Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1910-12-15

THERE WAS LITTLE CRY or EMULATION.
! ed sorrow Of wounded animal. Twice
the little legs halted as If too weak
to carry the slight body, and once the
! boy dropped on fallen log and stared
| ahead of him.
1t was unlike any Christmas the
! child had ever before experienced.
| Christmas had always been ushcrod
/ I'm by snow. slcet, rain or cold north
| winds, but in this strange new land
! the flowers were in bloom in the dead
| of winter. and northern birds warhlod
and coocd from nearly every lcafy
| bower. 1t was hard to realize that
| In the faraway northern city the land
| was wrapped in the icy embrace OF
the frost king 4 little pang of dis
appointment crept into his heart, and
unconsciously he sighed for the old
| familiar scenes.
| BLACK CarStOn stumbled down tn"
slope OF the hillside after leaving the
| boy, a growing anger and rage disturb
| ing his mind. He was in no mood eat
morning to have the festive season OF
| the year recalled to him. Only the
| night before the sluice which he had
constructed had been washed away
: by mountain torrent and filed with
looscned stones and huge powders. It
was only one of a long series OF accl
! dents which had followed his IN
| lucky ventures. and Mt first he had ac-
cepted it phlosophlcally.
But the piping voice Of the child had
made his i'll luck more acute. Merry
| Christmasw He muttered the words
under his breath and kicked viciously
| at the loose stones. When he came to
| the wrecked SIuice he glarcd at 1t say
! agely and finally sneered
well. what's the odds? There's no
gold here anyway-not cents worth
and I've only got the disappoInt-
ment a little earlier than l expected
III pull out tonight and make another
try over at Copper creek"
Then. with grin: And that young
ster wished me merry Christmas!
Huh what foolish kid he is.'
The man dropped moodily on rock
and rehlled his pipe. He sat there a
long time smoking. Somehow his
thoughts drirted away from the SCARED
mOuntainSidc. and he forgot the work
ahead of him His disorgani2ed camp
lay around unhccded. If any emotion
stirred within him it was manifested
| only by quicker puirS from his black
pipe
1t was Chr llaas day Christmas in
the great mining region where Black"
| Carston had worked and toiled for
years without apprcciuble result. The
calendar had ceased To- hold any mean
Ing for him. and Christmas was an un-
known holiday TO him He didn't
know, ana Ec didn't care. whether it
was Christmas or Memorial day. one
! day was like all others to him
But the merry greeting Of the stray
child from the east had impressed 1t
upon his mind that others In the
great world of work and trouble still
held to the observances OF holidays.
He knew little OF the boys history
just few snatchcs of rumor that had
reached him. A poor little derelict
of great city, crushed and worn out
prematurely by disease and environ.
ments, the child had been rescued by
some charitable society and sent west
to find new health and strength in the
more congenial climate.
Why had the boy selected this morn
ing to greet him with words that
seemed to drive the iron deeper into
his soul? Merry Christmas! Huh!
There was no merry Christmas in this
world-not for such outcasts"
For an hour the man was absorbed
in strangely perplexing thoughts. Then
he rose slowly and picked up his few
belongings He threw them into
vito ""h tict"d thnm viciouslv az "