Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1922-02-03
The Prospector's
Return
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1----1-LT Ta22 Western Newspaper Union
By MARVIN ST. JOHNS

WADE hayners III MS steep
"Poor fellowF' spoke David Rose.
leaning solicitously over his fever
stricken comrade. 'He is thinking
of home-dreaming Of the dear old
spot we may neither Of us ever see
again"
1t was chill, dreary scene, one cal
culated to Danish the remotest sug-
gestion of home and its comforts, Its
serenity, its fond strong shelter.
An Alaskan winter held a grim
frozen landscape locked in the en-
brace of pitiless ice and snow. Where
shelf of rock protruded the two
prospectors had sought refuge the
evening preyious-ill. half famished,
worn out.
1t had been at the suggestion of
Rose the older of the two, that his
chosen friend had invested his all
In an outfit and joined him in Drawing
the rigors of the great Nome trail In
quest of the wonderful gold fields that
were making princes of paupers daily.
Thus far it had been all experiment,
Observation-Disclosures
Three days previous, however, they
had met sick crippled miner going
home TO die. He told of a partly
developed claim upon the Yukon,
workable the year round. He showed
his papers of ownership, he. told a
seemingly straight story. The part
ners ventured their last capital, bare
five hundred dollars, and had started
out to locate their treasure.
And now, for twenty-four hours poor
Wade had been stricken with fever,
delirious a part of the time, no medi-
cine available, not even decent shell
ter.
But he was dreaming, and the
glories of his fancy kept at bay all
the grim realities surrounding him.
The hole in the fence. How it came
back to him-the break in the palisade
at the edge of the home village that
seemed to shut in that little world to
itself. Beyond it was the great I'M
known of boyhood's days. Even when
he and Rose had left on their great
adventure to the broken barrier May
and Ida Woolson had come. May to
kiss him a sorrowful good-by, for they
were engaged, Ida to shyly bid Rose
good luck as she promised to write
to him.
Rose covered up his restless charge
as best he might.
And then-chaos
t. 10 90
wards neither of the two dauntless
prospectors could have described the
primal catastrophe or its later de-
velopments. David Rose seemed TO
see the great mountain slide into d
plunging distorted mass. In the arms
of an avalanche he was carried thous-
ands Of feet, to be flung senseless
into a frightful chasm. To his I'M
conscious comrade it was a dim sense
of motion and then nothingness.
Six months after that event a thin
ragged man entered the trading post
at Wilma, with brief mournful story
and simple earnest request.
Where from?" the superintendent
had asked him.
"Picked up after an avalanche, my
partner gone, penniless, sick, friend
less, and taken in by an Indian fam
lily. l have tramped it $50 miles to
get this far and beg work to start on
my way home"
Thus Wade Rayner, this as an end
of his hard earned savings.
At last! Heaven seemed near when
finally the wearied pack train reached
the first post of civilization. Then a
train for the East. More dreams, rap
id, eager, suspenseful, and one evening
home.
The train ran five miles from the
village and he had to cover the rest
of the distance on foot.
The house was lighted How glad
some, how welcoming it lookedl And
there was light in Mays own room
and May herself.
She stood before a mirror dressed
In bridal attire, wedding flowers in
her hair. A chill struck the heart of
the gazer.
She believes me dead and"
He tottered away and made his way
along back to the hole in the fence.
He turned at the sound of footsteps.
man who had passed him was hur-
rying with white-robed form towards
him.
Il was not mistaken, Miss Wool
son." he said. "See, it is, il must
be-"
Wade oh, my lost darling, Wader'
and May Woolson was in his arms
he had come back-oh. that was
all, enough, everything sobhed
out her hearts devotion. Beggared9
OH what was that against the flow
ing wealth of love! love! love. He
was ill-she would nurse him she
would win back brightness 10 tba
dimmed eyes, courage for the waver.
ing soul. Come! come to waitine
hearts-sister, friends, partner
Partneri Then David Rosaa--ro