The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1929-10-04
A Northland Romance
by
Robert w. Service
Illustrations by Irwin Myers
WNU Service
CHAPTER XI-Continued

nv" i lOdlue myself Uut lniuh
Of Berna, and the thought gOads me
TO fresh excuses. will go on till
flesh and blood can stand il no longer,
till drop in my tracks | realize that
somehow | must make her pity me.
must awake in her that guardian
angel which exists in every woman.
Always amid that lurid carnival of
sin finats the figure of Blossom. Bios
som with her child-face of dazzling
fairness. her china-blue eyes, her
round. smooth cheeks. How different
from the pinched paid face of Berna
Poor. poor BernaI | never see her.
bur amid all the saturnalia she haunts
me. The thought of her is agony. J.
cannot bear to think of her. | know
she watches me- If she would only
stoOp and save me nOwI Or have
not fallen low enough? ] must 60
deeper yet Faster and faster must
[ swirl into the vortex.
10 all that fierce madness of de-
Dauch, thank God, retained my honor.
They beguiled me. they tried to lure
me into their rooms; but at the mo-
ment ! went TO enter | recoiled. IL
was as if an invisible arm stretched
across the doorway and buried me
out.
And Blossom, she, too, tried so hard
TO lure me, and because l resisted il
tnf1amed her. She would coax me
with the prettiest gestures, and cajOle
mi
then, when | steadfastly resisted her.
she would fly into fury and flout me
with the fOulness of the stews.
1t was in one of the corridors of the
dance hall in the early hours of the
morning. The place was deserted.
strewed with debris of the nights de-
bauch. We were up there. Blossom
and L was in a strange state of
mind, a state bordering on frenzy.
Not much longer, | felt, could | keep
up this pace. Something had to hap
pen, and that soon.
She put her arms around me-
Come" she said.
She led me toward her room. No
longer was | able to resist. My foot
was on the threshold and l was al
most over when
Telegram. sir"
II was messenger. Confusedly I
took the fiimsy envelope and tore It
open. Bankly | stared at the line of
type | stared like man in a dream
was sober enough now.
Amt you coming?" said Blossom.
cutting her arms round me.
No." | said hOarseIy, leave me,
please leave me. Oh, my Cod"
Her face changed. became vindic.
tive. the face of fury.
curse your she Missed. "Oh,
knew. It's that other. that white
faced doll you care for. Look al me
Am | not better than her? And you
scorn me. Oh. hate you. I'll get
even with you and her. Curse you.
curse you"
She snatched up an empty wine
bottle. Swinging ii by the neck she
struck me square on the forehead. |
blood. Then fell Imply forward. and
all the lights seemed to go out
There lay in heap. and the blood
squirting from my wound soaked the
little piece of paper. On it was
written:
Mother died this morning Garry"
where an. II"
Here with me-"
Low and sweet and tender was the
Eoice. | was in bed and my head was
heavily bandaged. so that the cloths
weighed upon my eyelids By my
bedside some one was sitting. and q
soft, gentle hand was holding mine
as that you, Berna?"
"Yes. please don't talk"
! thrilled with sudden sweetness
of joy. food of sunshine bathed
me. 1t was all over, then. the tur.
moil, the storm, the shipwreck. | was
drifting on a tranquil ocean of con-
tent Blissfully closed my eyes.
Yet there was something. some
memory darker than the others. some
shadow of shadows that batfled me-
AS battled with a growing terror and
suspense, il all came back to me. the
telegram, the news. my collapse.
great grief weIled up in me. and 10
my agony spoke to the girl.
"Berna. tell me, is it true? Is my
mother dead?"
Yes. it's true. dear. You must try
to bear it braveIy."
| could feel her bending over me.
could feel her hand holding mine.
could feel her hair brush MY cheek
yet | forgot even her just then. /
thought only of mother of her devo,
ton and of how little | had done 70
deserve it So this was the end: a
narrow grave. a rending grief ami
the haunting specter of reproach.
Ny sObs were choking me. and Berns
was holding my hand very tightly
Yet in little | grew calmer.
"Berna." | said, ave only got you
now. only you. little girl. So you
must love me, you mustn't leave me-"
IN never leave you-if you want
me to stay"
God bless you, dear. can't
tell you the comfort you are to me-
I'll try to be quiet now"
l will always remember those days
as ! grew slowly well again. Berna
left me much alone. alone with my
thoughts. Often when all was quiet
1 knew she was sitting there beyond
the curtain. sitting thinking. Just as
i was thinking. Quiet was the key
note of our life, quiet and sanshine.
That little cabin might have been a
hundred miles from the gold-born city,
it was so quiet How sweet she looked