The San Francisco call., 1905-01-22

that the fear Of loss haA dspwtsA.
voice and eyes were tender. "wil you
wed me?"
They be noa parson Z Ragged Har-
Dor in winter" she said flushing.
Sammy Arnold do be the Oldest man
Z Ragged 'Arbor.' he said. quickly
"He do be viii t. wed US two"
do he?"
''Iss. for a fair-sized fish. well salted
He do be great on havin' his nsh
saited."
A ceremony performed by the patri-
arch Of the community was all that
convention demanded.
Wont your" he pleaded. "sure. I'll
have the Bishop L do 1t over. when ha
do come this summer"
Still she hesitated.
Woan't you. 'Melia Nary"
'Melia Marys answer would not long
have been delayed had not young Jim.
Rideout passed under the hill singing
as he went:
For the song was an echo Of lighted
eyes and dusk. when an arm, encircling
her. had stirred g sweet disquietude
within, and she had wondered and
trembled and rejoiced: and this first
rapture Is like a dream of heaven In
that, though II vanish in the press Of
life, 1t never passes out Of memory, but
returns again with uplifting power So
the soul Of 'Melia Mary was taken I'D
into the cloudy places Of sentiment. and
there 1t hovered, striving, striving with
It's crippled wings, to mount to the
glowing heights above, where true
love is: striving, striving, striving with
its poor crippled wings.
The hope OF Elihu Gale was in deadly
peril; for on that glad night the arm
about the waist Of the maid had not
been the arm OF Elihu Gale. to be sure,
but OF young Jim Rideout. Now the
song called back the dusk and the light
In the eye and the encircling arm. 1t
was, indeed, as though love, all-glorious.
finding hut in a wilderness, knocked
on the door, and waited and waited and
in compassion knocked again. being
ioath to leave, thus turned away.
In came about. later In the day, that
'Melia Mary made some errand to the
Needle Rock, which Jim Rideout must
pass on his way home from q search
OF the Ice for young seals: and when
Jim found her there he stopped 70 pass
a merry word or two; but she saw that
the hunt had once more been vain. and
she would not smile, for she could not
DO they be west wind oomin',
Jim?" she asked, anxiously.
Sure, doan't KNOW" said Jim.
Is you sure?"
Iney De none [ my MIND, he an
swered.
'Is you hungryf" she said. altar q
silence.
"Uh-huh. Is your"
"Uh-huh. Barb'rous."
BILLY Luff t your house last even 7''
he asked in shamefaced way.
"Iss"
Did un leave soms-somsthins-from
me7" She nodded.
"Caplin?''
"Uh-huh- Two"
Did you eat UNI"
"Iss-all." with sigh.
WAS they good?" he asked, grinnins
broadly. She nodded en1phatically.
Wasn't they, thought" Jim burst
out. His face shone with a smile. He
smacked his lips as though he. too. had ,
had a part In the feast on those two
little fish. which. being young. were
not much larger than well-grown sar-
dimes. II found they two caplin {
Aunt Phoebe's stage loft. They wasn't
noa moare."
They be fish t. Ragged Harbor." she
said, abruptly.
who has un?" he demanded.
AN -four. an potatoes. an'-an'-
tea
Who has unr he cried 'surs. an
"Eiihu Gale" she said. quietly. .rhsy
be enough for two"
Jim,s grasp Of the situation was not
slow to come. He perceived that Eifhu
had made offer to sell for the maid har-
self.
BE you soain' Z wed un, 'Msiiar'
he asked.
She looked at the ground. The SOUND
OF his voice had changed all Of q sude
den. and that which had come into IL
was sad, and she could not look at
him.
"Bs you, giri?"
She kicked at . stone In the pakh.
and this was all that broke the siienos.
Tis all they be Z do" said he. per-
suasively. WED un, girl sure do, now
'Melia May turned away. Il. began
to coax her to cast him oft-that she
might gain Elihu and his fish. for he
would make no complaint Of ths hurT
he suffered.
"woan't you please. 'Mslias- hs
pleaded.
'1ss," said she.
Sure" Jim sighed.
SO, In the evening, 'Meiia Mary, who
was beloved Of all the youth Of RaRrod
Harbor. sought out old Elihu Gale. in
his cabin near the Staff and said that
she would wed him. Now the soul Of
Elihu. for the once and for the moment,
was lifted from its sodden estate
from waste, Shiny and dread--to
those ethereal gardens where tender
ness and grace and reverence bloom.
and all the paths are sunlif and fra
grantI where, indeed. though man care
not, all souls may dwell continually.
by leve Of love, which holds the golden
key.
Elihu Gale lifted up his faoa moved
by love to look to high places. and
vowed that the little children Of
Ragged Harbor should no more suffer
for lack Of potatoes and -four, but that
their hunger should be satisfied for the
sake of their laughter, which he de-
sired to hear, and the rsd blood in
their cheeks. In which his eyes could
delight; whence It may appear that the
seed which had fallen into crevfce OF
his craggy heart and there sprouted
into living green was, after all, the
seed Of q plant with f1ower-a tiny,
puny, lonely blossom; but yet q bios
som. which is a grace the hearts Of men
may lack.
Each succeeding spring had found
the heart of young Jim Rideout re-
sponsive. No exception this; when. In
good season, spring advanced and the
fishes swan the sea again, he sighed
and fell in love with another maid. "A
and we'd her out of hand: and flowers
bloomed without and within the cot