Year: 1877

of bygone Saturday nights cheered with an
ticipations Of seeing her lover, reverent and
respected, at the church on the morrow
Anton thought of her in very different
manner.


"Am not a fool" he said, "to throw
myself away upon so poor girl There is
not princess in all Europe for whom
shall not be a worthy match when / am
master of my wealth. Nay, but Beatrix is
a good girl will not break her heart.
Shall stop, and bid her cease from her
absurd industry-dazzle her with revela-
tion of the riches in store for me But no.
it will be better to wait and find how feel
when have got them. will not commit
myself. Still will peep in at her as pass
it is long since have seen her.


He peered in through the cottage win
dow, but drew back in alarm when Beatrix
raised her head She had got a glimpse Of
his face, however, and sighed TO think how
haggard it, once so handsome, had become
how little love for her there seemed
left in it.


She put away her work, said her sad pray.
ers, and went to bed, whilst Anton hurried
on to meet the goblin.


Again Kobold was true to his word. He
led Anton into a vaulted hall that blazed
with gold. The fretted roof and the floor
were of native gold the columns of the cor
ridors that stretched away-not into gloom,
but into unfading brilliance, reflected from
some invisible source of light-were of gilt
tering quartz, inclosing, not nuggets, but
huge blocks of gold, which cleaned through
them like goldfish through crystalline water,
or rather like suns radating dazzling splen-
dor through most pellucd summer air.


Anton now fairly lost his head, and danced
with delight. When he came to himself, he
was lying outside the mountain, at the place
of tryst. The Sunday morning sunshine
had awoke him. 1t seemed pale and cold
in comparison with the subterranean radi-
ance which flashed back upon his memory.
At the thought of that, he arose from his
hard couch and leaped again for Joy, al
though his heart sunk for moment when
he remembered that, after all, he had for
gotten to secure the cew.


But what matters that 2' he said. "Ko-
bold will give it to me when meet him
here again tonight


lie had forgotten also that the goblin had
promised TO meet him there the night before
--for he last time.


The bell was Ginning its sivery "Come
to prayers when Anton passed the church
ON his road home. Worshippers were troop
ing in; amongst them Beatrix, on whose
kind face shame struggled with pity when
she acknowledged the salutation of her dis
reputable looking lover.


Ha, ha ~ though Anton, "the proud
mink will be glad, if let her, to worship at
my feet o-morrow-stickng her pins into
paltry, penny-winning pillow, when | have
but to prick the ground, for gold to gush up
in streams unstanchable ?"


At midnight Anton was again at the
trysting-place. Less and less patiently he
waited but no Kobold came. More and
more despairingly he shouted,


"kobold, kobold the clew, the clew !"


At last a mocking voice, which sounded
as if it came from miles away, replied,


81 showed thee the gold promised not
the clew."


A peal of far-off scornful laughter fol-
lowed, and then again the stars shone ST.
lently upon the silent mountains.


For a time Anton wandered like an Aza-
eel in the wilderness. At last he crawled,
almost naked, and cold and hungry, to the
threshold of the cottage of Breatrix S mother.
The pitying woman took him in. When
mother and daughter had nursed him into
sanity once more of mind and body, Beatrix
gave him a pick and shovel, a drill and a
powder-horn, which she had purchased out
of her savings from the earnings of her de-
| splsed lace Pillow lie once more uescehueu
into the bowels of the EARTH but only to
blast and prize out homely iron-stone; and
Kobold must have been little inclined for
mocking laughter-unless he chose to deride
himself-if he knew what pair of peace
full joyous hearts were beating in unison in
Anton's hut, when the mountain churcE-bell
chimed on the first Sunday after the hum
bled miner had proudly won, as prize too
good for him. affectOnatelv exultant BeatriX
for his faithful bride.-Ddy Of Rest.