to take that weak hand in his and press it with a brother's
warm clasp of sympathy. The dying boy touched his inmost heart.

"Faither," the boy faltered, "I am so sick! I have been a bad boy
sometimes. I--I--" Then he stopped to cough, and continued, "I haven't
been to mass in a year--no chance here, faither--and I got drunk last
Fourth--may the Holy Mother forgive me!--and I have been so bad
sometimes. But--" and he faltered, "I had a good mother, and she had
me christened right early."

"Aye, she was!" sobbed Tim's father.

"And," Tim went on, "and I'm so sorry for the bad! When you say the
prayers, tell her I'm sorry; for, somehow I think the blessed
Jesus"--and here the boy crossed himself--"the blessed Jesus will hear
my mother's prayer for Tim as soon as he'd hear his own. Faither, is
it wrong to think so?"

And Job, thinking of his own mother, with tears in his eyes could only
say, "No, Tim, no."

The lad grew still; and kneeling, Job talked low of God's great love,
as he had talked to Yankee Sam, prayed as best he could, and felt as
if he had indeed committed this mother's boy into the keeping of his
God, as Tim lay still and dead before him.

CHAPTER XVI.

LIGHTS AND SHADOWS.

The news of Job's visit to the dying boy soon spread through all the
miners' shanties, and soon more than one request came to him for
sympathy and help. Preacher or priest, or only humble Job Malden--it
mattered not what they thought of him. Job went on his errands of
mercy, till, unconsciously to himself, he had won his way into the
hearts of those rough, simple-hearted people, who lived more
underground than above, at the Yellow Jacket Mine. In fact, so
generally did he become known as "The Parson," that it was sometimes
uncomfortable, especially on the occasion when Lem Jones wanted to get
married. Oh, that was amusing!

It was in the spring. The new tri-weekly stage from Gold City was so
late that night that it was pitch dark before it drew up, with a
flourish, at the store. Job was busy at the books, and had not gone to
supper, when a man came peeping in at the window and shouted through
the glass:

"Job, you're wanted at Finnigan's Hotel!"

Donning his cap, and hurrying along the street and up the break-neck
stairs to Finnigan's, Job entered the room which served as parlor,
bar and office, and saw Lem Jones, one of the men at the hoisting
works, "dressed up" in a suit much too large for him, with high white