"I only f-felt sorry for her, and wanted to comfort her," stammered the youth, blushing to the roots of his hair, at which a hearty laugh ensued at his expense.
But Constance had no thought of the pretty picture she made. It was only of Kenneth she was thinking.
"Oh, Pete!" she cried, "tell me what it all means!"
"What"s wrong, la.s.sie?" he replied, somewhat embara.s.sed by her searching look.
"The violin! It"s my brother"s! I gave it to him for a Christmas present two years ago. See, here are his initials upon this small silver plate," and she held the violin up close to his eyes.
"Waal, waal, so it is as ye say. Who"d a thought it?"
"But where is he? Do you know? Oh, please tell me!"
"I don"t know much meself," and Pete scratched his head. "I met the chap who owned that fiddle last Fall, on the trail way yon East. He give it to me "cause "twas too heavy fer "im to carry, so I "jist brought her along, an" thar she be. Ye may keep her, la.s.sie, if ye like."
Constance made no reply to these words, but grasped the violin firmly in her hands, while a look of hope shone in her eyes, Then she realized her position, and what a strange scene she was making before these men.
The blood rushed to her face.
"Please take me home," she said to Pete, "I wish to be alone."
During this brief scene Keith was undergoing an agony of soul. How he longed to rush forward, clasp those little hands in his own, and speak words of comfort. But he had no comfort to give, he could only bring deep sorrow if he told what he knew. Should he speak? Would it be right? Whenever the question arose, he crushed it back. No, not now; some other time. And so he watched her leave the building without one word of farewell, and as the door closed behind her a sense of loneliness swept over him, which even the presence of the miners could not dispel.
"Pete," he asked that night, as the two sat alone in the cabin, "did Miss Radhurst question you much about her brother?"
"Question me? question me?" replied the prospector. "She drained me like a force pump."
"And did you tell her all?"
"No, why do ye ask, laddie?" and Pete looked at him in surprise.
"Did you tell her about her brother"s cruel partner?"
This time Pete was more than surprised. He stared at his companion in amazement. "What d"ye mean?" he demanded. "What d"ye know about the matter?"
"Keep cool, Pete. I know more than you think. Listen, and I will tell you something."
"My G.o.d!" burst from the old man"s lips, when Keith had told him the story of the death in the Ibex cabin, and had shown him the little locket. "It will kill her!"
"Now, that"s the point, Pete. Is it right for us to tell her? She has enough trouble at the present time with her father, and this new sorrow will, I am afraid, break her down completely.
"Right, laddie, right ye are," groaned Pete. "But what are we to do?"
"I"ve been thinking of that," went on Keith. "Mr. Radhurst"s condition is very serious, and he must have special and regular treatment. I can"t stay here, as there is trouble at Kla.s.san, so I must leave to-morrow."
"What; so soon?" exclaimed Pete.
"Yes, it is necessary."
"But what about the "Colonel"?"
"He must go to Kla.s.san. Will you take him? He has a good cabin there, I understand, and a fair supply of provisions, so he and his daughter will be quite comfortable."
Pete ran his fingers through his hair in an abstracted manner. "I"d take"m, laddie, an" be glad of the job, but I ain"t got no team. An"
besides, is the "Colonel" able to stand the jant?"
"In two weeks I think it might be tried. You see, Miss Radhurst is a trained nurse, and she can look after his arm very well. As for a team, you need not worry about that, for I"ll send an Indian back with my own dogs. I know it will mean a risk to move the patient so far, but if he stays here I am afraid he will die."
Pete stretched out his rough hand toward the missionary. "Put it thar, laddie," he said, in a voice that trembled with emotion, "ye"re all gold."
Thus in the silence of the little cabin these two hardy frontiersmen clasped hands. Outside, the world lay cold and dismal, but in their honest hearts reigned a great peace--"the peace of G.o.d which pa.s.seth understanding."
CHAPTER XI
THE SHOT IN THE NIGHT
Pleasant though it was at Siwash Creek, Keith was anxious to return to Kla.s.san as soon as possible. He was uneasy about the state of his dusky flock, and especially Yukon Jennie. Amos he knew could be trusted to do all in his power to keep the girl from her terrible design. But she was shrewd and hard to manage, so it was uncertain to tell what she would do. The desire to return, however, was tinged with apprehension. He knew that Pritchen and Perdue, with their followers, would use every effort in their power to hound him out of Kla.s.san.
There were others, he felt sure, who were more honourable. If the confidence of these could be won, he might be able to overcome the opposition.
Before starting, Keith visited his patient. He found the arm doing as well as could be expected, but the racking cough still continued the same.
"Miss Radhurst," he said, as he bent over her father. "I leave for Kla.s.san this morning."
Constance looked up in surprise. "What! going away so soon?" she queried.
"Yes, duty calls me back to my flock. They are in danger from the miners down there, and I have been absent too long already."
"We shall miss you very much, Mr. Steadman. You have been the means of brightening us up, and helping my poor father. Life to me here is almost unbearable, and I wonder how you can stay in the North year after year. How lonely you must find it."
Keith turned and looked into her eyes. "Miss Radhurst," he replied, "they have been the happiest years of my life. Until the miners arrived at Kla.s.san my work was one of continual joy and peace, even when I was struggling with the medicine men at the beginning of my ministry there."
"But I cannot understand," Constance rejoined, "how an educated man can be satisfied to remain in such a wilderness, away from all congenial surroundings. Does not the mind become----"
"Stagnant?" a.s.sisted Keith, noticing her hesitate over the word, and a flush cross her face.
"Yes, that is what I mean, though it may seem rather a harsh judgment."
"Some think so, but that is where they are mistaken. It is here we have room and time to think, and let our minds expand. It was my good Bishop of the Mackenzie River who once said that he was willing to devote a whole lifetime in the wilderness among the Indians, and also to the study of the Bible in the original language, which the bustle of life in London sadly interrupted. Now, during the last ten years I have studied the Indian dialect of this country, prepared a grammar, a lexicon, and have translated portions of the Scriptures, and also the entire Prayer Book, besides a number of hymns. These have been printed, and the natives carry them to their hunting grounds, and read them carefully."
"This is all new to me," said Constance. "I never thought of it in that way. But does not the bleakness of the land wear upon you, making you long for the sweet meadows and the fragrant flowers?"
"You must remember, Miss Radhurst, that it is not all winter here. We have beautiful summers, when the song birds return, and the flowers bloom on every hand. Then it is good to live in such a place, and, though I do miss the sweet meadows, yet there is much to compensate me for their loss. The forests are filled with a joyous life, where every creature, small and great, rejoices in being alive. Often those ancient words come to my mind, as I wander through the woods, watch the rushing streams, or gaze upon the lofty mountains, "All ye works of the Lord, bless ye the Lord, praise Him, and magnify Him forever." But,"
he continued, after a pause, "there is another field in which I have worked, and because I have done so I believe I shall be able to help your father."
"And what is that?" asked Constance eagerly.