To her evident
surprise the man seemed not to dread death, but stood staring at the
rifle, which he recognized as the rifle he had sent to Ramsey. To his
surprise she did not shoot, but uttering a strange cry, started up the
slope, taking the gun with her. With rifle raised and flashing eyes she
ordered the two men out of the prospect hole. Warlike as she seemed, she
was more than welcome, for she was a woman and could talk. She talked
Cree, of course, but it sounded good to Cromwell. Side by side the
handsome young athlete and the Cree woman sat and exchanged stories.

Half an hour later the Englishman came up and asked what the prospect
promised.

"Ah," said Cromwell, sadly, "this is another story. There is no gold in
this vale, though from what this woman tells me the hills are full of
it. However," he added, "I believe we have found your friend."

"Yes?" queried the capitalist.

"Yes," echoed Cromwell, "here are his wife and his child; and here,
where we're grubbing, his grave."

"Quite so, quite so," said the big, warm-hearted English-American,
glaring at the ground; "and that was Ramsey's 'reason' for not
writing."

THE GREAT WRECK ON THE PERE MARQUETTE

The reader is not expected to believe this red tale; but if he will take
the trouble to write the General Manager of the Pere Marquette Railroad,
State of Michigan, U.S.A. enclosing stamped envelope for answer, I make
no doubt that good man, having by this time recovered from the dreadful
shock occasioned by the wreck, will cheerfully verify the story even to
the minutest detail.

* * * * *

Of course Kelly, being Irish, should have been a Democrat; but he was
not. He was not boisterously or offensively Republican, but he was going
to vote the prosperity ticket. He had tried it four years ago, and
business had never been better on the Pere Marquette. Moreover, he had a
new hand-car.

The management had issued orders to the effect that there must be no
coercion of employees. It was pretty well understood among the men that
the higher officials would vote the Republican ticket and leave the
little fellows free to do the same. So Kelly, being boss of the gang,
could not, with "ju" respect to the order of the Superintendent, enter
into the argument going on constantly between Burke and Shea on one side
and Lucien Boseaux, the French-Canadian-Anglo-Saxon-Foreign-American
Citizen, on the other. This argument always rea