Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1879-11-13

in them-limpid, melting eyes, calcu-
lated in their turn to produce sorrow
and suffering.
MFR. Fordyce bent those eyes on Meb.
His voice grew tender and gentle. In
| his musical generalizing he had alluded
TO the power of the human voice To sur
the heart. You look tired, Mrs
Wright"
f" | am always tired-lately."
This old friend of the days when she
played the church organ and took les
sons in French and water-colors--h
seemed so well fitted to sympathizc with
| her.
Two or three bright, irrepressible tears
/ fell over her cheek. Agitatodly she laid
! her hand upon the sofa arm. MIR. For
! dycc's chair was at the end of the sofa.
Very revercntially Mr. Fordyce bent
over the hand.
You don't wear the moss-agate
now"
i can't; my fingers have grown so
. Iarge-with doing my own work
Mr.. FordyCc's hand rested Tor an in
stant ON Meb's.
She drew away her hand; but Mr..
Fordycc understood that his sympathy
was not offensive.
After this constraint slightly stiircncd
Mehs manner. They talked of agate
and onyx, opal and jacinth, and all the
secondary stones Mr.. Fordyce said
design once cut in jacinth was never
obliteratcd. He was sympathetic and
grave and tender Ia the very last step
over the front-door threshold. Then he
whisked through the gate and buttoned
up his coat with the comfortable assur-
ance of n man who had successfully en-
acted the part of lady-charmcr, his pay
going on all the same.
Meb stepped into nm adjacent room To
ascertain by the mirror how her hair
looked and whether the cardinal loops
under her chin were not disarranged.
Gentlemen of Mr.. Fordyce's taste were
not inapprcciatiyc of cardinal loops
against background Of white illusion.
As she turned away satisfied, through
Il half-open door. she saw pair Of coarse
hoots-hco.s set against the wall, and
toes pointing accusingly outward. Ola
worse looking pair of boots it would be
difficult to conccive-worn in the wet
and dried hard and red, hard wrinkles
above the short instcp. \ reyulsion,
strong as Nemesis seized Meb.
She crcpt into the other room and sat
down alone. What had she said to that
man FordyCc2 What liberty of pcrccp-
tion had She accorded and he taken?
What sympathy had she been So deficient
I in sc.t-rcspcct rs TO solicit. and he so
/ daring as To- accord?
1 Size sat down again. The snow had
melted off the circular verbena mounds
/ VIM helped her set those borders. He
/ had always helped her. She covered her
\ face with her hands. conscious only'of
/ her own ingraiitudc.
/ The prolonged whistle Of locomotive
I at the station startled hcr--only a call
I for switch.
/ Mcb sat for few minutes. her face
I buried in her palms; then parted her
l hands and looked QUITO sec soaked
snow stitfening; watcr-filed foot prints
/ and wheel marks growing blue and
/ chilly; the streets full Of returning
/ shop-hauds. From out the moving
/ figures one stood within the gate. Or
I ton
Orton was employed in very humble
| capacity at the office. The company
/ had habit Of falling back upon him
when bad news was 10 be communi-
I Gated.
Mcb had strength to open the outer
/ hall door; then sank back upon the
I lower stair.
Don't tell me. Orton, don't Is he
I dcad?"
THE Lord help you, Mrs Wright;
We don't know how bad It's. The Blu
I cophalus is of the track-down Deep
( Gully--thirtcen cars down. Thny hadn't
taken him out when the last telegram
! camc.h
Meb clutClrd her nails into her cold
/ palms.
II must go; has the wrcckcr started2n
/ Just gone; hut Ellis III find an en-
I gine to take you up. Perhaps you'd
better not go, though. II may be pretty
| bad"
/ Mrs. Weir entered. put on Meb's hat
| and shawl. drew on her ovcrshoes. sup
/ ported her to the door and took the key.
Meb grasped Orton's arm, and was
conscious in dazed sort of way Of slip
ping over ice and water to the depot.
The Flyer was just stcaming through,
fired up To go out on the Riveryicw
Branch for few empty cars. II was
short work to run her on 10 the turn
table and come up headed for the Gully.
Superintendent Ellis handed meb into
the cab. Engineer Babcock nodded,
specchlcss. and turne@ to his engine.
pulled out the throttle, struck the bell
-knell-like in the clear air-and the
Flyer shot out across the plain, the plain
I with its withercd brown mowings,
I
pools rejecting the purple twilight.
On now to the Gully! Every racing
rock and three in The approach left Mcbs
heart beating faster and more suffocat-
ingly.
The Flyer n she came 10 stand
still. seemed to- shiver through every
heavy driving wheel, through every pol
ishcd rod and cylinder.
The stoker. first on the ground,
reoched up to take out Meb.
The moon, not yard above the east
ern horizon, let fall weird. oblique
light. Two or three engines stood on
the track venting steam. The great
wrecker rose wraith-like. IL ropes and
timbcrs crcaking under the strain.
shouts Of mcn--a chain rattling on iron
boards cracking out on the track a
hand-car bearing something covered by
u rubber blanket; and beside It n
shawlcd. crouched figure from which