Morris tribune., 1905-05-13

Snd oO1I ou Illelt w Ol u iGSG Y lllGt
in my grave unless you hunt up that
woman and give her back her own.
IF you lie to me, Craft, if you prom
ise to do that and fail, [ tell YOU
that my footsteps shall haunt you
till the day of your death.''
He had promised simply to quiet
| Willard and had no intention of
keeping that promise.
In due time the fever did it's
work, and Willard was laid at rest
in the apology for cemetery. Craft
seemed to be the only claimant for
his partners earthly belongings, and
he availed himself of his opportu-
nifty.
While at work one day in the
mine, now panning out in great
shape, there was a premature blast,
which those who heard it believed
had ended Crafts career.
Yet amid the shower of bursting
rock which flew all around him he
suffered nothing but few scratches
though the force Of the explosion
threw him back violently, and his
head rang with the laundering up
roar.
He staggered out of the tunnel to
find himself surrounded by star
tied crowd, whose fears were re-
lieved by finding no worse disaster.
There was woman among them
who was stranger in the camp,
having only arrived the day before,
who fingered when the others drop
ped away one by one.
'Iet me dress the scratches,
please. I have court plaster hers.
[ want to do it" with a petulaat
childishness as he objected.
After all, she seemed more child
than woman as he observed her
more closely.
II want to do it BECAUSE an
awed tone-''they tell me my hus-
band came to his death in that way.
Wasn't that dreadful? And he new
er got rich, never made money
enough to pay back that $1,000 he
borrowed and take care of me as
he promised, but it seems too bad,
for they say if he had just lived
another day he would have owned
the best mine here. The bargain
was all made-just waiting to be
finished. Don't you think that is
hard on me?"
It did not need the name to tell
him that she was the strangers wife
nor much of her artless chatter to
put him in possession of all the cir
cumstances Of her case-how it had
been love at first sight and hasty
between the young pair
without counting the cost; how the
old invalid grandfather, who was
her only relative, had advanced the
capital out Of his own small store
and the young husband had started
out to conquer fate; how they had
waited, hoped and feared till sick
ness and trouble brought them to
such absolute want that she had
started out to trace a rumor-for
she read few papers and so missed
the news they would have told-and
now at last how the story had ended:
here.
With his wealth it would be no
y 4reat trouble to win her, he thought.
His wealth
If that fool Willard were living
he might say it was her wealth, but
Craft knew enough to guard that Sc
;ret, unless-ah, unless those steps
which followed after him were the
5hostly haunt to wiring it from him,
sor he had heard them first when no
>ne was near.
He heard the measured tramp,
ramp now, and he dwelt upon that
thought, and he blanched lest 9TH
IT'S should hear it as it followed him
lay and night.
He tried by force to shut his ears
md keep the sound out, but only let
1im press his hand to his head or
oarricade his ears with pillows and
he ghostly tramp, tramp threaten
ID him a thousand times louder
han before.
Every one in the camp noticed
wrong with him.
He was not himself, they said.
lie was off his balance, and the girl
could do better than marry man
whose symptoms pointed toward an
insane asylum before long.
But she did marry him, and, turn
ng over things in the cabin soon
.fterward, she found a paper which
Willard had hidden away.
It was the deed of sale, and writ
en- on it in Wizards hand:
'Delivered, but stolen back from
he dead mans pocket by Craft.