AHEAD 0' TIME.
IN a far, western, Pacific -washed
state, lies the low, fertile Grande
Rondo valley. Around it, jealously
guarding it from the outside, busy world,
circle the picturesque Blue mountains,
whose sides are so softly dimpled by
nature's tender touch, and oyer which
lingers ever a soft, purplish haze.
Once, in years long dead, this was the
Indians' summer home. Here, in the
clear streams that, leaping down through
the narrow canyons, from the mountain
fastnesses, wind and glide away through
the valley, they caught the speckled
salmon-trout. In the deep, rank rye
grass, growing there, waist-high, they
chased to death the deer and antelope;
and in the long, fragrant, summer even
ings, the blue smoke from a hundred
camp fires curled upward to the blue
vault above.
One by one, the crickets sent out their
shrill chirrup, and the frogs began their
noisy croaking. The last red gleam died
out of the western sky; the howls of a
hungry wolf came down from some
mountain recess ; a night-hawk darted
downward with its lonely, plaintive cry ;
and night closed over the "Happy
valley."
Now, as then, the speckled trout leap
and flash through the clear steams that
glide away through the valley. But
fields of waving grain have taken the
place of the deep, rank grass, and towns
are built where once the Indian wigwams
stood. And over the mountains, and
down through the canyons, and away
over the fertile fields, like a shining ser
pent, climbs and falls, and winds the
railroad. With it, came the stir and
business and discontent of the outer
world, and vanished the idlo, dreamy,
happy days of the past
In ono short year everything was
changed. In tho shadow of the Bluo
mountains, just where tho railroad en
tered the valley from the west, a now
town sprang into life ; a fast, noisy, jolly
town, made up, chiefly, of railroad peo
plegay, good-hearted men, who worked
hard all day, and treated their friends
royally at night ; men who had but ono
religion their engines and thoir wives
and who would have shot a man dead
for doubting the worth of tho ono, or
the truth of tho other. And merry,
laughing women, who found life all sun
shine, until, sometimes, a husband or
lover was brought home dead, or crippled
for life. Yet, even then, they found
such tendor sympathy, and so many
strong arms ready to help, that they
wero still forced to sco a littlo silver lin
ing in their storm-clouds.
In a little hastily built, double-sided
house two engineers lived all alone.
One " run " to the West, tho other to tho
East When engineer Lcavctt carao in
lato at night after a "hard run," ho
found a good, warm supper, prepared by
engineer Hnslyn, awaiting him. On tho
following evening ho was tho host, and
his friend tho guest ; and many wero tho
fancy dishes each tried to preparo for
tho surpriso and pleosuro of tho other.
They had been firm friends for years
Leavett, although tho elder, had M fired
for Haslyn, and had received many fav
ors at his hands, so ho said, in years
gone by. They hail been in wrecks and
snow blockades together, and onco Has-