.
A red flush crept in her face.
Il want to see the Judge she
said, gravely, and there was a wist-