m," my husband suggested.

"_I_ didn't want to shoot him. He said, if I had been a coward, I would
have killed him. To confess the truth, the wretch appealed to my
sympathies. I don't think he had ever been sane since the time when he
felt the 'molten lead poured into his brain.' I knew somebody was sure
to kill him, before long; so, when morning came, I called Edwards to
open the gate; and, when it was unbarred, escorted my visitor out,
telling him that there was not room enough in that part of the country
for both of us, and that the next time I pointed my rifle at him it
would be to shoot. I never saw him again."

"Then he did not molest the Chinese camp?"

"No. Edwards got his four hundred dollars, and went home to Boston."

There fell a silence upon us, and, through my open door, I could see
that the cabin was nearly deserted. Ela seemed wearied--sighed, and made
a movement, as if to go.

"What about your Guardian Angel?" my husband asked. "You have not told
us about her second coming."

"I always say that she didn't come; or else I say that she came, and I
drove her away. That is proper; isn't it, now?" glancing at me.

"But _I_ want to know if you have seen her--if you never met her
anywhere in the world--since that time. I have a right to be
curious--yes, or no?" I urged, laughingly.

"How do you feel, now?"--with a light laugh and peculiar change of
expression.

"O, better; a great deal better. To be perfectly cured, I only need to
hear the sequel."

"I may as well tell it, I suppose. It has been running in my head all
day. Wouldn't want my wife to know it. Didn't think of meeting her when
I came down to 'Frisco. You see, I've been in Oregon a long while--never
traveled on a railroad in my life--wanted to see something of the great
outside world--and so, ran down to the great city to see the sights. The
first thing I did, I went up to Colfax, on the cars; and while I was up
there, the engineer invited me to take a ride on the engine--a special
one. Now, I knew that he meant to astonish me, because he thought I was
green; and I didn't know, really, how fast the thing ought to run. But
we came down the grade with a speed that was ter-rif-ic!--more than a
mile a minute, the engineer said. When we got to Lincoln, the fellow
asked me, with his superior sort of smile, 'How I liked _that_ rate of
travel?' I told him I liked _that_ pretty well; 'but, I suppose, when
you want to make time, you can travel at