The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1909-12-31

while. l guess nobody knows where
pretty hard, but guess he likes It,"
Hes an Industrious man, is he?"
ooh, he's a steady worker; but he's
| a queer kind, too. Now, he never
votes and he never goes to church
| and for the sake of the argument,
neither do F-and the old fellow
| winked prodigiously Hes mighty
odd man; but l can't say that that's
against him. But he's quiet and peace.
able, and now his daughter"
ooh, he has a daughter?'
Yes; and that's all he has, too;
and they never have any visitors. The
daughter just come home the other
day, and we amt hardly seen her yet.
She's been away at school,"
81 suppose Mr.. Hartridge is absent
sometimes; he doesn't live down there
all the time, does he?"
Il can't say that could prove it;
sometimes / don't see him for a
month or more; but his business is his
own, stranger" he concluded, point
eddy.
You think that il Mr.. Hartridge
had visitor you'd know it," l per-
sisted, though the shopkeepsr grew
less amiable.
We'll, now, might: and again l
mightn't. Mr.. Hartridge is queer
man. don't see him every day. and
particularly in the winter l don't keep
track of him
With little leading the storekeepe,
described Hartridge for me, and his
description tailed exactly with the
man who had caught me on the canoe
makers premises the night before.
And yet, when had thanked the
storekeeper and ridden on through the
village, l was as much befuddled as
ever. There was something decidedly
homogeneous in the idea that a man
who was, by all superficial signs, at
least a gentleman, should be estab-
lished in the business of making ca
noes by the side of a lonely creek in
this odd corner of the world. From
ShS otOlOhCCpCA . oSSOuul, 11dl
might be absent from his retreat for
long periods; If he were Henry Hol-
brook and wished to annoy his sister,
it was not so far from this lonely
creek to the Connecticut town where
Miss Pat lived. Again, as to the daugh.
ter, just home from school and not
yet familiar to the eyes of the village,
she might easily enough be an inven.
ton to hide the visits of Helen Hol.
brook. found myself trying to &C.
count for the fact that, by some means
short Of the miraculous, Helen Hol.
brook had played chess with Miss Pat
at st. Agatha's at the very hour had
seen her with her father on the Tip.
pecanoe. And then was baffled
again az l remembered that Paul Stod.
dard had sent the two women to st.
Agatha's, and that their destination
could not have been chosen by Helen
Holbrook.
My thoughts wandered into many
blind alleys as rode on was thor.
oughly disguised with myself at find
ing the loose ends of the Holbrooks
affairs multiplying so rapidly. The
sun Of noon shone hot overhead, and !
turned my horse into a road that led
homework by the eastern shore Of the
lake. AS approached little country
church at the crown of q long hill ]
saw crowd gathered in the highway
and refined my horse to see what had
happened. The congregation of farmers
and their families had just been dis
missed; and they were pressing abou,
young man who stood in the cente,
of an excited throng. Drawing closer
l was amazed to find my friend Gil
lespie the center of attention.
But, my dear SIR" cried tall
bearded man whom took to be the
minister of this wayside flock, "yor
must at least give US the privilege OF
thanking you! You cannot know VIVA,
this means to us, gift so muniflcen
80 far beyond our dreams"
Whereat Gillespie looked bored
shook his head, and tried to force hi.
way through the encircling rustics. HI
was clad in Norfolk Jacket ant
knickerbockers OF fantastic plaid, Will
a cap to match.
A young famer. noting my curiosit,
and heavy with great news. whispered
to me:
/ THAT boy in short pants put a 81 ,0o
bill in the collection basket. All /,
one bill! They thought it was mis-
take, but he told our preacher it wa
a free gift
(To BE coNTINUED.)