THE WEST SHORE.
137
A LAW UNTO HERSELF.
TART II.
THE events of the year immediately succeeding
Roy Mason's departure I shall leave unchron
icled, inasmuch as they have no direct bearing upon
this little history. True, they were important to my
self, as ushering in the beginning of a golden bar-
vpst from which, eventually, I garnered sheaves sum
cient for the wants of all my days to come. But as
in these pages I am no central figure, and claim no
higher place than that of humble chronicler of the
lives and fates of others, I shall step with one sweep
ing stride, from March to March, and make my bow
to the reader once more, in the door of my small
mountain home, wherein Damocles and myself had
found shelter from the blasts of another winter.
Time had touched the little edifice as lightly as
could be expected, and although the onslaught of Ju
piter Pluvius had penetrated the thatch in one or two
claces. and washed the mud plaster from between tho
sticks of the tall chimney, the fireplace roared as
cheerilv as of vore. and the much-lamented down
ward bIodo of the floor now proved itself a blessing
in disguise, by promptly carrying off the leakage
from the roof.
Unon this particular March morning to which I
crII the reader's attention, the sun was shining
brightly, with a suggestion of springtime warmth in
if Wma: the snow had almost entirely disappeared
from the level of the valley below, and even tho
mountains were rapidly baring their brown breasts to
Hi a Imrh nf the southern sun.
Damocles, unchanged, so far as I could see, in
itw W. manner or aDDcarance, stood sturdily in
the foreground, with his pack strapped to his back,
quietly taking note of my movements, ior no kduw m
well as 1 that the time had come for us to abandon
our vine and fig tree, and betake us to deeper moun
tain fastnesses. Indeed, he sniffed tho morning
breeze with inflated nostrils, and gave every evidence
of having imbibed much of the adventurous spirit or
the gold hunter, in his long and intimate association
with myself.
I had nailed a wooden shutter over tho little win
dow, heaped ashes over the coals in tho fireplace, and
set everything to rights in preparation for a summer ,
absence, and at last stood in tho open doorway, light
ing my pipe in a leisurely way, when Damocles sud
denly turned his face to the southward, m the direc
tion of the valley, and pointed his long ears forward
in a listening attitude. That was simply bis way oi
intimating that somebody was coming up tbe trail.
" All richt, old boy," 1 said, as I locked tbe door
and dropped tbe big iron key into my pocket, " Como
along, sir; if wo fall in with company on our tramp,
all the bettor for us,"
Skirting a thicket of young firs that intervened to
screen my cabin from tbo gazo of passing wayfarers,
we struck tbo trail, and as approaching hoof beats
were now plainly audible, wo both paused, as if by
mutual consent, and glanced downward to see who or
what was coming. In an instant Damocles lifted up
his voico in a glad bray of welcome to a small, dun-
colored Cayuso, which just then hovo in sight, spas
modically picking its way up tbo trail, beneath tbo
weight of a short, fat, roly-poly, littlo man, whom, to
my surprise, I at onco recognized as tbo jolly, Ten-
tonic proprietor of Yum lum s solitary hotel
" Ah. Mecstcr Pl&ke," ho panted, as tho poor, lit
tle, over-burdened pony slowly drew near us, " I dink
you got a wrong name; of I namo you, I call you al
ter dot lcedlo blant dot lif high cop on dcr moundain
dop, und ecs so hard to reach -dot edelweiss.
I smiled at what struck mo as a poetic idea from
a very unexpected source.
" Thanks. Mr. Gracht," I answered. M Am I to
understand that I am tho edelweiss of which you
have como in search this morning? "
" I baf como in search of you, Mr. Flake, und so
hardt timo I baf. I vould cono mit myself pack, if I
onlv cot somo oxcuso for dot leedlo vooman. You
eoe. Mecstcr Plake. dis vas how it fas: Vol jeetiio
vooman she comes mit dcr stngo at my houso last
night, und sho pegins righdt off to ask mo qvcations,
und I-"
" Questions alwui mo?" I echoed, with a suddeu
accession of interest in tho littlo man's gibberish.
" What littlo woman? Who is sbo?
" Dot lcedlo vooman vot comes to ray houao py
dor stAge. Wbo is she, I don'd know. Sbo yut
comes mit der stage, und prings mit her a plack voo
man und a pig dog, und sho got my mi rooms, und
den sbo ask me qvestious aboud Slocster Plako
Sbarles Plako-don'd I knows him? Does be got a
vamly? Vero does bo lif? und efer so much. Vf n I
doldbcr as Mccster Flake lifs more as dreo miles
avay, oop glow) py dcr sky py dcr mowalain dop, sbo
drob down on dcr chair, und look liko slo va goin' to
gry mit herzelf. Den I feel mk aUud dor knees,
liko I vands to run, put I say to mvwlf, Yawcob
Gracht, of you makes dot leedlo voomans gry, I kicks
you down stairs Den I say koraetlir C'jot to ber,
und after arilo sbo ahmile, und say rot vould 1 goat
to gome und pring you py my hou und bro I
und now, Mwtter Flake, of you vould so kit u
j to gomo along mit me"