*
TIIE TORCH OF REASON, SILVERTON, OREGON, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 1897
such a longing for the old life. I today I saw nm ther. It could not
can hardly endure the thought th at have he» n a dream it was so real.”
[ a ROMANCE BY SAMVEL P. PIT N A M ] it is gone forever. It seems as if I
“ We will call it a reality, for we
hardly know where to draw the
CHAPTER IV.
m ust live it once a g a in .”
“ P erhaps we shall. Some philos- line betw een a dream ami a fact.
Bill, the m iner, was a m an of
“ I care not to settle it. I like to
He had ophers say th a t th is life is hut a
considerable culture.
L
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dw< It . —e • ■." hi - 1 ihL-t
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land, on the hanks of one of its th at our knowledge is hut a rem em ­ wise life would be a (lead calm,
loveliest stream s. B ut, being of an bering; and, if w»* lived it once, hut now it is lull of ripples that
adventurous dispoition and some­ why not again? I’m sure I've no ca'ch with varying light the chang­
w hat am bitious, he had come to objection. I ’d rath er live this life ing heaven. I am content, though
C alifornia in search of a fortune. over again th a n go to heaven and I feel as if I knew hut very little,
and m ust gue-s at a gr at d< a ’.”
He loved the m ountains, and to a play on a harp of gold.”
“Some things we know at lea-L
“ J wonder if w cshall live ag a in ,”
certain extent dw elt ap art from his
com rades,— not from any spirit of nursed Madeline. “ It seems ns if I know th a t I I ave had a good
m isanthropy, hut because he en ­ all this beauty of thought and feel­ supper; th at the beefsteak was
joyed lonely studies, and also be­ ing that we have cannot come to an nicely hr« iled, and the gems de­
cause, in the little cabin toward end, th a t som ething at least m ust lightful. And I know th a t this
not. • vening is h -au iful, w i'h th e moon
which he wended his way, lived rem ain; and yet I know
with him the only surviving m em ­ F a th e r and m other never gave us shedding its light, and the m oun­
ber of his family, besides him self, any hope, and yet I cannot feel tains lying al»< ut in grand m ajesty,
th at they have quite passed away, and the trees w hispering— I don’t
his sister Madeline.
She was at the door to greet him even though they said they slm u'd, know w hat— hut som ething very
with a smile and kiss. She was ami wore satisfied to re-t in the pleasant. Indeed '«hat little knowl­
edge 1 have gives me infinite joy.”
very beautiful,— pale and delicate, bosom of nature in sweet sleep.”
“ I am glad you e< joyed the sup­
“ There they are in the quiet
with an unusual brilliancy in her
eyes. Indeed, it required hut little valley; and all th a t is left is the in ­ per, ami I presum e th at, if you
observation to discover th a t she was fluence of their devoted lives. I d id n ’t enjoy th at, you w ouldn't en­
slightly deranged.
Yet she was can see Ho greater im m ortality. joy anv thing else. So we are
charm ing, intelligent, graceful, and T h at is all they taught me, and it creatures of the flesh, after all.”
“ T h a i’s to our credit.
Why
full of sunshine. She was neatly is all th at I believe. It is all th at
attired, and the cabin was in the my reason can assent to. And yet, shouldn’t we rejoice in the flesh?
best of order, and a supper th a t we have these hopes and dream s Isn’t it divine? (liv e good flesh,
It m ay la* there is and we have a good m ind. Give
would have tem pted a king was w ithin us.
poor flesh, and of what value is the
som ething beyond.”
ready for the tired worker.
“ I hardly care to live, unless I soul? 1 don’t want to he horn
“ I am glad to get hom e,” said
Bill. “ I haven’t had m uch luck can live as fully and as freely as I again. I’d ratln-r stick to the first
today,—enough t > pay for m y sup­ do now, with as much enjoyment hit th, and revel in the blood th a t
per, though; and, since I have no of nature. W hat is the use of a it gives me.”
“ I wish 1 had a bodv like yours,
landlord to dem and ren t, I guess I vague, shadowy, unsubstantial ex­
can m ake out to live. D o n ’t you istence? We might as well mingle Willi«*. I fet 1 like a shadow m y­
w ith the wind, and forget our­ self. L som etim es seems as if I
th in k so M addie?”
was going to melt aw ay.”
“ It looks like it,” she replied. selves.”
lle r delicate and frail body did
“ I don’t th ink one can starve in
“ T h a t’s w hat I think. I want
th is country.
We have all we life, if I sun going to live,— life contrast with the sturdy and a l­
w ant.”
with flesh and blood in it, like most giant fram e of her brother.
“ Y et I hope to he rich. It seems this. I don’t want to he a ghost.” She was like a lily indeed, swaying
as if I would not alw ays live her«*.
“ How can we have an existence in the wind; an d alm ost any rude
There is a strange magic in w ealth; like this, unless we have a body blast might take In r off, while her
and, if I had it, it seems as if I like this? And we know th a t the brother seemed capable of enduring
could dwell in fairy lan d .”
body perishes. We can think of no any storm. H is strong body kept
him in pet feet and healthful con­
“ This is fairy land.
H ere we life outside of the body.”
are happy.”
“ I t ’s a puzzle, isn’t it? And I tact with n atu re; while her deli­
cate ami slightly diseased organiza­
“ H ap p y ,—yes; but it is our fate, alw ays end by g iv in g it u p .”
I suppose, alw ays to he dissatisfied.
“ Yet wo constantly recur to the tion was the source of fantastic and
I never expect to have a sweeter puzzle. It h a u n ts us. W h y is th e nn lancholv visions and thoughts.
But her m ind '«as highly cu lti­
life th an I do now; an d yet I a l­ world alw ays talking about it? ”
ways w ant to strike luck and till
“ Perhaps because it is in its vated, and being free from any
m y pockets with gold.”
childhood. If it were grown up, it superstition, she hid not suffer as
“ I hope you will. It can do no would devote itself to this lile and she otherwise m ight. She did not
believe in any God outside of na­
h u rt to have the gold, w hether you think of no o th er.”
can spend it or not. I do not care
“ T h at would he w iser, I a d m it:4 ture, and so was not toitured hv
•r
to have it I prefer the flowers.” and yet how hard it is to he w ise or any anxiety concerning h r rela­
“I am glad you do; and how cease to he childish. Even now, I tions toward him . She touched
plenty they are! So we are rich if like to sec the new moon, as I do at nature fully and frankly, and had
this moment, over my right shoul­ no fear; w hile her finely wrought
we only knew it ”
spirit seemed to realize more of the
“ Rich, indeed; and yet, W illie, I der.”
was feeling homesick today.”
“ We are children of the past, and subtle light and shades of the uni­
“ Homesick! Did you want to c a n ’t escape w hat it ha- taught us.” verse than i he mind of her brother.
“ It does seem at times as if I had She had an elem ent within her of
see the old farm once m ore?”
“ Oh, I did. How beautiful it lived for ages. I feel as If I had that m ysterious genius th a t som e­
looked in my dream s! The great breathe«! and thought lone agO> how seems to he lighted w ith fires
trees, the fields and the rocks, and when these m ountains first began from the innerm ost soul of things,
the brook,— how they shone with to he. I know I was w ith them at and knows by flashes of intui ion.
Evidently some gieat sorrow had
wonderful light! It alm ost seemed their birth.”
as if I were there.”
“Probably you were, in some swept over her. She had passed
“ Yet how changed all would he, shape. You have weird fancies at through hours of im mense agony.
But now she was calm , like a sweet
if we should visit it.”
times.”
“Oh, yes,” sighed Madeline. “I
“ I do. I som etim es think I hear lake liidd»*n in the bosom of mighty
cou.d not go back; and yet I have voices and see visions. I thought hills. There was an unfathom able
GOLDEN THRONE
depth in the expression
brilliant eyes.
of her
How differently
her hr- th er
looked! He was a genuine m an
from le a d to foot
lie had alw ays
enjoyed life, a- a strong swimmer
d< - ; l
• ; V,-;.
f '
any fortune and for any blow.
Put him in the m idst of the A tla n ­
tic, with hut a single plan k , and
somehow he would m ake his way
ashor»*; and, if he landed on a
desert islai d, In- would build him a
hou-e. and m ake cu t to live <*om-
fortably. T his life to him was all
in all. lie had no thought hevond
*•
the present world.
IL* expected
when he died to re’u rn to dust.
His father ami m other both were
infid Is of the “ straitest sect,” and
gave him nothing to hope for be­
yond nature. Hence his organiza­
tion and m ind were thoroughly
adapted to his surroundings. H is
education had been complete. Not
a single m oment had been wasted
upon theology.
II«* had never
entered a church, <>r spent one
breath in prayer. II«* had alw ays
walked upright. H e had read the
best of hooks, and understood the
system of nature as i t real I v D, b u t
h«* was gloriously ignorant of m et­
aphysics, ami ail the quiddities of
the philosophers.
He was, therefore, a royal good
fellow. Meet him anyw here, am i
he would give you a cheery gre» t-
ing. W hen he sw ore, he swore
with such splendid gusto th a t it
would destroy the
im lin c h -d v
effects of a thousand serm ons, and
make <»ne feel better. There was
so much genuine justice and sin ­
c e r ity in w hat he thund'-red forth.
Besides, he could be as gentle as a
woman, and serve an y suffering
m ortal with infinite kindness.
How hap] ily they lived together,
— th ese two strangely co n trasted
yet harm onious souls!
S ubtle
linlfs of th rillin g and fine associa­
tions hound them together.
They sat elo.-cly while the night
came on, an l th e moon in silver
glory sli'nie in the cloudless blue.
It was a fascinating scene. The
hoary m ountains seemed to sleep in
the calm splend >r, freighted with
wondrous dream s, as if tin* gleam ­
ing life of centuries was throbbing
in their m ystic veins. How deeply
nature moves the soul a t tim es in
her m ighty repose! Then, indeed
does the “ feeling infinite” stir and
ex alt, even mote th an wesee n atu re
in her superb activity. There is an
unspeakable power in silence, es­
pecially the silence of great hills
and vast forests. The voiceless
glory fills the heart with u n u tte r­
able emotions.
The great expanse swept before
these two brooding and com m un­
ing spirits. They talked fitfully,
while possessed with the sweet and
ijieffable thoughts of the hour.
“ This is
into x icatin g .”
said
Madeline. “ The m oonlight is like
wine. I do not wonder th at Luna