T H E TORCH OF REASON, SILV ERTO N , OREGON, MARCH 16, 1899. 2 for a reference when 1 ask for the in o fo r these ten years,’ responded öo Bury Religion. situ atio n .” S an ,' and at that' in stan t his ayes Then there was a halt, a supply were’on a level with the lady’s on BY JO H N PRESCO TT O V IL O . of fresh horses and a prom pt, lively _______ I llie box so th a t he could not help start. But the afternoon was in 4 - 1 0 burr religion! go bury it Quick, 6eeing t’h e ,,,guifh glint of them , tensely hot and the team soon so G - N° m k i,r k‘ bOT'’ * which so far disconcerted the usu- Mrs. Page did not Too long i t J J j i v e d and encumbered a lly 8elf. p , „ d professor o f th e ,ancied>„ gajd bered down. offer again to take the reins. She A curse it has been ever since it had whip th a t he heard not the land- - was overwarm and w eary, perhaps; b irth . , la d v ’s laugh, but gathered up the MrP- 1 . On the high and the low it has fastened - 8 * carel(.S8 m a n I sh o u ld ta k e to sta g e d riv in g quiet and a little sad, at any rate. its fang, .> i ' T, .1 uu a. tirnfession It seems to me a Mr. Rice was quiet, too, and And poisoned th e people w ith terrib le I n a n n e r as to cause Demon, the • 1 ’ tang. I . , , , a offw itk a h n iin d free and m anly calling, one th a t thoughtful. The passengers inside Religion h as finished its fallacious sway, I nigh leader, to go > < develops some of the best qualities were asleep. The coach rattled Consign it to coffin and cart it away. th a t neaH y lh rew th e o w n er of th e o o e i o p s son. • . . along at a steady pace, with the Go bury re lig io n ! th a t clog on the m ind, L ye8 o u t of her place. The little “ a m an. course K ‘ Concocted fby rogues and S i e v e d by th e oppoI, u n ity for Mrs. draw backs One can not alw ays dust so deep under the wheels as to At interv als a b lin d : j - ® , i >g • choose one’s society on a stag e,an d still their rum ble. freight wagon was passed, draw n m _ r . . . !........ .. ..» .» » » ......- Crooned over by aged and stam m ered by j Besides, there are storm s, and up to one side at a “ tu rn -o u t” , or a face, and for Sam Rice to show his y o u th ; ' rabbit skipped across the road, or A com pound of ignorance, fancy and genteel handling of the ribbons, sets, and all that sort of thing. I ’ve fraud, . , often th o u g h t,” continued Mrs. a solitary horsem an suggested a l Defam ing m ankind in devotion to God. and conquer the unaccountable Dolly, “ th a t we do not consider tern ately a “ road agent” or one of Religion has finished its fallacious sw ay, disturbance of his pulses. Consign it to coffin and c art it aw ay. enough the hardships of drivers, Jam es’s heroes. G rand views pre Sam had looked a t the way-bill, Go bury religion! th a t delusion dire nor w hat we owe them . You’ve sented themselves of wooded cliffs not ten m inutes before, to ascertain W hich th re a te n e d th e w isdom ed w ith T all pines read th a t poem — the Post-boy’s and wild ravines. etern al fire, tlie nam e of the pretty black-eyed threw lengthening shadow s B u t blest th e m ost stu p id w ith endless Song: woman seated at his left hand; and d elight across the open spaces on the For sh u ttin g th e ir eyes and denying the consciousness of so great a cu ‘Like a sh u ttle th ro w n by th e h an d of m ountain-sides. And so the after th e ir sig h t! F ate, riosity gratified, may have aug F o rw ard and back I g o .’ T he world has outgrow n its old, c h i l d i s h noon wore aw ay; and, when the ideas, m ented his unaccustom ed em bar Well, it is ju st so. They do bring sun was setting, the passengers And gim -cracks and god-stacks no long rassm ent. Certain it is, Sam had er reveres. us our letters, full of good and ill alighted for their supper a t the Religion has finished its fallacious sw ay, driven six horses, on a ticklish news, helping to weave the web of principal hotel of Lucky-dog— a Consign it to coffin and cart it aw ay. m ountain road, for four years, with- F ate for us; yet not to blam e for m ining cam p pretty well up in the S S n u t m issing a trip, and had more w hat tidings they bring,and always Sierras. than once encountered the “ road dig th eir lair, “ We both stop here,” said Sam, faithful to their duties, in storm or In volcanic cavern, in A ntarctic ice, . agents” w ithout ever yet delivering T here cover religion’s polluting d e v ic e ; as he helped the lady down from shine.” T hen science shall light, all the world them an express box; had bad old “ I shall like my profession bet lier high position; letting her know w ith its beam , and young ladies, plain and beau A nd m orals shall m ake all h u m an ity ter after w hat you have said of it,” hv this rem ark th a t her destination gleam . tiful ones, to sit beside him, h u n said Sam , giving his whip a curl to was known to him. Religion has finished its fallacious sw ay, dreds of times, yet this was the Consign it to coffin an d c a rt it aw ay. “ I’m ra th e r glad of th a t,” she m ake it touch the off leader’s right first tim e he had consulted th e ear. “ I ’ve done my du ty m ostly, answered, frankly, with a little way-bill, on his own account, to and not com plained of the h a rd smile; and considering all th a t had Sam Rice’s Romance. find a lad y ’s name. T his one time, ships, though once or twice I ’ve transpired on th a t long drive, Sam too, it had a Mrs. before it, which was certainly pardonable if he felt A WESTERN STORY IN THREE CHAPTERS prefix gave him a pang he was very been too bent out to get off the box a t the end of my drive; but th a t alm ost sure th a t her reason for be unw illing to own. On the other was in a long spell of bad w eather, ing glad was identical with his CHAPTER I. hand, Mrs. Dolly Page was clad in when the roads was ju st awful, and own. H E coach of W ells, Fargo & extrem ely deep black. Could she Lucky-dog was one of those the rain as cold as snow.” Co. stood before the door be in m ourning for Mr. Page? If sham bling, new cam ps, where one “ W ould • you » m ind letting me hold of Piney-woods Station,and Demon had an unusual num ber of the lines aw hile?” asked the cooing street serves for a string on which Sam Rice, the driver, was draw ing startin g fits th a t afternoon, his “ I ’ve driven a six- two or three dozen ill-assorted ten on his lemon-colored gloves with driver was not altogether guiltless voice a t last. em ents are- strung, every fifth one an air, for Sam was the pink of in the m atter; for w hat horse so in-hand before.” Though decidedly staTtled, and being a place intended for the re stage drivers, from his high white sensitive as he would not have felt averse to tru stin g his team to such lief of the universal American h at to his faultless French boots. the m agnetism of som ething wrong a pair of hands, Sam was comp 1- th irst, though the liquids dispensed Sad will it be when his profession behind him ? at these beneficent institu tio n s were But as the mocking eyes kept lcd, by the psychic force of the lit shall have been altogether super- tle woman, to yield up the reins. It observed rather to provoke th a n to ceded, and the coach-and-six, with hidden behind the veil, and the abate the dryness of th eir patrons. its gracious and graceful ‘‘whip” rich, m usical voice uttered not a was with fear and trem bling th a t he watched her handling of them Eating-house# were even more fre shall have been supplanted, on all word through a whole half hour, quent than those which dispensed the principal lines of travel, by the which seemed an age to Sam, he for the first mile; but, as she really m oisture to parched th ro ats; so iron horse with its grim y “ d riv er” finally recovered himself so far as seemed to know' w hat she was th a t taking a cursory view of the and train of th u ndering carriages. to say he believed he would not about, his confidence increased, and windows fro n tirg on the street, the The passengers had taken their smoke, after all; and thereupon re he watched her with adm iration. im pression was inevitably conveyed seats — the one lady on the box— turned the cigar, still unlighted, to H er veil was now np, her eyes were sparkling and cheeks glowing. She of the expected rush of fam ished and Sam Rice stood, chronom eter his pocket. arm ies, whose w ants this c h a rita held d a in tily between thum b and “ I hope you do not deprive your did not speak often, but when she ble com m unity was only too will finger, w aiting for the second hand self of a lu x u ry on my account,” did it was som ething piquant and graceful th a t she uttered. At last, ing to supply for a sufficient con to come round th e q u arter of a m urm ured the soft voice. sideration. The houses th a t were m inute, while the grooms slipped ‘•I guess th a t dust and sunshine ju st as the station was in sight, she not eating and drinking-houses the last strap of the harness into is enough for a lady to stand, w ith yielded up the lines, with a deep- were hotels, if we except occasional its buckle. At the expiration of a out my sm okin’ in her face,” re- draw n sigh of satisfaction, apolo- grocery and general m erchandise q u arte r of a m inute, as Sam stuck turned Sam, politely, and glancing g '« » « for '» by eay 'nS th at her Into w hat out-of- hands, not being used to it, were establishm ents. an unlighted cigar between his lips at the veil. the-w ay corners the in h ab itan ts “Still, I beg you will smoke if tired. and took hold of the box to pull “ I ’m not sure,” she added, “ but I were stowed, it was impossible to him self up to his seat, the good- you are accustom ed,” persisted the shall tak e to the box, at last, as a conjecture, u n til it was discovered natured landlady of Piney-woods cooing voice behind it. th a t the men lived a t the places a l S tation called out, with some offic- But Sam, to his praise lie it spo- steady th in g .’’ iousness: ken, refused to add a n y th in g to “ If you do,’ responded Sam , gal- ready inventoried, and th a t women “ Mr. Rice, don’t you w ant a the discom fort of a sum m er d ay ’s lan tly , “ I hope you will d r h e on abode not at all in Lucky-dog—or if there were any, not more than m atch ?” ride across the m ountains. H is m y line.” “ T h a t’s just w hat I ’ve beeu look-, ch iv alry had its rew ard; for the “ T hanks. I shall apply to you half a dozen of them , and they liv- „ 4 T ........... ... | , o lady thus favored, feeling con- j , strained to m ake some return or constderation, began to talk, "• » 'e i n th a t del.ghted her au d .t- or, about horses - th e.r potnts an th eir t r a i t s - a n d , lastly, about th eir