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diff --git a/old/66008-0.txt b/old/66008-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index af24d0f..0000000 --- a/old/66008-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,2113 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Hidden Cabin, by David W. Edwards - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: The Hidden Cabin - a pathetic story in condensed form - -Author: David W. Edwards - -Release Date: August 8, 2021 [eBook #66008] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -Produced by: Charlene Taylor, Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed - Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was - produced from images generously made available by The Internet - Archive/American Libraries.) - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE HIDDEN CABIN *** - - - - - THE HIDDEN CABIN - - - - - THE - HIDDEN CABIN - - A PATHETIC STORY - - IN CONDENSED - FORM - - BY - DAVID W. EDWARDS - - AUTHOR OF “BILLY BIRDSALL,” - “UP THE GRADE,” ETC. - - COVER DESIGN, ZOLA AND ZIMBO - BY DRURY VICTOR HAIGHT - - - LOS ANGELES - COMMERCIAL PRINTING HOUSE - PUBLISHERS - 1909 - - - COPYRIGHT, 1909 - BY - DAVID W. EDWARDS - - ALL RIGHTS - RESERVED - - - - - THE STORY. - - - The Legend of Palomar. - The Hidden Cabin. - Cedric Vaughn. - Homer Lee. - Lola Vail. - The Voyage. - The Mines. - Ben Rubideaux. - The Wedding. - The Mystic Token. - The Stolen Child. - The Wanderers. - In the Mountains. - “Peg Leg,” the Miner. - Gilbert. - Zola and Zimbo. - The Midnight Ride - Gilbert’s Journey. - Conclusion. - - - - - AUTHOR’S NOTE - - - Palomar Mountain is one of the - grandest natural attractions of Southern - California. It is more than a mile in - height. From its lofty “look-outs” - the beautiful bay of San Diego may - be descried, and also the distant - islands of Santa Catalina and San - Clemente. It abounds with gushing - springs, richly timbered table-lands, - deep, rocky canyons, and rugged peaks. - It is one of the favorite resorts of the - writer, who has spent many pleasant - hours in camp near the mysterious - hidden cabin above the “snow white - clouds,” in company with his friend, - the Rev. John L. Pitner, D. D., to - whom these lines are inscribed. - - D. W. E. - - BIMINI SPRINGS - LOS ANGELES, CAL. - - - - -PALOMAR. - - -A mile above the ocean’s level brim -Tow’rs Palomar, the monarch of the range. -Along its western base are frostless hills -With verdure crowned, and valleys green, where bloom -And fruitage fill the air with sweet perfume. -Green pastures, rich with herbage and bright flowers, -Bedeck the eastern slopes which fall away -A lone and weary desert land to meet; -To meet a lone and weary desert land-- -A rich and rocky land where mines of wealth -Have slumbered long beneath its arid wastes. -So stands in majesty this mountain grand -Between the desert and the western sea. -From ocean’s heaving breast, she upward sent -A humid vapor, in the skies to meet -And woo the softer breezes that ascend -From off the heated earth at eventide. -A gentle zephyr was at play among -The cacti beds and yuccas tall, that lift -Their spiny leaves and tufted fronds above -The burning sands; she softly breathed a sigh, -And floating upward in the milky way -She met and wed the vapor from the sea; -For each had found a true affinity. -The moon withdrew and hid her face behind -The distant isles; and from the blushing east -A ray of sunlight came and kissed the bride. - - Together in the skies, these twain have wrought -A mantle, soft as down, of spotless white; -And often as the evening twilight falls, -Or dewy morning sheds her purple tints, -They come and spread it over Palomar. -Thus runs the legend which has oft been told; -And which the Indian maiden whispers low -When snow white clouds hang over Palomar. - - - - -THE HIDDEN CABIN. - - - The rugged sides of Palomar are deep -With canyons cleft, where raging floods have made -Their downward path and held their course unchained. -Beyond the eagle’s nest and rocky crag, -Where giant arborvitaes throw their plumes -Athwart the sky; and crystal waters cold -And pure, come sparkling from a mountain spring; -By bending boughs and tangled vines shut out -From view, the hidden cabin stood; and there -Today it stands, and there has stood unkept, -In mystery wrapped, a hundred years or more -Since its last tenant left it there alone. -It stands where it was builded long ago; -Yet not the same as in the days of old, -For long disuse and winters’ storms and rain -Have left their mark; but still enough remains -To show that in the hands of him who built -No joiner’s tools were held; divested of -All metals with sharp edge save only axe -And auger, which he plied with master hand -To hew the timbers smooth, and cut and fit -The doors and frames; and fitting, through these sent -The auger’s teeth to clear the way for pins -Of wood with which he made all fast and strong. - - A strange, pathetic story centers round -This lonely spot; the story of a true -And faithful soul who counted life best spent -By those who strive to crucify the flesh, -And emulate--as best poor mortal may-- -The life of Him who lived and died for love; -For love of those who loved and hated Him. - - - - -CEDRIC VAUGHN. - - - Classmates were Cedric Vaughn and Homer Lee. -Cedric from the southland came, and in his -Veins there flowed--tho’ mixed with Anglo-Saxon-- -A trace of Montezuma blood, the same -As that of those who met with sharpened steel -The hosts of Cortez on the bloody plains -Of Otumba. In the lightsome morning -Of his happy youth, he saw that twain who -Gave him life and love, with all his kindred, -By savage hands _struck down_! struck down and flung -Amid the blazing ruins of their home. -With superhuman strength he stood beside -His father ’till he fell; and then fought on -Like wounded tiger, grimly courting death. - - Filled with pagan superstition, that wild -Robber chief--when he saw brave Cedric’s blade -Cleave skull and flesh, and break like slender reeds -The spears of those who came upon him three -To one--thought him protected by the gods -And made immune to blows of mortal hands; -Stricken with fear lest in revengeful wrath -They turn on him, fell on his spear and died. -Then the others fled and Cedric’s life was -Spared. He, wand’ring aimless o’er the waste -Scarce knowing where his footsteps led, came where -Terraced hills sloped to a narrow harbor. -He knew the place and knew his father had -Been well known there and much respected for -Fair dealing, when in trade he bought and sold; -Not many days before, they together -Had come down this dusty trail and returned -With family stores. Sadly he walked on, his -Poor heart bleeding at remembrance of those -Happy hours now gone, when suddenly he -Came upon the spot where they had rested -By a spring and led their horses down; -Here lay the branch his father’s hand had used -To urge the horses on; and half trodden -In the mold, and scattered round, the paper -Which he had seen his mother’s loving hands -Wrap ’round the food prepared by her for them. -Now, for the first, he realized his loss. - - Upon the cold, damp bosom of the earth -He laid his head and wept--alone! Beneath -The bending skies and sighing boughs; no loving -Hand upon his brow; no ear to hear the -Groans that shook his iron frame; nor knew he -How near in that dark hour the heart of Him -Who suffered in the garden all alone -Was bending down to his. The soul may weep -And still the flesh demand its own: Too proud -To eat the bread of charity, he sought -And found employment in the mines. He worked -With heavy heart, crushed for a time by dark -Despair; and giving way to hunger for -Revenge, he well-nigh fell; but when at last -A kindly light broke thro’ the gloom of his -Black night of grief, and he could say, “Thy will -Be done”; in him awoke new life and hope -And high resolve to make of his own life -A memorial to them; and to strive -To reach the measure of their highest hope. -To this end he hoarded all his earnings, -And with the salvage from the wreck of their -Estate, went bravely forth, determined to -Fulfill their wish so oft expres’d that he -Might go away to school--they named the school-- -The greatest in the northland, whence they hoped -To see him come one day with cultured mind. - - - - -HOMER LEE. - - - Homer Lee was born and reared upon the -Sacred ground where beacon lights were kindl’d -On the hills, before the war that broke the -Chains of monarchy and set this nation -Free. His father owned ships and lands and -Merchandise; and the son--the eldest born-- -Had never known a wish ungratified. -Albeit, he was not puffed up, or vain, -Or churlish by over-much indulgence, -For he was nurtured in the Quaker faith, -And early taught to draw the line ’twixt -Right and wrong; and measure men by what -They _are_ and not by what they _have or say_. - Unlike in all respects were Cedric Vaughn -And Homer Lee, save in those noble traits -Of character which make men strong and brave -And true. Homer, lighter built and younger, -But noted for his prowess--when he met -The tall, dark, princely stranger from the south, -As by the power of some magnetic chain -Was strangely drawn to him. Touched by the kind -Demeanor of this fair-haired, happy youth, -Cedric’s heart went out to him. So, as the -Years went by, between them grew a friendship -Strong as that of Pythias and his friend. - - - - -DORA LEE. - - - Homer’s sister, Dora Lee, rejoiced at -Their success, or wept when disappointment -Crossed their path. Likewise, she shared in all their -Happy leisure hours, when sailing on the -Bay, or riding horseback o’er the hills. And -When their united strength their pennant saved, -The campus rang with shouts of victory -And plaudits for the heroes of the day, -She wept for joy. Dora Lee loved Cedric, -But he knew it not nor dreamed that she whose -Faithful heart could never love but one, -Had consecrated that one love to him. - -Their college days were drawing to a close; -And nearer came the day when these two friends -Must each go out to meet the sterner life-- -The one to fill the place prepared for him; -The other, empty handed and alone. -Their intercourse--to each a priceless boon-- -Had ne’er been marred by shadow of distrust. -A diamond careless thrown upon the sand, -May change the gentle current of a stream. -And so it chanced the even current of -Their fellowship was broken. - - - - -LOLA VAIL. - - - Lola Vail,-- -Her father, a rich planter, owned a vast -Estate upon the banks of that great stream -Which gathers up the waters of the land -And sweeps them onward to the gulf. Half way -To that strange southern land whence Cedric came -Was Lola born--a schoolmate, friend and guest -Of Dora Lee, and much like her; or as she -Would appear with three more years of summers’ -Sun to paint with ruddier glow the bloom of -Health upon her cheek, and tint with deeper -Gold her ample braids; in purity of -Thought and loyalty, they also were alike. - - Lola’s mother died when she was young, and -Her father, bringing home a Creole wife, -Unwittingly neglected her; and thought -His duty done when he provided for -The child a nurse--an aged Octoroon-- -A pious soul, who gave to Lola all -The love she knew in her sweet childhood life; -And filled the tender mind with holy thoughts -And pure. And Lola daily gathered flowers -And, weeping, laid them on her mother’s grave. -When she was older grown, her father took -Her to the north, she and her faithful nurse, -To bide until she grew to womanhood. -Her education finished, her father -Called her home, but she begged to tarry, yet -A few more days and visit with her friend. - - Thus it chanced to come about that Cedric -Vaughn and Homer Lee met sweet Lola Vail -And loved her, each in his own way--Cedric, -With all the fervor of his sincere soul-- -And Homer worship’d her, forgetting for -The time his own betrothed. Cedric told her -All, she sitting by his side in shady -Bower, upon a wooded isle, their boat drawn -Up below upon the pebbly beach. He -Told the story of his life, as one a -Painful duty would perform. “She must know -The truth.” And keeping nothing back, he told -Her of his birth and lineage--which was -Equal to her own--his loss of home and -Wealth; his lofty aspirations; high hopes -Now partly realized, though penniless; -But he was going back to that same land -Where he had delved; and there would he employ -The knowledge gained of placer, drift and ledge, -And engineering, to locate and bring -Forth rich treasure from the earth, and in a -Few short years would he return with wealth and -Build a costly home for her in some great -City,--she might name the place. “Could she love -Him? Would she wait for him?” She answered not -By spoken word, but when she lifted her -Fond eyes to his, he read the sweet response. - - By his strong arms encircled tenderly, -Her head upon his breast, she wept for joy; -And speaking through her tears: “Oh, leave me not, -But let me share your lot whate’er it be-- -A palace or a cot--I would leave all -The world, my Cedric, dear, and go with thee.” -But Cedric kindly told her of the place, -Its roughness, the peons there; and frankly, -But perhaps unwise, he spoke of dangers -From the wild bandits. It was no place for -One so sweet and gentle as his own dear -Lola; it were better she obey her -Father’s call. That day, a week, the ship that -He expected her to take, would leave that -Port. It would not be long; he would stop there -On his way and see her father, speak to -Him, as man to man should speak, all fair and -honorable. The wisdom of his speech -She saw and cheerful yielded to his will. -With fervid kiss their pledges sealed, they sat -In sweet converse till lengthening shadows called; -Then spread their sail and shoreward set the prow -Of their light craft. With rosy finger tips -She swept the strings of her guitar and sang: - -“What fairy-like music steals over the sea, -Entrancing the senses with calm melody? -’Tis the voice of the mermaid as she floats o’er the main, -And mingles her notes with the gondolier’s strain.” - - Homer and his sister, waiting at the -Mooring, by their merry laughter and love -Glances, half concealed, each read their secret; -And reading, saw the fading shadows of -Their hope. Each concealed the pang; and laughing, -Teased the truants for their tardiness. Then -Timidly the lovers made confession. -“And we will pray,” said Homer, “that to you -Be given the fullness of all earthly -Joy, and then the sweetest bliss of heaven.” - - Lola left them; and the three in silence -Watched her waving from the deck; and saw the -Good ship fading in the offing vanish, -Where bending skies come down to meet the sea; -Then sadly turned away--each heart, wounded -By a shaft from Cupid’s bow; arrows from -His quiver, unaimed, ofttimes fly amiss. - - Too high born and proud were Dora Lee -And Homer to harbor in their minds dark -Jealousies, or thoughts unkind; but Homer -Was disconsolate; and Dora, cheering, -Said: “You surely will forget your grief; and -Going back to your first love will marry -Her and love her evermore; for no true -Heart can ever love but one.” So it was -Her prophecy came true. Dora loved with -Woman’s constancy; and womanlike found -Comfort in the secret hope (while wishing -Naught but good for Lola Vail), the idle hope -That she one day would marry Cedric Vaughn. - - If in the spirit world departed ones -Can see with joy a loved one plodding on, -And faithful to the end, achieve at last -The worthy object sought, then there was joy -Above when Cedric led the class and gained -The highest meed of praise for work well done. - - Cedric saw, or tho’t he saw, a shorter -Way to competence than any of the -Kindly offers of a place which, without -His asking, came to him; a great law firm -Wanted him; a professorship in that -Same college he could have; in the counting -House and busy marts of commerce there were -Many op’nings for one as he so well -Endowed and popular. He declined them -All; and yet so gracefully, with thanks, that -They were urged upon him all the more; but -He had fixed his mind on going back, see -Lola on his way, then hasten on to -Carry out his plans; for each hour improved -Would bring them nearer to their wedding day. - - On the morn of his departure, a throng -Of gay young friends came, bearing tokens of -Their friendship, souvenirs of college days, -And bidding him God-speed upon his way. -He keenly felt the sting of parting with -His friends; but when he came to say good-bye -To Homer, that was hardest of it all. -When Dora gave the parting hand, and in -Her large blue eyes he saw the gathering -Tears, that tell-tale look of love she fain would -Hide; that yearning look of hopeless love -Like arrow pierced his soul with deep regret, -And haunted him thro’ all the coming years. - - - - -THE VOYAGE. - - - With varying winds the good ship sailed thro’ -Summer sea. At times translucent clouds were -Flung across its way like twilight mists, and -Then anon the sun burst forth. With lowering -Winds and listless sail they drifted dreamily -Beneath the turquoise skies. When at night the -Mellow moonlight made its path across the -Waves, Cedric paced the deck impatiently; -And in his restless dreams he saw the face -And form of Lola; felt her soft breath on -His cheek, her arms entwined about his neck -In heavenly bliss. - - At some port discharging -Freightage, the ship would often linger for -A day, and those on board would wander thro’ -The town. Once they saw a vessel that plied -Between that southern coast and Africa -Unload its cargo--human souls, who had -Been stolen from their home and brought to this -Free country to be sold to servitude. -The buyers, richly dressed and bedecked with -Diamonds, stood like drovers waiting at the -Cattle pens to buy. One gentleman with -Pistol at his belt, true type of southern -Cavalier, took a mother from her child; -Cedric pled with him to buy the baby -Too. He was answered by an insult, and -Derided for his pity for “the brat.” -Unmindful of the insult to himself, -He persevered and gained consent to buy -The child and place it in its mother’s arms. - - Off the south-most coast they saw the isle, -The magic isle of Bimini, where the -Indian sages told De Leon he -Would find the fountain of eternal youth. -Thence onward thro’ the gulf, and near that quaint -Old Crescent City, he found his darling -Lola. Near the city in a lovely -Urban villa on the rich plantation -Of her father, where the oleanders -Bloom, and palmettos wave their fronded plumes, -They met once more. Her father, Colonel Vail, -Was absent; would return in one week more. -Six days, six blissful days, from early morn -Till eve, the lovers wandered ’mid the scenes -To her, so rich in hallowed memories. - - Sitting by her mother’s grave, she told him -How unlike the days of old she found her -Home. Her father, with advancing age and -Growing wealth, had changed; become more like the -One who filled her mother’s place, purse-proud and -Haughty. He had hinted at a union -That he desired for her, and she feared he -Would not look with favor on her Cedric. - - Like as the vine twines with the sturdy oak -And clings the stronger when the north wind blows, -So she, as moved by some foreboding, clung -To him, and begged that she might go with him -To that far land; and coaxingly she said: -“Who will spread the table for my Cedric? -Or smooth his pillow? Or if mishap befall, -Nurse him back to health? If he goes alone, -I ne’er shall look upon his face again.” - - He kissed away her tears and playfully -Made light of her misgiving; yet he was -Sorely tempted, and well-nigh gave way to -His desire; but that high sense of honor, -And solicitude for her, gave him the -Mastery over self. And from that hour -He never knew a thought of selfishness. -He soothed her fears; and by words of wisdom, -(As before) soon brought her judgment into -Sweet accord with his. But it was agreed -That if her father answered his request -With scorn, or treated him unkindly, there -Would be no angry words. That he would go -And never ask again. When he returned, -Would take her as his rightful own; and then -He held her to his breast, and laid upon -Her lips what they both well knew might be his -Farewell kiss. For even then they saw her -Father’s carriage coming up the drive. When -They met and she presented her betrothed, -Cedric recognized the man who bought the -Slave and would have torn the infant from its -Mother’s breast. Yet, speaking calmly, told him -Who he was, whence and why he came; told all -Manfully; and the Colonel heard him thro’. - - Then, with derisive laugh, he taunted him -For his presumption: “A pauper, begging -For a queen! Nay, nay! The one who gains my -Daughter’s hand must have a bank account or -Property in land or slaves.” The hot blood -Rushing to his brow, he boldly answered: -“I go, accepting these conditions, but -Surely will return.” Then, taking Lola’s -Hand, said cheerfully: “’Till then, good-bye.” With -Tearless eyes she proudly looked upon her -Cedric, and stood as strong and brave as he. - - - - -THE MINES. - - - When Cedric reached that country where precious -Metals and bright gems, by nature’s cunning -Hand are tucked away and hidden in the -Rocks or scattered in the sands, he found a -Dusky peon--Jose Morales--whom he -Had known and trusted, and took him with his -Train of donkeys packed with stores; with miner’s -Pick and spade and crucible, he bravely -Plunged into the wilderness. For many -Long and weary days he sought among the -_Dry Lomitas_, sought in vain beneath a -Tropic sun, lured on by prospects that proved -Valueless. And when at last he found a -Vein of quartz that sparkled with the golden -Grains, he was compelled to leave it there, to -Wait thro’ long decades for other hands to -Come with stamp and chemicals to crush the -Rock and bear away the millions he had -Found. He working, saw the months pass by, but -Labored on with Lola ever in his -Mind. Anon there crept before his sight -A vision of that peaceful shore where first -They met,--a cottage home--his Lola with -A blue-eyed baby kneeling by her side, -White robed, with golden curls, in attitude -Of prayer--that evening prayer by mother taught; -Then he saw the blessings of the simpler, -Holy life; saw that wealth is least of all. - - One day Morales in quest of water -Sent, returned in great excitement, crying -“Oro grande, señor! Oro grande!” -In a deep arroyo in the sands for -Ages washed by floods from mountain storm, -Jose had discovered as he said, “much -Gold.” In cup-like hollows of the rocks by -Falling waters worn away--in yellow -Nuggets buried in the sand--he found the -Glittering fortune they so long had sought. -This he changed for currency of lighter -Weight and coin, in that old city where his -Forbears died; then to the seaport sped, there -Impatient waited for the ship to come -And carry him in triumph to his bride. - - - - -BEN RUBIDEAUX. - - - The consul, seeking Cedric, told him he -Had sent a messenger in search of him -With letters, and gave him one from Lola, -Requesting that the messenger be sent. -Cedric sent Morales to intercept -The messenger and bring the letters back. -This the faithful fellow did, and Cedric -Read them with dismay. Morales saw the -Troubled look on Cedric’s face and begged to -Go with him. With his tamales, and his -Mascal, and being Cedric’s servant, he -Was satisfied. He cared not for his share; -Would leave it all with him. Cedric, with real -Affection, grateful for his faithfulness, -Told him he might go and evermore abide -With him. - - He read the letters o’er and -O’er with sinking heart, read Lola’s letters. -Beginning at the first, he read how proud -Of him she was when he “so grandly stood -Before her father, with the bearing of -A king, and faced him in his wrath;” then of -Her sad and lonely days when he was gone; -How her father sought by gentleness to -Mould her to his will and bring her to forget -The one she loved. Of the attention paid -By Simon Blake, her father’s friend and boon -Companion, the man he wanted her to -Wed,--a vile, besotted wretch who knew no -God but gold; she hated gold and wished that -He might come back poor in all but love and -Purity of soul, with which no other -Riches can compare. - - This man had urged his -Suit until she had exhausted all the -Harmless arts of womanhood to evade -His coarse advances, praying daily that -Her Cedric would return; when he boldly -Claimed her hand, she told him, “No;” he bro’t her -Father who commanded that she wed him; -She, helpless in their hands, had pled for time-- -One more year; then, if Cedric had not come, -Her answer they should have. One day she, in -An arbor half hidden in the trellis, -Had heard her father’s overseer, Ben -Rubideaux, and Simon Blake make bargain -That for a sum the overseer would watch -For Cedric and murder him if he should -Come. She knew he did not fear them all, but -For her sake, she begged him not to venture -There. She gave a number in the city -Where he would find a friend, a lady friend, -Of hers. It was arranged that she should come -For her. Then, as his lawful wife, he could -Defend her and himself, if needs must be. -’Twere best that he should come with pistols, armed; -Ben Rubideaux and Blake were desperate -And wicked men. She wrote, fearing lest her -Letters would not be received; since he left, -She had received no word from him; she knew -That he would write, but they had come between. - - - - -THE WEDDING. - - - This plan was not to Cedric’s liking for -He would fain have gone openly and claimed -His bride, but for her sake he acquiesced, -And in his servant’s name he took a house, -A lovely house, in quiet place apart. -There Lola came, and as the light of slow -Descending sun proclaimed the dying day, -And zephyrs laden with the breath of bloom -And tuneful with the song of mocking bird, -Were wafted from the sea, then from the mission -Came the parish priest, and in soft accents -Of the Spanish tongue, pronounced the holy -Words that made them one. No other witness -Than his servant and her friend. And there thro’ -Long and dreamy, blissful days, they passed their -Honeymoon. - - Morales, with his native -Instinct, saw that danger hovered over -Cedric; and, unknown to him, he shadowed -All his steps. One night a messenger in -Haste came to the door, told Cedric that his -Servant was in trouble, needed him; he -Went, not knowing that his faithful Jose -Shadowed them. When near the water front the -Stranger fled; and from the cotton bales and -Freightage piled upon the dock, two ruffians -Sprang on Cedric. When the light of morning -Dawned, the lifeless forms of Simon Blake, Ben -Rubideaux and poor Morales were found -Lying on the bloody dock. - - All night Lola -Paced the floor in anguish, list’ning for the -Footsteps that came not. Nor knew she of the -Tragedy until she read: “Murdered! In the -Night! Two citizens of high repute shot down! -But not until one of the murderers -(A bearded foreigner) was killed by them. -The other has escaped, but the mob is -On his track and he will soon be taken.” -The paper gave a good description of -Her husband, which she doubted not, was given -By the man who called for him. If she should -Speak, it would bring harm to Cedric; he might -Escape and come to her; so, taking hope, -With one trusty servant she in hiding -Waited there. Her friend had gone and no one -Knew of her abiding place. - - The weary -Weeks and months rolled by; she pined, and passing -Near the gates of death, awoke to find a -Blue-eyed baby by her side--the child of -Cedric’s dreams. The months passed by and still -No word from Cedric came. She, yielding to -Her grief and drooping, faded as a flower -That withering in decadence fades away. -The rosy seraph sent--so kindly sent-- -From heaven to be the precious idol of -Her solitude, and his, grew strong and more -Angelic as the passing days went by. - - When the ruffians from the darkness sprang on -Cedric, with ready shot, the foremost fell; -But the bludgeon of the other laid him -Low; then, as the fatal blow was falling, -Morales coming, threw himself between; -And in deadly combat grappled with Ben -Rubideaux. With bowie knives they struggled, -Each receiving fatal thrusts, nor yielded -Until weak from loss of blood, they parting -Fell; Morales’ bowie buried in the -Heart of Rubideaux. Cedric lay for hours, -Unconscious; then, his strength returning, he -Rose, and dazed, bewildered, groped along the -Frontage, stag’ring like a drunken man; the -Stevedores thought him one returning from a -Night’s debauch. He in the early morning, -Came where a boat was loosening its cables -From the wharf; and unnoticed, stumbled on -And fell among the luggage in a swoon. - - - - -THE MYSTIC TOKEN. - - - The boat--bound for the Indies--was well out -On the gulf before they found and lifted -Him; nor knew they of the tragedy upon -The dock, or that he was hunted as a -Murderer. They finding on his person -The token of a craft which they reveréd, -They cared for him and left him safely in -An island city of the Southern Sea. -There his brother craftsmen gathering round him, -Nursing--raised him--raised him as one from the -Dead. From the “Valley of the Shadows” brought -Him forth to perfect health and vigor; but -Alas! the silken cord that erstwhile bound -Him to the past, was broken! _Memory -Was gone!_ Nor, with active mind and clear, could -He recall the past, tell his name or whence -He came. He strove to lift the veil and look -Beyond the wall of night that intervened. -That cruel blow had caused a lesion of -The brain--a lapse of memory complete. -As the wire that bears the hidden current -Broken, swaying in the breeze, connecting -Sends a gleam across the night, so at times -Bright gleams of memory, almost taking -Shape, would light his way; then leaving him in -Greater darkness, would as quickly fly away. - - Gradually came before his sight, as -Dimly seen thro’ nebulae, the outlines -Of a form and face came from the misty -Moonlight of the past. At last, came back to -Him, that picture which had made the deepest -Imprint on his mind--his Lola, as he -Saw her standing by her father’s side. But -When was this? And where? And who was she? -By exercise of all the strength of his -Great will, her name once more came back to him, -And then her father’s; then the city where -They lived; and then it was borne in on him -That she was his betrothed; that he had gone -To that fair isle to make a home for her. -Now, having gained the wherewithal, he could -Go and bring her. With this thought, the flame of -Love rekindled blazed anew, as clearly -He remembered those six happy days of -Love with her--what she said, his promises; -And now--his hot blood leaping to the call, -He hastened on his way. Arriving there, -He straightway went to find her father’s -Home and claim her as he swore to do the -Day he left her there. The Colonel met him -With a scornful smile and said: “So you have -Come? You may have her, if you wish for such -As she.” Breaking forth in rage, he cried--with -Oaths--“Go! Find her at the hospital”--he -Told the driver where--“Go! Find her with her -Child of shame; they are good enough for you! -I care not if she fills a harlot’s grave.” - - - - -THE STOLEN CHILD. - - - Cedric, smitten almost to the death, bade -The driver go with haste. He found her and -She, smiling, whispered low: “My Cedric, you -Have come to meet me. Is this heaven?” then placed -The baby hand in his and falling back, -She was _indeed in heaven_. Cedric, tearless, -For a moment stood as one struck dumb; then -Took the baby in his arms. She too young -To understand, or lisp her mother’s name -Or his, as though instinctively, she threw -Her rosy arms about his neck and kissed -Him. Then confiding, laid her golden curls -Upon his breast. The nurses, thinking him -A base deserter, hoping he at least -Would own the child, and seeing him caress -It--placed tenderly its costly wrappings -’Round, and quickly packed its ample clothing, -Gave it him. He kissed the marble brow and -Turning to the one who had the right to -Speak for all, he inquired about the rites -And ceremonies of her faith, “Were they -Performed?” “Yes,” the matron said, “the good priest -Has been often by her side, left her just -Before you came; the one who married her.” - - He paced the hall and pondered, mystified. -What he had heard and seen had set his brain -Awhirl. So she was married! Then to whom? -Her husband might at any moment come -And claim his child--claim Lola’s child--he quick -Resolved to take the babe and give his life -To her--to care for her, for Lola’s sake; -For she was Lola’s child, if not his own. -They must not know that he was not the one -Who married her. He must not see the priest. -He, in his frenzy, cast aside all thought -Of right or wrong--decided he would -Steal--yea, lie or even die before that -One who had deserted her should have her -Child. He gave them gold, and speaking calmly, -(Falsely, too, as he supposed) said: “Tell them -Her husband ordered that her last resting -Place shall be a mausoleum grand, and -To him you gave the child--the one to whom -It rightfully belongs; say that he loved -Her to the last, and would that he had died; -That she had mourned for him--not he for her.” -Then, with a farewell kiss, he took the child, -Believing he was stealing it away. -The baby clung to him and was content. - - But for the child his life had ended there; -Then there had been no tie to bind, no one -To love. The past almost a blank, and in -The future no alluring hope, he fain -Had snap’d the slender thread of life, to be -With Lola evermore. Or, had he been -One of the weaker kind, complaining at -His fate, he had perchance by slower -Process, ended all in low debauchery. - - - - -THE WANDERERS. - - - But those confiding arms, that baby kiss -Upon his cheek, sent thro’ the aisles of his -Great, generous heart, a flood of newborn -Love. To part with her would be indeed to -Part with life itself. He, thinking quickly -And as quickly acting, fled--took the first -Ship that sailed, nor asking whither it was -Bound; rejoicing when it cleared the dock and -Seaward turned its prow. When learning that its -Course lay to the north, he changed to one bound -For the South Sea Isles. - - Sailing to and fro, -The changing seasons passed while they upon -The ocean cruised like wanderers without -A guide; he thinking only of his charge, -And where he, in her tender years, the -Best could care for her. Willing hands he found-- -Mothers’ hands outstretched to take the cherub -From his arms. She, growing, Cedric saw in -Her the image of her mother--the same -Blue eyes and wavy hair which fell about -Her shoulders; high arching brows and lashes -Long but darker shaded, like his own. He -Had thought to call her Lola; but when the -Stranger asked her name, she lisping answered, -“Zola,” he left it so. - - Tho’ long before -The day when ox-carts plowed their dusty way -Across the plains to reach the sun land slopes, -The Eldorado of the west, he knew -Of that fair land beside the sunset sea-- -That sunny, southern California. -There they would go, where none would ever hear -The story of the stolen, nameless child; -And where the recreant father ne’er would -Come. There would he seek and find in sylvan -Quietude, the sweetest spot where Mother -Nature reigns and in her lap, among the -Birds and flowers, would she be reared in spotless -Purity--educated--taught by him-- -As wise men of the olden times received -Their learning from the doctors of the law. - - Thitherward they sailed; and thro’ the rocky -Gateways of the cape--tho’ roughly shaken-- -Safely passed; then to the north thro’ calmer -Waters, borne by Etesian winds, oft-times -Delayed by traffic at the ports, or on -A glassy sea becalmed. And once their ship -Was overtaken by an ugly craft -That bore the pirates’ flag; and every man -On board was called to arms; then they were -Well nigh overwhelmed and taken. Cedric, -Joining with the crew, fought valiantly. Thro’ -The thickest of the battle, Zola clung -To him. When they would have taken her below, -She cried, “Let me stay wiz papa; if he -Go, zen me go too.” Cedric answered, “Be -It so; we live or die together.” But -Their fears were turned to great rejoicing when -A shot crashed thro’ the pirate craft. They sailed -Away and left it sinking in the deep. - - Cedric, by his bravery and coolness -In the time of danger, won respect and -Friendship of officers and crew. When they -Left him at the mission of the holy -Padres, on the bay of San Diego, -Loaded him with costly presents, forced them -On him, presents for himself and Zola. -The angelic child had won the hearts of all. - - Cedric told the good Franciscan fathers -He was going northward overland, and -Joyously he set about preparing -For the journey, she ever at his side, -With childish prattle, asking, “What is zis?” -“What is zat?” and “What for?” He answering -Cheerfully and evermore explaining-- -Teaching her. - - In her sweet companionship -And the certainty of keeping her, he -Laid aside his sadness and became as -Light of heart and happy as herself. At -Last they were all ready to begin their -Wild and free nomadic life--a dozen -Gentle burros, packed with all that they might -Need for months to come; a tent with costly -Furs and rugs, and blankets of bright colors -Bo’t from the Indians, with toys and gaudy -Trinkets; a snow-white pony, showily -Equip’d with Spanish bit and bridle, -Upon its back a basket, sedan-like, -With crimson canopy, lined with softest -Silken draperies, for his “Gypsy queen.” -A princess of the Romany was ne’er -Provided with such luxuries as she. - - In the early morning, long before the -Ringing of the mission bells, Zola and -Her strange retinue set forth; the pony, -With its precious burden, led by Cedric’s -Hand; then came the white milk goats with tinkling -Bells; to the sound, the meek-faced burros, trained -To follow, trailed patiently behind; and -Then a faithful shepherd dog to keep them -All in line. They moved by easy stages, -Stopping often in some shady dell to -Rest and let their burros feed upon the -Grassy slopes. Then would Zola gather flowers, -Or chase the yellow butterflies, with shouts -Of childish glee that echoed thro’ the glen; -To him a sweeter music than the chime -Of great cathedral bells or orchestra. - - - - -IN THE MOUNTAINS. - - - They exploring, crossed the great Cuyamaca -Range, traversed its broad plateaus, and thro’ the -Silence of its lofty domes and canyons; -Then beyond, where boiling waters gurgling -Flowed thro’ Indian villages. They saw -The waving pines upon the lofty crest -Of Palomar; and wandering, vainly sought -Along its base for passage leading to -Its heights. They often reached an eminence, -And thought they neared the goal, when overhanging -Walls of granite turned them back. At last, by -Persevering, came upon its table- -Lands; and pressing forward found the place he -Long had pictured in his mind--the sheltering -Boughs of giant trees, the gushing fountain, -Level plot of fertile land below, well -Watered by the rivulets that trickled -From the springs. Here he sowed the garden seeds -And grain; and from the chaparral he bro’t -The antlered buck and lesser game. The sweets -The toiling honey bee had stored away, -Drip’d from the boles of sycamore and oak. -They happy lived in Nature’s luxury. - - Lest in their quietude he might become -Indifferent or wasteful of the time, -He took up an ancient system which they -Faithfully observed thro’ all their years of -Hermitage--eight hours for labor, eight for -Rest, and eight for study and improvement -Of his mind, and teaching Zola. - - He was -The builder of the hidden cabin; for -Zola it was builded, for her boudoir. -With loving hands, he axe and auger plied, -Without compass, square or trestle board, -But with all the tenderness that ever -Mother bird provided for her nestling. -He building, furnished it with draperies-- -Bright Indian blankets, rugs and robes of -Fur, arranging all as beautiful as -Tho’ her mother’s spirit hands had guided -His. Perchance they did. If love be spirit, -And spirit love--or soul--then such as hers -Might overleap the balustrades of -Heaven and find its own; or such unselfish -Soul as his might rise and view the palace -Of the skies. He teaching, opened first the -Book of Nature, and strolled with her among -The flowers and botanized. Then to the rocks; -He told her of the slow formations of -The ages. From the books selected in -The days when she was cradled on the sea, -He, in learning, carried her beyond her -Years. - - - - -“PEG LEG, THE MINER.” - - - They marked the changing moons until a -Score had glided by and yet had seen no -Other human face save one--and he, an -Honest miner whom they found in sorry -Plight, with broken limb, where he had fallen -From an overhanging ledge. They succored -Him until, returned to strength, he rose with -One limb twisted hopelessly. They made--as -Best they could--a wooden substitute, and -Strap’d with buckskin bandage, he soon learned to -Use it cleverly. Jokingly, he called -Himself “Peg-leg, the miner.” He told them -Of a mine that out upon the desert -He had found, where three large buttes stood side by -Side. Cedric gave him burros from his herd, -And packs, and sent him on his way. He came -Again with well-filled sacks of pellets round -As shot and black as ebony, which proved -To be pure gold. He left it there, and leaving, -Nevermore returned. Miners to this day -In vain have sought that “Peg-leg Mine,” and those -Three buttes; and some have left their bones to bleach -Upon the desert sand. The miner told -Them of a nearer passage, a hidden -Trail, that led downward to the valley. They -Going, tarried there and Cedric sent the -Indians to the mission for supplies. - - Once a cougar sprang across their path with -Blazing eyes and crouching for a spring; when -Cedric sent a bullet thro’ its brain; and -From its den he took a pair of baby -Mountain lions, made orphans by the shot. -Zola, pitying, took them home and one, -Surviving, grew to monstrous size, became -Obedient to her command, and like -A faithful watch dog, followed her. She -Called him Zimbo. Other pets she had--white -Kids of silken fleece, birds and animals, -But Zimbo was the monarch of them all. - - As the circling years went ’round and she could -See beyond the golden morning of her -Sunny life the ripening noonday coming -On, she longed to see the world beyond her -Mountain home; but named it not to Cedric. -With her years she grew more fearless, wild and -Venturesome. With Zimbo and her rifle, -She scaled the dizzy heights of rock and crag -Where condors built their nests, and knew the -Devious windings of the wild doe’s trail, -Thro’ manzanita groves and chaparral. -In a seat of granite, nature fashioned, -Like a throne, shaded by a giant oak -Upon a summit looking oceanward, -She would sit in dreamy mood and watch the -Silvery line of surf that fringed the far-off -Fading stretch of blue. Once she saw a sail -Appear, then slowly vanish in the offing; -And in the quiet of an early morn, -She heard the low sweet chime of mission bells. - - - - -GILBERT. - - - To that same port where Cedric landed with -His Zola, others came from distant parts. -Some came to seek their fortunes, others came -To buy and till the soil, some to obey -The inborn instinct of the pioneer. -One family, leaving all behind, had bro’t -A sickly child. Rich and prosperous they -Had been, and with children blessed; but a dread -Contagion had swept them all away save -One; and he, left delicate and frail, the -Idol of their hopes--no other left to -Keep the family name. From those who best could -Speak, they learned there was no hope unless it be -In taking him to that fair, sunny clime. -They hastened there and gave him for his home -A quaint old hacienda of the Dons; -With many leagues of land that lay between -The mountains and the sea. There amid the -Orange groves and vineyards, in the freedom -Of the range where roamed his father’s flocks and -Herds, young Gilbert soon became a gay young -Caballero--grew as strong and fearless -As vaqueros of the range--could twirl the -Lariat or aim the rifle true as they. - - Sunburned, strong and handsome was Gilbert, in -Showy costume of the Dons, with clanking -Spurs, gold-mounted trappings on his coal-black -Leo, ambling thro’ the massive arches -Of the mission. Señoritas smiled on -Him; he returned their loving glances. This -His parents seeing, feared their Angelo -Blood be mixed with that of darker hue, besought -Him to return to their old home and there -To find a bride of his own faith and kind. -He quieted their fears and said that he -Was wedded to the mesa and the hills. -He loved the mountains more than ever -Bridegroom loved his bride, his heart was free; -But kind and true and dutiful to them, -He promised solemnly that he would do -As they desired before he took a wife; -For ne’er could he repay the love and care -By them bestowed on him, their sacrifice. - - Foremost in all manly sports, he reckless -Rode along the beach where foaming breakers -Lashed the cliffs, fleet-footed Leo dashed between. -His black horse was known on El Camino -Real--far beyond the shady groves of -Monte Vista. He loved the mountains -And on their bosom laid his head beneath -The starlit skies, companion of their silence, -Partaker of their rest. In midnight darkness -Could he thread the winding Indian trail -Across the high Cuyamacas, and often -Had he reached the base of Palomar, and -Longed to see beyond its frowning granite -Walls. At last, undaunted, came nearly to -The summit--came where a deep-walled canyon held -Him back, there rested. The autumn sun was -Slowly sinking to the sea and bathed the -Mountain side in flood of rosy-tinted -Brilliancy. - - - - -ZOLA AND ZIMBO. - - - Upon a shelving rock near -By, a being of angelic beauty -Stood; posed statue-like, her eyes fix’t on the -Distant sea; one hand spread gracefully -Across her brow, the other holding back -A monster mountain lion that crouching -At her feet, lay watching him; a robe of -Softest fabric, yielding to the breeze, revealed -The ample fulness of her shapely form; -Caught back by strand of sparkling gems, a mass -Of golden hair fell nearly to her feet. -She unconscious of his presence, Gilbert -Stood in speechless adoration, as one -Entranced,--lost in wonderment. Who was this -Personage divine? This apparition -Come to him on that lone mountain side? Was -She some fairy elf come to bewitch him? -Some mountain sprite? Or angel from the throne? -With throbbing temples, arms outstretched, as tho’ -He fain would leap the chasm that lay between, -Pressed slowly to its edge. The lion rising -Angrily to spring, she saw him standing -There and vanished from his sight. Then from the -Rocks, he heard her voice call softly, sternly: -“Come, Zimbo, come! _Come here!_” The spell was -Broken; by those words in his own tongue -He knew that she was of the earth--one like -Himself--and not a native of that land. - - Day after day did he return to that -Same spot and, waiting patient, watch for her; -Once for a moment saw her on the heights, -And again, he saw the eyes of that great -Lion fixed on him and knew that she was -Near. Like knight of old he scaled the highest -Peaks and stood upon the spot her feet had -Pressed. With throbbing pulse and palpitating -Heart he followed in pursuit. The kindly -Rocks revealed no tell-tale foot prints where her -Feet had touched them in her flight. The summer -Wore away and autumn came again; yet -She cunningly evaded him. Growing -Desperate, he traversed all the length and -Breadth of Palomar; at times he heard her -Voice in song, heard her speak to Zimbo, she -Near him; for a precious moment saw her, -But in finesse she more than equalled him. - - Gilbert’s parents missed his merry laugh and -Jest; marvelled at his absence; feared that -He was ill and questioned him. He told them -He was hunting in the mountains, but he -Mentioned not the object of his quest; misled -Them by tales of condor’s nest and mountain -Lion he had seen. - - Likewise was Cedric -Troubled by the change he saw in Zola. -She loved Gilbert--loved him wildly, madly. -She had watched him when he knew it not, and -Knew that he loved her; but frightened at the -Thought, was minded to keep the secret -Locked in her own breast and fly from him; so -Timidly she asked if some day they might -Go away, and sailing o’er the ocean -Find another home. Cedric answered, “Yes, -Some day.” He had long expected this and -Unknown to her, had in a way, prepared -Her for the change. From that lone mountain top -Letters had been sent to shops and houses -Of the east, and yearly in return had -Come by Indian carriers from the port -Clothing for himself and Zola, made to -Measure sent, and always in their study -Hours they dressed resplendently, that she might -Grace a drawing-room and feel at ease--not -Show that she in wilderness was reared. -She had mastered music and languages -In travel needed most, and was withal -A finished scholar. Not for himself but -Her, he feared to take her hence--knew full well -That one so beautiful would soon be wooed, -And he had never told her of the cloud -That hung around her birth--the cloud of -Mystery. As for himself, he loved her -All the better for it--she blameless--he -In tenderness postponed the hour; but the -Longer left undone, he dreading knew that -One day it must come; in honor must he -Speak--must tell her, though it break her heart, to -Know that he was not her father. Often -Did he wish that in her childhood had he -Told her all. Yet, in his weakness, promised -Her that some day they would go: “Yes; some day.” - - Gilbert, growing wise in woodcraft and in -The art of making love, on the farther -Side went up the mountain, rode Leo up -The winding trail; Zola watching, waited -Disappointed while he--galloping o’er the -Table-land--came on Cedric busy in -His garden. They with kindly greeting met, -Conversing, found each the other to his -Liking. He too manly to dissemble, -Gilbert came out openly: The one so -Coy and beautiful, was she his daughter? -Cedric troubled, sternly answered: “She is mine, -Indeed, my Zola.” How learned the young man of -Her presence on the mountain? Had he met -Her? Had they met clandestinely? Gilbert, -Speaking plainly, said: Tho’ strangers, -Yet they knew each other well; he long had -Worship’d her afar; well she knew and well -Had she evaded him. Now, at last, had -He found the one to ask if he might meet and -Woo her, would he give consent? Cedric saw -His good intent, sincerity and truth, -Looked upon him with the feeling of the -Father for the son. Then like a phantom -Came that secret terror of his life,--he -Spoke unlike himself--severe, unkindly. -“She obeys her father’s will and he would -Will that she remain unseen, unknown -To strange intruder. The young man makes bold -In asking.” - - Answered Gilbert, manfully: -“May not a true heart be emboldened by -The hope of winning one so beautiful? -The asking honorable? Perchance the -Señor has himself in days gone by made -Like request?” Spoke of his family -Old and honored, lived on the Gilbert rancho -In the valley. Would he offer them rebuke -Unwittingly? Cedric by his words the -More determined they should never meet, for -Zola’s sake and his, resolved to flee -With her, so spoke deceitfully. He must -Go and wait six days and on the seventh -Come; if she were there then he might speak with -Her. Gilbert said respectfully: “’Tis well! -With such a hope I well may add to my -Long waiting one more week.” And with a smile -Of hopefulness, he rode away. Cedric -Pitying, watched him disappear among -The ceanothus bloom and drooping boughs. - - Zola coming, on her face the look of -Sadness,--signs of weeping,--Cedric knowing -Now the secret of the change in her--the -Absence of the rippling laughter noticed -In the months gone by--his kind heart melted -And well-nigh did he repent and tell her -All, tell Gilbert; but the specter haunting -Fixed his purpose; she must go or face a -Deeper sorrow. So, despite his feeling, -Smilingly and cheerful, told her they would -Go and sail across the ocean--sail to -Foreign lands. Thus seeking to beguile and -Turn her from the tie that bound her heart to -Palomar, spake he of the people and -The sights that they would see. Long had they -Remained in Nature’s parlor; now going, -Would they view the halls and palaces of -Splendor they had read about. She smiling -Sadly, kissed and thanked him for his kindness. - - She daily strolled where she had seen the face -Of Gilbert, vainly waiting with the hope -That he would come once more--pensively, with -Tears--and prayed that she might see him once -Again before she went away. The sun -From out its saffron-tinted bed burst forth -And kissed the mountain peaks. She weeping, heard -The matin song of birds and cooing doves, -The melody of Nature’s minstrelsy-- -Heard, and yet not heard, for today must she -Decide among her treasures, which to take -And which to leave behind. Came Zimbo and -Her pets for breakfast from her hand, the last -But one, for early on the morrow she -Would go. “Shall we never come again to -This dear spot?” she asked. Cedric feigning -Cheerfulness, his sadness ill-concealed,--ran -On assuringly: “Of course, we will return -And rest from our long journey ’round the world; -Come, bring your bric-a-brac, my girl, and we -Will pack it snugly in the cabin, bar -The doors and leave all safe and sound. We may -Find Zimbo and the other pets all waiting -When we come. Cheer up, my darling; dry your -Tears, for wondrous sights are waiting for those -Eyes to feast upon.” Thus talking, while he -Packed her treasures in the hidden cabin. - - - - -THE MIDNIGHT RIDE. - - - Gilbert, sleepless, counted yet the slowly -Dragging hours--three more days, and then -The promised one; pondered o’er the words of -That strange man on Palomar,--words so oft -Repeated: “If she be here, then you may -Speak with her.” “_If she be here!_” Their meaning-- -His intention--dawned upon him. “She will -_Not be there!_” In frantic haste he rose and -Threw his saddle on his fastest horse and -Sent the spurs along his quivering flanks; -His adolescent blood in angry throbs, -His eyes ablaze, he wildly flew across -The mesa, through the foothills, brave Bonita -Stag’ring, bore him up the trail. In early -Morning came to where he spoke with Cedric. - - On the slope he saw the tethered burros, -Well-filled packs and camping equipage near -By. Then from the curtained maze of trailing -Vines and boughs, he heard the gurgling waters -Of the spring and sound of axe. Pressing thro’ -He came upon the hidden cabin, Cedric -Placing bars before the door, and Zola -By his side. At sight of him came bounding -Zimbo, stop’d by Zola’s voice. Then, with head -Uncovered--bowed, as one in reverential -Attitude before a shrine--addressed her: -“We have been acquainted long, if not by -Spoken word, then by the cords that bind two -Hearts as one. This man who calls you daughter, -He may tell you of his promise--explain -The breaking--doubting not his motive, I -Believe him kind and true.” - - “_Calls you daughter!_” -Smote poor Cedric’s soul; a deadly pallor -Swept across his kindly face. The time had -Come when he must speak--must tell the secret -Of his life--her life. Then he recited -All that he remembered,--Zola’s unknown -Parentage; his stealing her, and fear that -She be taken; how he had suffered with -The dread of making known to her that he -Was not her father. Speaking, the strong man -Breaking, wept. Her love and true devotion -Setting all aside, she sprang to him and -Clinging, cried: “_He is my own dear father!_” -Her dazzling beauty now intensified. - - As one enchanted, Gilbert looked upon -The scene; such filial love revealed a depth -Of soul beyond his ken; thought he of those -Who called him son--what they had done for him-- -And of the promise he had made to them. -Yes, he would die for them; yet in their pride -Of name and family might they not spurn -This nameless one? Thus in the balance weighed -His love for her was satisfied; fortune, -Name and family were all as naught to -Him compared with Zola. He proudly asked -Again to woo the hermit’s daughter and -Winning, give to her his name. - - “No, no,” she -Answered for the father, “until this cloud -Is lifted--mystery solved--my name is -Zola Vaughn.” With her words, a light broke in -On Gilbert. Joyously he spoke; as he -Had promised would he go back to the states -And seek a bride, solve the mystery and -Return triumphant, claim her--his Zola-- -As his bride. Would take the ship now in -The harbor, sail tomorrow. Cedric gave -The name of Colonel Vail, but his memory -Yielded meagerly of information -Needed. He well remembered all his life -_Up to_ the day that he left Lola at -Her father’s home, and _from_ the day she died, -The gap between in mystery wrapt, all blank. -Gilbert, taking Cedric’s hand, said: “From this -Day your life shall be a pattern for my -Own. God bless you.” And to Zola: “You are -Mine whate’er my journey may reveal;” and -Unmindful of her sweet rebuke, he held -Her to his breast and kissed her. That life-long -Fear for her still haunting, Cedric followed -Him aside and whispered: “The father, if -He be found, pray name her not to him.” From -The mountain top she watched him out of sight; -Then, alone on Palomar, the hermit’s -Daughter wept. - - When their only son went forth -To seek a bride--to keep his vow--there was -Great rejoicing at the Gilbert rancho. - - - - -GILBERT’S JOURNEY. - - - After journey long and wearisome, he -Reached the Crescent City and the home of -Colonel Vail. The aged man now mellowed -By weight of years, remorseful, mourning -And alone, received him kindly, answered: -“Her father’s name was Simon Blake, he was -Murdered by a Mexican upon the -Dock. The child, my grandchild’s name was Blake. -The man who loved my daughter came and found her -Dying. ’Twas he who took the child away, -And they were lost at sea.” Gilbert had the -Story of her life--her name was Zola -Blake. - - With heavy heart he homeward turned, yet -No less loyal to his Zola. With sad -Misgivings waited for the coming of -The ship--long overdue--by stormy sea -Kept back. Waiting, pondered gloomily; he -Must go and bear the tidings that would solve -The mystery of her name, but leave a -Darker shadow than before. Still would she -Refuse his name they would go away from -Palomar. They at the rancho, left so -Happily, what would he say to them? At -Last with tattered sail and broken, came -The ship. He hastening, learned that it would -Lay at anchor there yet two days more in -Mending. Hopeless, yet with strange desire to -Linger there, again he visited the -Hospital where Zola’s mother died; but -As before, no voice could answer aught of -Her; yet caught a thread of hope--an aged -Priest in near-by parish _might_ remember. - - The father heard him,--listened eagerly; -Then in his book of records found the date -When Lola Vail and Cedric Vaughn were wed; -And the christening of her daughter--their child. -Left with him for Cedric, left by Lola, -The treasure he had brought from Mexico, -Lola’s diary, presents he had given, -And a miniature of Cedric done by -Her own hand; then to the house where they were -Married and her resting place. Gilbert took -The proof to Colonel Vail and together -They rejoiced. He begged that he would bring his -Grandchild there when they were wed, and Cedric -Vaughn, that he might grasp the hand of that true -Man. Now, to Gilbert’s happy heart attuned -By hope’s fruition, Nature brought a new -Glad song. The bird notes rang with sweeter -Melody--sunshine brighter--bluer skies-- -Even in the tumbling troughs of ocean’s -Depth, he read the mirrored light of love and -Joy. Thro’ long and dreary days beneath a -Tropic sun,--in calm, or fog, or buffeted -By winds adverse, the good ship sped ’til thro’ -The mild Pacific’s purple haze, Point -Loma came in view and then, across the -Mesa, to the hacienda, _home again_. - - With mysterious air, and teasing told, -Or partly told the story. Yes; he had -Found a fairy queen and when again the -Great round moon came o’er the mountain top, she, -Riding on its silvery beams, would come in -State,--would come with him--come to the rancho. -They must “’bide-a-wee” and trusting him, wait -Patiently. So he left them wondering. - - - - -CONCLUSION. - - - To Palomar he flew--told all that he -Had learned--laid the proof before them--described -The house where Cedric lived--told of the battle on -The dock--how Morales died--the bags of -Gold from Mexico. Thus aided, Cedric -Woke as from a dream, remembered all; then -Placing Zola’s hand in his, withdrew to -Be alone with sacred memories. - - Hand -In hand the lovers blissful roved among -The crags and overhanging boughs where she -Had watched unseen, for him. Led him thro’ the -Brake, in forest solitudes, where lemon -Lilies nestling grow, and clinging vines -And nodding ceanothus plumes bedrape -The foliage in Nature’s millinery. - - With love and kisses roamed until the day -When proudly and triumphant, Gilbert led -Them thro’ the avenues of spreading palms and -Vine-clad arches of the hacienda. -His mother welcomed her with tears of joy, -“Her daughter”--then met the fathers--met in -Glad surprise--for Cedric Vaughn and Homer -Lee stood face to face; again renewed the -Old time bonds of love and friendship made the -Stronger. - - Then came another presence on -The scene. Radiant in the ripened bloom -Of womanhood--as beautiful as in -The happy days of old--came Dora Lee -To welcome Cedric Vaughn and Lola’s child. - - On the Gilbert rancho (named for him), in the -Dreamy quiet of a summer eve, while -Softly chimed the distant mission bells, -At the hacienda, sweet Zola Vaughn -And Gilbert Lee were wed. And when the -Autumn came, and vine, and bough and field gave -Forth their richest fruitage, and falling leaves -Betokened ripeness--the sure reward -Of patient waiting--two faithful souls were -Joined as one. Again rang forth the silvery -Chime of wedding bells--old mission bells--that -Echoed from the gilded cross above its -Hoary walls, a benediction sweet as -Incense from its altars. - - Long, long ago -Back to the happy scenes of youth they sailed, -And left the hidden cabin to decay. - - * * * * * - - A New Book - - Up the Grade - - BY - - DAVID W. 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