Licking Valley courier. [volume] (West Liberty, Ky.) 19??-current, 1912-03-07

his door, and that the knocking hand
was that Of a woman, but added to
his perplexity and to his dismay.
He had cherished dream that he
could live to himself alone with but q
memory to bear him company, and
from that dream he had been thun-
derously awakened. Everything was
changed What had once been easy
had now become impossible. He
might send her away, but though he
swore her to secrecy she would have
to tell her story and something of his;
the world would learn some Of it and
seek him out with Unsuitable curios-
ity to know the rest.
Eyes as keen as his would present
ly search and scrutinize the noun
tains where he had roamed alone.
They would see what he had seen,
find what he had found. Mankind,
gold-lusting, would swarm and hive
upon the hills and fight and love and
breed and die. Great God!
He could of course move on, but
where? And went he whithersoever
he might, he would now of necessity
carry with him another memory
which would not dwell within his
mind in harmony with the memory
which until that day had been para.
mount there alone.
Slowly laboriously, painfully, he
had built his house upon the send,
and the winds had blown and the
floods had come, not only in literal
but in spiritual significance, and in
one day that house had fallen. He
stood amid the wrecked remains of it
trying to recreate it, to endow once
more with the fitted precision of the
past the shapeless broken units of the
fabric of his fond imagination.
While he resented the fierce, saw
age, passionate intensity the Interrupt
ton of this woman into his life.
While he throbbed with equal inten.
sity and almost as much passion at
the thought OF hec
Have you ever climbed mountain
early in the morning while 1t was yet
dark and having gained some domi-
nant crest stood staring at the far
horizon, The empurpled east while the
"dawn came up Ike thunder?' Or
better STILL have you ever stood with
In the cold, dark recesces of some
deep valley OF river or pass and
watched tho clear light spread its
bars athyart the heavens like nebu-
lous mighty pinions along the light
touched crest Of q towering range, I'M
til all of sudden, with a leap almost
of joy, the great sun blazed in the
high horizon?
You might be born a child of the
dark, and light might scar and burn
your eye balls accustomed to cooler
deeper shades, yet you could no more
turn away from this glory, though you
might hate 1t, than by mere effort Of
will you could cease to breathe the
air. The shock that you might feel,
the sudden surprise, is only family sug-
gestive of the emotions In the breast
of this man.
Once long ago the gentlest and ten
derest Of voices called from the dark
10 the light, the blind. And II is given
to modern science and to modern skill
sometimes TO emulate that godlike
- n. =. NJ
When the rxity Of her decision was
established she hadls number Of offers
to accompany her, but declined them
all, bidding the others 60 their way.
Mrs, Maitland, who was not feeling
very we'll old Kirkby, who had
climbed too many mountains to feel
much interest in that game, and Pete
the horse wrangler, who had to look
after the stock, remained in camp;
the others with the exception OF Enid
started at daybreak for their long as
cent. She waited until the sun was
about an hour high and then bads
goodbye to the three and began the
descent OF the canon. Travelling light,
for she was going fsr-farthsr, indeed,
than she knew-she left her Winehss-
ter at home. but carried the revolver
with the fishing tackle and substantial
luncheon.
Now the river-a river by courtesy
only-and the canon turned sharply
back on themselves just beyond the
little meadow where the camp was
pitched. Past the tents that had bees
their home for this joyous period the
river ran due cast for a few hundred
feet. after which II curved sharply,
doubled back and flowed westward
for several miles before II gradually
swung around to the east on its prop
or course again.
II had been Ends purpose 10 cut
across the hills and strike the river
where II turned eastward once more,
avoiding the long dstolr back. In
fact. she had declared her Intention
OF doing that to Kirkby and he IA.
given her careful directions 30 that
she should not get lost in the noun
tains.
But she had plenty OF time and no
excuse or reason for saving Il, she
never tired Of the charm OF the canon;
therefore, instead OF plunrlar directly
over the spur OF the range, she fol.
lowed the familiar trail and after nhs
had passed westward far beyond the
limits Of the camp TO the turning, she
decided, in accordance with that ut.
terly irresponsible thing. . woman's
will, that she would not 20 down the
canon that day after all, but that she
would cross back over the range and
strike the river 4 few miles above the
camp and go up the canon.
She had been up in that direction a
few times. but only for short dis.
lance, a. the ascent above the camp
was very sharp, in fact for little
more than mile the brook was oaly
succession OF water fall; the best
nshins was below the camp ana the
hnest woods were deeper in the csnon.
She suddenly concluded that she