The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1880-01-02

that hovers over the horizon of that Far
Country in which his lonely journey
shall end-the Country where dwell the
treasures of which his heart was raw.
ished by the Mound-builders. who ply
their trade in graveyards.
Something of this 1 thought in jum-
bled way during the moment of my sur.
prise at seeing my dear old friend and
listening to the voice which l often
wish may be the last human sound
shall hear.
Ipass over our greetings, the questions
flung at him as to his wanderings and
the quaint kindness with which he per-
sisted in evading me and coming back
again and again to the pleasant thought
with which he pounced upon me in his
inimitable way.
"Well," 1 said, "what's the matter
now? Has any body told you he was
never in love?''
have sometimes heard men say
they did not believe in it, and, confound
them, they have put their pretended in
credulity into books; but have invari-
ably found that they were either dys-
peptic or unsuccessful in love, or so in
formally disagreeable that they hated
themselves as cordially as others hated
them. All there is about it, they set
their yeast and let it sour, and when the
baking came out it was mere leaden
lump. You have sometimes called me
cynical, but [ want to tell you that even
l have had many pretty dream of love
real, live, waking dreams, too; and,
when l recall them, 1 could hug myself
with transport that have still the ca
pacity to recognize and appreciate their
flavor. Of all the pleasures of memory,
none are more relishable to me than
those which come laughing out of my
boyish past, attended by the fond con-
ceits and the romantic darings of those
schoo[day loves. 1 am not sure that
some of my maturer dreams may not
profitably be assigned to places in the
radiant company"
l expressed something like surprise at
the freak of my queer Sarchedon,
though if he had given me time 1 sus-
pect (nay, l may as well confess it) 1
should have owned without blush to
having thousand times fed my solitary
musings on similar exhilarating sips
from the golden bowl long since cracked,
not broken, at the fountain.
He was too earnest and too happy in
his "reminiscences to be baked by any
[ook of mine; besides, he could not but
see that was an interested listener. l |
pushed aside the work which had re-
'umed desultorily after the first flush
cigar, poised it airily between his lips,
md bending his fine eyes upon me,
'sked with engaging frankness: sHave
never told you the story of my earliest
ove?''
I shook my head.
you shall have it,
He flung himself back in his chair
nd laughed. The color came and went
n waves over his face. Icould see that
lis merriment was not altogether un-
mixed with tender regretfulness. knew
was not regret over lost youth, for had
e not assailed me for such vain indul-
ence? 1t was, rather, a chastened re-
of loved and lost COM
of two innocent and rmtried
ouls walking hand in hand along a
athway bordered with kingcups and
aisies. ,
"She was the daughter of our men, :
er of Congress. was lad at school, ,
nd our seats were ON the same line, ,
eparated by narrow aisle. in the little ,
illage schoolhouse that had just been !
uilt, with cupola to give it dignity,
nd divided into the Big and Little ;
'oms-that is to say, one room for the i
ig boys and girls and the other for be- {
inners. Twas one of the big boys. '
l remember rightly, 1 was II years S
Id, and had already achieved a friendly
ltimacy with Browns Grammar, San G
er's Fifth Reader, and Somebody's I
hysical Geography. had also hazy d
otion of Physiology, and had lately '
PEELED the school down-because all v
re other fellows, and the girls, too, in 1
sted on superfuously padding out the i
ord dishonor with o-u-r. But my t
hief claim to distinction was the awe
lSpiring circumstance that 1 had GOT r
Ito al0ehraic enuations of tho fret do :.