River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1877-05-17
PLUCK.

Sir: Your proposal regarding the school
under your supervision is accepted. |
shall be able to commence work Sep
TENDER first | shall be at Morris Sta
tiOn August twenty-first. Very respect
fully, OLIVE HARLAND.
est Louis, Aug 29th"
Good, Oh. am so glad"
FlOy executed pirOuette in the most
approved style; then seized the letter for
another reading. IF this wasn't bust
ness epistIe could judge something about
her. I'm sorry it is formal. But she is
young and know she'll be jolly. | had
forgotten that you had sent for a ST. Louis
girl to teach our school, papa. Cousin
Egbert, look at her writing and give me
an opinion. Handwriting shows charac-
ter, have heard you say.
DR. Preston smiled his own inimit-
able smile, and took the note from Floy.
. Humph." he calculated: then he
looked long at the perfectly formed o's,
the abrupt Is, and the careful contour of
the signature
Miss HarIand is evidently a self-re-
liant person" he said, at length; Il am
also inclined to believe her somewhat
egotistic."
You are too bad, Egbert," pouted
FlOy; Il don't believe you can tell word
about persons by their writing"
49, 1t were imbecile lewing out roads to
a wall, quoted he. Floy looked at him
in puzzled way tor moment, then went
singing from the room, and presently Egg
bert saw her out among the verbenas,
wedding and watering. looking very pref
ty in her morning dress Of blue.
= By the way said Mr. Preston, sud
denly. this is the thirty first. Miss Har-
land may come on the noon train. Egg
bert. can You drive down To- the station
Immediately after lunch."
oh. no. sir. Orwell that Is. have
several patients to call upon before even
ing
SIR. Preston smiled He knew that, if
the truth were told, this nephew of his
was extremely self-distrustful; 80 much
20, indeed, that Floy sometimes accused
him of bashfulness.
1t makes no difference. / shall go
down when it cools off a little. 1t is
hardly probable that Miss Harland will
come until a later train" and he laZily
turned 4 page of Middlemarch. Oh.
the scIfishness of that man,
The PreStOns are all more or less selfish
and the head Of the household being not
at all exempt from this family failing,
thought lOunging comfortably in his vine
covered porch far preferable 10 driving
two miles through the brOiling August
sunlight to meet tired little schoOlma' am,
who, possibly, might not lie there.
YOO-OOO OOOO.
& Tho IN
rushed on again. leaving Olive Harland
standing beside her trunks. hot. dusty.
and not little disappointed that she did
not SEE waiting for her the cool roOmy
carriage her imagination had pictured.
One fOrlOrn looking wagon stood at lit
tie distance. and Olive inquired of The
driver: :. Do YOU come from Squire Pres
tOn's.'
No" sai9 the man.
Can YOU tell me how far from here he
lives?"
No" again.
Do u know which direction il i =
Mo-" NOR stOlidly than ever.
She turned from him in disgust, and
entered the combination of stOreroom,
waiting-roOm and telegraph office, that
the people of Morris Station fOndly call
The Depot One busy little official
was in attendance, and of him Olive in
quired whether or not any one from
Squire Preston's had been at the station.
No ma am," said Little ObSequiOus.
He never comes down until evenin'.
Was he eXpectin' you, ma'amE
Yes"
"Oh, well, never mind. He'll he along
byme-by. Sit down.
Olive hesitated. The thought of n long
afternoon in that hot little room seemed
unbearable.
How far it it to Mr. Prestons!"
Two miles right east of here. Big
house: first house east"
Take care of my trunks, please. shall
walk"
Olive spread her parasOl and left Little
ObsequiOus bowling in the door of -" The
Depot" Right on into danger walked
Olive. Passed were the store, the black
smith shop. the post office, and the half
dozen Struggling houses. Passed was the
mile long stretch of marsh road. and
Olive was talking to him almost before
she had time to realize his presence.
Swiftly behind her, slowly beside her
walked the man, and almost instantane-
luSlv with the know ledge that some one
was near her. came the horrid belief that
grew at once into certainty. that the some
one was human being Invested of all
that makes humanity nolle-that size was
in the power of a mailman. His black
hair was tangled over his shoulders, his
face was white, and Olive Shuddered Is
he stretched ont his claw-like hand TO
ward her.
MAY / escort yout'
Il shall be pleased to have you" an
swerrd Olive, in a voice 50 calm that she
was hersclfsurprised.
AclIons, she knew. would be useless
words alone could avail her.
Isn't il warml Let me carry YOU
tree?~ He took her paIasOl. and DIV,
moved swiftly forward, thinking only, OF
-On-On. p her steps beat time along
the dusty road.
do YOU have many such trees as thi
where YOU come from = he asked, curl
ously. examining the carved handle Of Jh'
little sunshade.
oh, yes, sir and Olive launehe,
into long description Of an imaginar,
tree.
at grows to enormous heights an,
people cut these off to shade themselve
with she was saving. when he interrupt
ed her by CRYING fiercely: You lie I
me- This IS Of silken texture. Though
the father of lies. | allow not my childrel
To speak them. You must die. low
YOU, oh. 50 dearly; but yon must no
speak lies to me-