The Carbon County news. [volume] (Red Lodge, Mont.) 1924-1931, 1931-01-29


mass of hickory Goals. The out
side Dutch oven was filled with a
huge baking of bread, and benches
were set with pewter and snow
white dishes of poplar wood. Lus-
san was famous maker of whis-
ky and flip and beer, and three
barrels were ready, hoisted on
chunks of wood with their spigots
down, waiting for the willing hands
of his friends and neighbors to
turn them.
Jeems hunted out the pillow and
kettle and loom which his father
wanted to buy. While occupied in
this way, he came upon a table
piled with a hotchpot of articles,
and his heart gave a pump when he
saw a number of books printed in
English. His mind was filled with
the thought of his mothers joy if
he could take these treasures home
to her. There were five of the
books, Malvern Dale, Evelina, Tele-
machus, Eloiza, and Joseph And
rews, thrilling list of titles it
seemed to him, and as quickly as he
could he approached Lussan upon
the subject of their worth and pur-
chase. Seeing no merit in printed
English and small chance for their
sale, and being as we'll free-heart-
ed man and already warmed by his
own excellent beer, Lussan gave
gave them to Jeems.
Overioyed by this unexpected
windfall of fortune, Jeems began
to watch anXiously for the coming
of his father and Uncle Hepsibah
and for the appearance of Seigneur
Tonteur and whoever might be
with him.
He placed himself where he
could see down the road that came
from the Tonteur seigneurie, and
when at last he heard the auction
GERS voice believing forth his an
nouncement that the sale was
about to begin, he felt a somber
sinking of his hopes They llvened
instantly when three figures on
horseback appeared at the end of
the half mile of road. The fore
most was Tonteur. the second Paul
Tache, and in the third saddle rode
a slim, wide-hatted little person
who was none other than Marie
Antoinette Tonteur herself
Concealing himself behind the
bole of a tree. Jeems watched them
as they passed, so near that 9
pebble flung by a hoof of one OF
the horses fell at his side. His
courage almost failed him then, foi
while his hands clenched at the
sight of Paul Tache, his heart fal
tered in its beating as his atten
ton turned from his enemy tC
Toinette. She had become, all al
once, young lady whom he could
easily believe he had never seer
before, and the change in her hel(
him for few moments so forget
full of his own existence that he
would have been discovered ha(
one of the three happened to glance
in his direction. Toinette was wear
ing her first riding suit, a gorgeou.
blue camlet trimmed with silver
just arrived from Quebec. Will
this she wore a smartly cooked
beaver hat which bore rakisl
feather, and from under this ha
her long dark hair fell in a cas-
cade of carefully made curls, partl,
restrained in their freedom by tw,
or three red ribbons enmeshe,
among them. She was superb,
aware of the lovely figure she made
and every inch of her body was a
a dignified tension as she rode pas
the place where Jeems was hidden
After she had gone. Jeems fpl
an overwhelming sense of littlenes
and unimportance. For Toinett
was no longer Toinette, but a rea
princess, grown up. And PAT
Tache, riding close beside her, wit
hair powdered and tied and with
red velvet coat that could be see
| a mile away, seemed now to b
infinitely removed from the plot
tingS which ne had conceive
against him. He stepped from be
hind the tree and stopped to pic
up the pebble which Toinette
horse had flung at him. He coul
hear the auctioneer's voice, an
others bidding for Lussan's proper
ties. Then came a burst of laugh
ter which rose with unrestraine
abandon above all other sound,
blast of merriment which he woul
have recognized anywhere in tn
world. Only his Uncle Hepsiba
could laugh like that. The sight
and excitements of the scene abor
him would have made for him on
of the most thrilling events of hi
forest-rimmed world, had his heal
not been choked with the emotion
of impending drama. Yet he di
not press his desires by undu
haste, and it was half an hour b,
fore he found himself close to tn
one who occupied his thought
This happened in such fortu
tous way that Toinette, conceale
by the ample forms of Lussan
wife and daughter, was within
foot of his shoulder before he kne
it.
She did not see him, and
stood with wildly beating hear
breathing the faint perfume fro
her person, his senses dazed by II
nearness of her splendor and h
world of vision filed only with
great broad-brimmed hat, an el
ravishing mass of lustrous curls,
sunset of crimson ribbons. a pa
OF slim shoulders-and then, his pa
adise broken by the ugliness of r
ality, he discovered Paul Tach