Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1911-08-15
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They spent the night at the same old
road-house and slept on feather beds.
He hadn't felt the touch of feather
bed in years. He dreamed that he was
at school again, man Of thirty five,
playing marbles with a crowd of tow
headed boys and they were beating
him at the game while Nan was stand
ing near, her long plait of black hair
hanging down her back, laughing at
him because he was barefooted! He
woke with a groan, shook off the night
mare, and slept soundly until morning.
They started next day at eight
o'clock with the pack-horses to make
the trip along the dim bride trail.
fourteen miles up the sides Of frown-
ing cliffs and over the tops of balsam-
crowned peaks to the summit of Mount
Mitchell
Nan led the way, mounted on sure
footed young stallion, and Stuart fol-
lowed her on little black mule he had
selected from the barn. for his exact
likeness to one he had raised as a
pet when a boy. The youngsters came
struggling after them, mounted on an
assortment Of shaggy, scrubby looking
animals that knew the mountain path
as a rabbit knows his trail in the jun
gle.
| They stopped for luncheon at the
spring which forms the source of the
Swannanoa and Stuart drank again
from it's cold limpid waters, while
Mans laughter rang in his ears.
At one o'clock they passed through
the first series of clouds and out into
the sunlight beyond. The next line of
clouds was dark and threatening and
suddenly poured rain. Slowly but
surely the horses picked their way up
the mountain-side through the storm
and suddenly walked out into the sun
light again; they looked down on the
smooth fiat surface of the clouds
through which they had passed.
"Glorious!" Stuart cried.
I'VE didn't see this when we came
before, you remember" she answered.
1T rained all the way up"
Yes, it rains here almost every day
in the year. but the guide says we're
going to get a view of six states to-
morrow"
1t was dusk when the party reached
the summit The horses were loosened
to Craze in the open field and the guides
hurried to build a fire in front Of the
cave made by a projecting ledge Of
rock beneath which the party was to
sleep.
The bed of balsam boughs was too
sharp a contrast to Mans million
dollar-room to permit Stuart much
sleep. Besides the youngsters were
giggling and laughing and joking most
of the night. Only a big log marked
the partition wall between the mems
and women's side Of the cave. The
space was so limited 1t was necessary
to sleep close together. The girls and
boys never grew tired cracking silly
jokes about the magnificence of their
sleeping quarters. In vain Nan begged
for quiet. 1t was three o'clock before
l lHcy were SUN dl last anu lCil iliNO
a deep sleep.
Stuart rose, sat before the log fire
and watched the regular rise and fall
of her bosom as she slept like a child.
On a distant mountain he heard
the howl of a lonely wolf Sixteen
years ago the mountains were full Of
them and they came quite close. He
was reminded of the narrowing strip
of the savage world, fast disappearing
before the march of civilization.
II wonder if We'll ever conquer the
last jungle-the heart of man." he
unused. Somehow l have my doubts,
and yet the faith never dies"
Again he looked at the sleeping wo-
man and wave of fierce mad rebellion
swept his heart. Somewhere inside of
him he heard the lone cry of another
wolf
She's mine-mine! Nature gave her
to me in the morning of life-I was a
fool l should have taken her by
force, if need me, and she would have
thanked me in after years. She has
complied with the conventions of So
ciety and trampled the highest law of
life Why not smash convention now
at the call of that law"
Again the wolf howled in the distant
darkness and it seemed the echo of
his own mad cry. He walked from his
reverie with an angry start. He shud-
dered that he could have harbored the
thought for a moment.
The eastern horizon was beginning
to glow with the dawn. He rose, walk
ed to the summit, and sat down on the
, pile of stones that marked the grave
of Professor Mitchell. He watched in
silence until he saw the suns red rim
, suddenly leap above the blue-black
peaks of the east and drive the last
shadow of the night from the valleys
below. With their fading mists he
felt the darkness lift from his own
heart and the sunlight of reason steam
| in. A new JOY welled up from the
, depths of his spirit. He was alive tC
his finger tips and his imagination
was strong and clean, and worth
. while.
With the help of God I'll keep it so
, too" he cried. I'm ready for the
fight now. Let it come"
; He knew instinctively that it was
coming. He felt it in every word that
had fallen from Mans lips since they
left on this trip. He felt it most keen
ly of all when she was silent, read il
in the tremOur of her mouth, the
shadowy tenderness of her eyes, the
low, deep tones of her voice. What
he couldn't know was how hard that
fight was going to be!
Both Nan and the youngsters slept
like children until nine o'clock. He
helped the guides prepare breakfast
, without waking the sleepers and called
/ them at nine.