Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1912-04-16

man had harder time than she. He
loved herr
1T looked like it," answered Ktrkby.
If you had seen him, his remorse,
his anguish, his horror" said Matt
land, you wouldn't have had any
doubt about it. But it is getting late.
In the mountains everybody gets up
at daybreak. Your sleeping bags are
in the tents, ladies': time to go to
bed"
AS the party broke up. old Kirkby
rose slowly to his feet; he looked
meaningly toward the young woman,
upon whom the spell of the tragedy
still fingered, he nodded toward the
young brook, and then repeated his
speaking glance at her. His meaning
was patent. although no one else had
seen the covert invitation.
Core Kirkby," said the girl in
quick response. you shall be my es-
cort. want a drink before | turn In.
No, never mind" she said, as Brad
shaw and Philips both volunteered.
not this time"
The old frontiersman and the young
girl strolled off together They stop
ped by the brink of the rushing tor
rent a few yards away. The noise
that 1t made drowned the low tones OF
their voices and kept the others, busy
preparing to retire, from hearing what
they said.
That amt quite all the story, Miss
Enid" said the old trapper meaningly.
There was another man."
What" exclaimed the girl.
"Oh, there wasn't nothin wrong
with Louise Rosser. witch she was
Louise Newbold. but there was an
other man; | suspected it afore, that's
why she was sad. Wen We found her
body knowed it
Il don't understand"
"These1l explain" said K1rkby. He
drew out from his rough hunting coat
a package of soiled letters; they were
carefully enclosed in an oil skin and
tied with faded ribbon. You see"
he continued, holding them in his
hand yet carefully concealing them
from the people at the fire, Wen
she fell or the cliff-sOmehow the
mule lost his footin'. nobody never
knowed how, leastways the mule was
dead an couldn't tell-she struck on
spur or shelf about hundred feet
below the brink; evidently she was
carryin' the letters in her dress. Her
bosom was frightfully tore open an
the letters was lynn there. Newbold
didn't see EN-, because he went down
into the canon an came up to the
shelf or butte head, were the body
was lynn, but we dropped down. 1
was the first man down an | got EN-
Nobody else seem me, an there amt
40 human eyes, net even my wifes,
that's ever looked on them letters. ex-
cept mine and now yourn."
You are going to give them TO
me-"
II am" said Kirkby.
But why?"
Il want you TO know the hull story.
but why, again.
IL rather guess them letters'll tell,
answered the old man evasively, IAN
| like you, and | don't want to see
you throwed away"
What do you mean?" asked the girl
curiously, thrilling to the solemnity OF
the moment, the seriousness, the kind
affection of the old frontiersman, the
weird scene. the fire light, the tents
cleaning ghostlike, the black wall OF
the canon and the tops of the noun
tain range broadening out beneath the
stars in the clear sky where they
twinkled above he2 head, the strange
and terrible story. and now the letters
in her hand, which somehow seemed
to be imbued with human feeling
Kirkby patted her on the shoulder.
Read the letters" he said; they'll
tell the story. Good night"