The daily Alaskan., 1908-07-22

young man I worked 0t COW punchn' for man as lived on a ridge that looked over a like ridge fifteen mile away. The river run between each ridge midway. and the ground on each side the river war as like as two peas. Tanner lived on the east ridge-hc war the man worked for-and fifteen miles away on the other ridge his brother-in.law, Brant, had built house after the same plans. The same architect had planned 'em both, and lumber had been sawed for the two of 'em at oncet. Each stood in the cen ter of a big ranch.
 Tanner had a daughter, Eunlce, that tub a shine to me. I war an ln- noccnt young fcller in them days and hadn't no notion O hooSin' up with any one and tried to keep her or my scent, but she follcred mo like blood hound, and somehow, though I could glt rid O most things, couldn't git rid O her. Whenever I'd try 1t she'd set down beside me k!ud D lovin like, and that d bo the end O my tryin' to shake her.
 "Waal at last she hived me, and the Aust thing I knowed I had gone to the ole man and axed for his gal He was wlllln', and so we was engaged, as they say in the towns. EunIce oncet havin' lOssoed me gimme a good deal O rope, jlst as though we was married and couldn't git away nohOw.
 "What made 1t hard on me was that I wanted another gal. That gal war Sally Brant, Eunices cousin. Sally war a quiet little thing and didn't run after nobody. couldn't see very much of her cause Eunlce regarded me as her property and wouldn't let me ott evenin's to ride over tO the Brant ranch, and daytimes war looliin after the cattle.
 "One mornin' l found myself lost There had been heavy fog all night l and instead of takin' my bcarin's be, fore 1t settled and goln' to sleep whar I war I tried to pull through It. But student about 10 o'clock In the morn in, the fog lifted and found myself mile from the Brant ranch house | Thlnkln' 1t would be good chance to | go and tell Sally Brant that I war goin to be married, l rode over. Sally | was on the front veranda knittln socks l Jincd her and as soon as | could git up spunk told her that war settled to be broke by Eunice Tanner | She didn't say q word; she jlst bent down, and I could sec that she war cryin'.
 "Of course thar war jlst one thing to do. set down on the bench beside { her. put my arms around her, and"-
 Kissed hcr?' asked the Chicago | man.
 "Kissed her? No; I war hon'able. I war engaged"
 "Well, go on"
 eve war settIn' facin' the vaiicy. and | student I lifted my eyes and thar be- fore me and lookin hardly a stones throw away war the Tanner ranch house. And thar on the varanda sat a fcller and a gal in each others arms. Of course l don't mean to say that l could recognize people fifteen miles away, but l knowed the couple must a been Eunice and some fellcr. AL though would like to git rid of Eu- nice. 1t made me mad to sec her in another Celers arms. jumps up and, drawin' my shootin' Iron, plugs away at the man. What did he do but the same to me.
 "I felt kind O foolish as soon as 1t war over. thlukin' my wcCpon would | carry so far, and set down ag'in. The fcllcr must 'a' felt as did, cause hc set down ag'n, too, by his gal, just as did by mine We turned our backs to 'em. but We didn't like their lookin' even at our backs, so we went into the house.
 "I tolc Sally that l loved her and wanted her to marry me. She re minded that I was pledged to Eunice, and I reminded her that, thanks to the mirage, I had found Eunice out. Sally then said, that bcIn' the case, 1t war right for mo to shake Eunicc, but If went back 10 her she'd lasso me agln. Recognlzin' this as true, proposed We be married before goln back. And so we war.
 "When l went back, a married man. EunIce war mad enough to scalp me. I charged her with goIn' back on mo. and she denied 1t. But me and Sally both saw her. and that was all there war about 1t. Anyway, my wife says a noble, good man war saved from a bad woman by the mirage"
 "Dld 1t ever occur to you," asked the Massachusetts man, "that what you saw was the reflection of your selves"
 "Waal, now, never thought O that
 AUSTIN A. KINGSLEY.