The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1913-05-16

How'd you like Dominick Ryan?
You haven't said anything about him."
Her voice, in answering. sounded
low and careful. She spoke slowly, as
If considering her words:
Il thought he was very nice, and
good-looking, too. He's not bit like
Cornelia Ryan, or his mother, either.
Cornelia has such red hair"
mo, looks like the old man. Good
deal like him in character, too. Con
Ryan was the best Teller in the world,
but not hard enough, not enough grit.
His wife had 1t though, had enough
for both. If 1t hadn't been for her,
Con would never have amounted to
anything-too soft and good-natured.
and the boys like him."
"How?" She raised her head and
looked directly at him, her lips slight
ly parted.
Soft, too, just the same way, soft
hearted. An easy mark for any one
with a hard-luck story and not too
many scruples. Why did he marry
| that woman? / don't know anything
about it, but I'd like to bet she saw
| the stuff he was made of and cried
and teased and nagged till she got
| him to do it."
II don't see that he could have done
anything else"
That's woman's-a young girls
view. That's the view Dominick him
self probably took. It's the sort Of
idea you might expect him to have,
something ornamental and impractf-
cal, that's all right to keep in the cup
board and take out and dust. but that
don't do for everyday use. That sort
OF thing is all very we'll for girl,
but it doesn't do for man. It's not
for this world and our times. Maybe
1t was all right when a Teller went
round in armor. fighting for unknown
damsels, but 1t won't go in California
to-day. The woman was q working
woman. she wasn't any green girl.
She earned her living in an Office full
OF men, and I guess there wasn't
much she didn't know. She saw
through Dominick and gathered him
In. It's all very well to be chivaE
rous, but you don't want to be con-
founded fool"
| Are you a COMPOUNDED fool when
you're doing what you think right"
ut depends on what you think right,
honey If it's going to break up your
life, cut you off from your kind, make
an outcast Of you from your own
folks, and a poverty-stricken outcast
at that, you're a confounded fool to
think it's right. You oughtn't to let
yourself think so. That kind Of a
moral attitude is a luxury Women
can cultivate it because they don't
have to get out in the world and fight.
They keep indoors and get taken care
of, and the queer ideas they have
don't hurt anybody. But men"
He stopped, realizing that perhaps
he was talking too frankly. He had
long known that Rose harbored these
| Utopian theories on duty and honor,
which he thought very nice and pretty
for her and which went gracefully
with her character as sheltered,
cherished, and unworldly maiden. 1t
was his desire to see what effect the
conversation was having on her that
made him deal so unceremoniously
with ideals Of conduct which were all
very well for Bill Cannon's daughter
but were ruinous for Dominick Ryan.
IF you live in the world you've got
to cut your cloth by it's measure" he
continued. Look at that poor devil,
tied to woman that's not going to
let him go IL she can help it, that he
doesn't care for"
How do you know he doesn't care
| for herr" The interruption came in
a tone Of startled surprise and Rose
stared at him, her eyes wide with 1t.
For moment the old man was at
a loss. He would have told any lie
rather than have let her guess his
knowledge of the situation and the in
formation given him by Dominick He
realized that his zeal had made him
imprudently garrulous, and, gazing
at her with a slightly stupid express
sion, said in low tone of lf-justif.
cation:
J well, that's my idea. l guessed it.
I've heard one thing and another here
and there and I've come to the con-
clusion that there's no love lost be-
| tween them. It's the natural outcome
| Of the situation, anyway"
yes, perhaps" she murmured. She
| placed her elbow on the table and
pressed the tips Of her fingers against
| her cheek. Her hand and arm, re-
vealed by her loose lace sleeve, looked
as if cut out Of ivory.
And then" went on her father re-
morselessly, "the results of being a
COMPOUNDED fool don't stop right there.
That's one Of the worst things of al
lowing yourself the luxury of foolish
ness. They go on-roll right along
| like a wheel started on a down-hill
| grade. Some day that boy'n meet the
| right woman-the one he really wants,
| the one that belongs to him. He'll
be able to stand it all right till then
And then he'll realize just what he's
done and what he's up against, and
things may happen"
| The smoke wreaths were thick in
front Of his face, and peering through
them he saw the young girl move her
| fingers from her cheek to her fore
head, where she gently rubbed them
up and down.
Isn't that about the size of it" he
queried, when she did not answer.
Yes, maybe" she said in a voice
| that sounded mufled.
It'll be pretty tough proposition
and it's bound to happen. A decent
Teller like that is just the man to fall