Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1911-08-15
BOOK III-THE FLOWER.
CHAPTER VII.
Tho of the Sky.

SI1A1 LIZ 'N~'
The Land of the Sky.
On the fourth day Nan planned
coaching party to ascend Mount
Mitchell, the highest peak in the Land
of the Sky, the highest point of ground
this side the Rockies. She had taken
this trip with Stuart sixteen years be-
fore. She was then but fifteen, and he
had Just begun to dangle at her heels.
She did not tell him their destination,
but left him to discover for himself
that they were travelling over the same
old quiet road.
The party consisted of half a dozen
boys and girls whom Nan was chap
eroning, Stuart, the footman and
coachman. The start was made at
sunrise. The morning was glorious,
the air rich with the full breath of a
southern spring. The footman lifted
the bugle to his lips, and its music
rang over the hills and broke into a
thousand echoes as its notes bounded
upward from cliff to cliff. The whip
cracked over the back of four sleek
horses and they were off, amid screams
of laughter from the youngsters.
Stuart felt his heart leap with the
joy of youth. The rivers and noun
tains, birds and fields Of his native
heath were calling once more. and his
soul answered with cry!
At the foot of the first hill the
coach suddenly stopped beside the
banks of the Swannanoa river.
Nan leaped to the ground, drew Stu
art with her to the rear of the coach,
and raised her arms.
Lift me up" she cried, laughing.
He placed his hands under her arms
and with a leap and cry Of laughter
she was in the empty baggage rack.
Now up with you!" she cried.
In moment Stuart was seated snug
ly by her side and the big red coach
was rolling along the old road beside
the banks of the laughing river.
Now, sir" Nan whispered, do you
know where you are going?"
Stuart nodded.
"Where?" she asked, mischievously.
as she laid her warm hand with a
sudden grip on his.
ITO a certain peak among the clouds,
where you and once went thousand
years ago."
haps 1t was the swaying of the coach
that made him think she did-and
softly said:
You remember this road?"
i've seen 1t a hundred times in my
dreams since that wonderful day. 1t
winds along the banks of the Swan
nanoa for twenty miles, always climb
ing higher and higher until the river
becomes a limpid trout stream. We
stop at the old road-house, stay all
night, and next morning take the bri-
die path with the funny pack-horses
and climb to the first mountain top,
still following the little stream. We
stoop to drink from the spring which
Is the rivers source-a deep bold
spring hung with long festoons of
green moss and set with ferns and
rhododendron-"
Fine, Jimmy, fine!" she cried with
girlish mockery. Your geography
lesson was perfect! You can walk
home with me after school"
Stuart looked at her and broke into
a laugh Again they were boy and
girl, and the only change he could see
was that she was more splendidly
beautiful at thirty-one than she had
ever promised to be at fifteen.
The spirit of joy was resistless. He
flung to the winds the last shred Of
conventional dignity as the coach roll
ed lazily over the rocky road, throw
ing them from side to side.
You remember how shocked you
were in this same seat, Jim, that day
in the sweet long ago when the old
coach threw me into your arms?"
Yes, l felt that l was taking a
mean advantage of you"
II blushed furiously, didn't II"
Yes, and wonder now what your
real thoughts were; yon don't remem-
Der, SUPPOSE"
"As distinctly as though it were yes
terday," Nan answered, dreamily.
What did you think of my embar-
rassment?"
II thought you were an awful fool
not to accept more gracefully and
thankfully the providence which threw
a pretty girl your way"
The coach gave a sudden lurch and
threw her into Stuart's arms again.
And now?" he cried, laughingly, as
he held her firmly for a moment, to
prevent her falling.
She blushed furiously, threw the
ringlets of dark hair from her face and
drew back to her position.
Now, of course, it's unlawful" she
answered with sober playfulness.
The man watched her slyly for the
next half-mile. She was very, very
quiet. Was he mistaken in the idea
that her body had trembled with unu-
sual violence for the moment he had
held her? Or was it the quiver of the
coach over the gravel in the road and
the swaying of their seat? The sense
of danger which the little incident
reused was only momentary. The
scenes through which they were pass
ing were resistless. He caught the
odor of crushed violets from the fence
corner and the smell of the young
grass broken beneath the hoof of q
horse, the ploughman was turning al
the end Of the row. The music of the
river and the panorama of white fleet
ing clouds across the blue of match
less southern skies, awoke thousand
memories Again he was a southern
boy. He heard the laughter of big
mouthed, jolly negroes eating water
melons in the shade of great trees and
the song of mocking birds in the still
ness of summer nights!
A rabbit ran across the road and he
smiled at the recollection of his first