第60章 A NIGHT ON THE DIVIDE(7)

For it was only left in trust with me by a friend.It was her only companion.""HER only companion?" echoed Miss Forester, sharply lifting her bowed head.

"Except," said Jack hurriedly, miscomprehending the emphasis with masculine fatuity,--"except the dying man for whom she lived and sacrificed her whole life.She gave me this ring, to always remind me of my trust.I suppose," he added ruefully, looking down upon it, "it's no use now.I'd better take it off."Then Amy eyed the monstrous object with angelic simplicity."Icertainly should," she said with infinite sweetness; "it would only remind you of your loss.But," she added, with a sudden, swift, imploring look of her blue eyes, "if you could part with it to me, it would be such a reminder and token of--of your forgiveness."Jack instantly handed it to her."And now," he said, "let me carry you down.""I think," she said hesitatingly, "that--I had better try to walk,"and she rose to her feet.

"Then I shall know that you have not forgiven me," said Jack sadly.

"But I have no right to trouble"--

Alas! she had no time to finish her polite objection, for the next moment she felt herself lifted in the air, smelled the bark thatch within an inch of her nose, saw the firelight vanish behind her, and subsiding into his curved arms as in a hammock, the two passed forth into the night together.

"I can't find, your bracelet anywhere, Amy," said her father, when they reached the wagon.

"It was on the floor in the lint," said Amy reproachfully."But, of course, you never thought of that!"My pen halts with some diffidence between two conclusions to this veracious chronicle.As they agree in result, though not in theory or intention, I may venture to give them both.To one coming from the lips of the charming heroine herself I naturally yield the precedence."Oh, the bear story! I don't really remember whether that was before I was engaged to John or after.But I had known him for some time; father introduced him at the Governor's ball at Sacramento.Let me see!--I think it was in the winter of '56.

Yes! it was very amusing; I always used to charge John with having trained that bear to attack our carriage so that he might come in as a hero! Oh, of course, there are a hundred absurd stories about him,--they used to say that he lived all alone in a cabin like a savage, and all that sort of thing, and was a friend of a dubious woman in the locality, whom the common people made a heroine of,--Miggles, or Wiggles, or some such preposterous name.But look at John there; can you conceive it?" The listener, glancing at a very handsome, clean-shaven fellow, faultlessly attired, could not conceive such an absurdity.So I therefore simply give the opinion of Joshua Bixley, Superintendent of the Long Divide Tunnel Company, for what it is worth: "I never took much stock in that bear story, and its captivating old Forester's daughter.Old Forester knew a thing or two, and when he was out here consolidating tunnels, he found out that Jack Tenbrook was about headed for the big lead, and brought him out and introduced him to Amy.You see, Jack, clear grit as he was, was mighty rough style, and about as simple as they make 'em, and they had to get up something to account for that girl's taking a shine to him.But they seem to be happy enough--and what are you going to do about it?"

And I transfer this philosophic query to the reader.