Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-08-24
CHAPTER VIII.

EOR hours that night the miner took himself task
for ever having dared hope to win the love of such
girl as Eve Waters He asked himself bitterly
what right had he of the rocks and hills to aspire
SO high He accused himself of ignorance, and admit
ted that had he known of social sages and social
he might have been less liable to this heartbreak
ing blunder And then and there lying on his back IN
his bed and staring upward into the darkness he went
his past mistakes, and vowed to himself that when
the gold had been swept from the bottom of the lake he
would profit thereby in his own way. With fortune at
his command, he would venture out into that world Of
cities and art galleries, and music and study and
women in their environment.
The dawn bringing its first dim light to render dis
tngushable the familiar objects in that where he
had toiled, dreamed, and been happy, brought him
weary repose and faint philosophy. Could he but
seize that fortune and make speed he might yet aspire
invade Eve Waters world and win her appreciation.
He sernly banned himself from further air castles of
love. He must shut his teeth and fight he had
fought for knowledge, for advancement for gold He
had dawdled long enough. None but gutter would
repine. And SO, esolutely, he forced himself to sleep
that he might be strong for the new day.
When he awoke he was startled by the strength of
light. Fitfu rays of the sum- coming through crevices
between fields of clouds and shifting the walls in side
spaces, told him that he had oversight by hours. He
eaped from the bed to plunge his face and hands into
the cold water
Nor did he suspect that Hardpan Brown queer faith
full, and fathery, had heard him tumbng in his bed
throughout the night, and shrewdly surmsed, IN his
kindly, sympathetic way, that nothing but heart
wound could have caused that unrest; that Hardpan
had crawled softly out of his bunk in the morning,
gathered his clothes into his hands, tptoed out bare
least fifty feet away from the cabin door, that Hardpan,
lest the spashng of water disturb his partner had gone
down to the edge of the little lake to wash his hands and
face grmbled because he had forgotten to bring soap
and towel and in the end cheerfuy dried his hands and
face the vominous tails of his wooden shirt
Jim hurried to the messhouse where the Chinese cook
tried to look sympathetic, but appeared merely more
craven.
"Hardpan-he say you sleep blad. Say kip Club hot.
Me vely, vely soy!" he declared, he fastened to
bring food to the table, and Jm still striving to adjust
himself to new ways of thinking and hoping tried to
smile and eat.
As he sat in the messhouse he could hear the persist
ent clac of the hand pumps drawing the last of the
water from behind the coerdam, and then, just as he
starting from his chair, the dull earthly boom of
blasts as the men in the tunnel fired He stepped
side the door, to hear Hardpans drawing voice exhor
ing to spell me at the pump because my dad
hinged arms is most broke off,"
Somehow that rush and persistence of steady work
soothed him. and brought him to himself more than any
sounds he had heard since the well moduated, dcliber
ate voice of John Holloway had made him realize his
own helplessness He breathed deeply, squared his
shoulders pulled his hat down his eyes to shade
them from the suns eeng glare and hurried down the
hill to his work.
HARDPAN pretended to notice nothing unusual in
IL his coming that hour, and omitted the customary
"Good mornin' Jimmy" with which he started each
day Instead of sautation he began if in the midst
of the days work
"Now if them shots shows clean, he said "the drill
holes for the next go nearly through the rock
Jimmy, and that that the big borcs done. Bet
ter go in and see, Pardner.