Dodge City times. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1876-1892, 1884-05-15
III

Ill.
One early autumn MONDAY, John ant
Meggy were stumbling slowly down thu
road that led to the orchard gate 0
Glen Nook.
AS they approached short turn il
the road, a tree that came staggerin!
from the Ak, and fell with a crash, 81
startled the drowsy mare that sht
swung swiftly about, hurting her ride
with great violence, to the ground.
The worn and sinewy hands of tn,
woodman were AS gentle as women S
as they bore the bruised form iuto the
sunny east chamber of the Leiste
home.
For days he lay as unconscious be
meath the snowy Counterpart as if it hat
been his shroud; bat at last the patien
watchers were awarded by a twitchins
of the emaciated face and the slow up
lifting of the heavy eyelids.
AS the sOftened, but still keen ewes
of the invalid peered through the tan.
gled sage-brush of eye brows, they
looked into the quiet, speaking depth:
of eyes, aglow with at least a passion
ate, if not more tender interest.
But, if the eyes gave suspicion O
the hearts secret, the lips did not; fol-
they only said: ''puir mon," and this
SO coolly that John looked again at the
dark eyes; but they were speaking nc
longer.
Now will not betray the confidence
OF the little woman by disclosing her re-
solve, which almost startled herself
but l will tell You her strategic plan OF
action. 1t was very simple, "trivial, ="
the reader may say. Merely the subduine
of his stubborn will (Which she Justly
impeached as high-handed tyrantj
and this not so much to her own will as
to his better and truer nature.
Did she succeed? Let us see.
You will remember, my dear, fol-
charity's sake, that he and she, and the
sense of the proprieties of both were
naively Scotch.
On the morning after his recovery OF
Jeanie came into his
room and, as she arranged the flowers
of a fresh bouquet she had gathered,
said:
Eye maun TAX some parritch, 400"
Manu- thought John, each sep
arate bristle of his misogyny erect.
II dinna wush ony parritch," he
growled.
"Dinne ye?'' thought Jean;e. Il
sad We manu-" But she would not ar
que. this little woman. She only said,
with the sweetest air of Difference !:
" Will We haze it warrum or caulG ~
II Wilma
With a most artless, pre-eugaged
manner she arose, saying:
Il guess We had better haze it war
rum.
As the door closed softly behind her,
John buried his head in the pillow.
muttering: "Sic a wee bit saucy
bodie."
Soon the door opened and Jeanie ap-
peared. quietly stirring a dainty bowl of
'parritch.
Turning to the male attendant
Watty, who did not seem to do much
else than to sit on the edge of his char
and bob his weak eyes at the sick man
= she said:
"Leeft the mon up gentle"
In few moments John found him.
self bolstered upright in bed, with the
ook of protest on his rugged face shad-
ng almost into one of supplication.
Moo TAX yer parritch, that's guild
non."
"Jeanie, woman, dinna tell yc''-
But the bowl was in his lap, the spoon
n his hand, and she was humming her
way through the hall. What could he
10? Only what he did.
When Jeanne returned to take the
bowl to the kitchen John
aw, or thought he saw, Just the suspi-
ion of q smile stirring in the placid
lepths of her eyes; and he read, or
bought he read, its meaning.
A few DAYS afterward Jeanne sat nv
he window of the invalid's room,
houghtfully plying her needle.
Through the open windows came 4
resi- sweet breath of air, cooled by a
REF shower, and scented by the per-
ume caught from the white censcrs of
he apple-blOssoms which it had swunp
q the wide orchard. The breeze kissed
the forehead of the sick man.
Vho lay dreamily gazing at the busy
pinster until he was thrown into the
reatest discontinue by Jeanie's fold
NJ her hands over her work, and gaz-
ng shrewdly and reflectivelv at him.
Dye ken what wur thinkin' ABBOTT,
uir mon?''
An upheaval of the pillow as the shay
y head plunged under it was her only
nswer.
John designed this rather ill-consid-
red maneuver to be interpreted as
leaning that he ''didna ken or care,
Tut the tranquil woman was pleased to
cave it uninterrupted.
Il wur a-thinkln' how Draw We wad
lk in bonny cap. trimmit Willow
ill ye haze it trimmit?''
''Waes me! sic daft whigmeleerie,"
lurted the disconnected man, the
'rinkles of his bronzed face deepening
nd writhing into something which
hight have been a grimace or smile.
1t seemed so little at home there that |
decidedly incline to the latter belief.
think Jeanne did, too; for, as the
eaving OF the pillow revealed the fur |
'wed face, look of serene satisfaction
titled on her own.
And John saw that look and read il.
is first impulse was to resentment, as
pen and obstinate as needful: but the
net air OF always seeming to defer to
s wishes (although it was evident she
'ver did defer to them), looked so in
'mous and SO winning that he had not
ssrt to resort to resentment. Of STRAIT
y he knew nothing. As near as he
'uld approach to it was to form the
'licy Of neutrality, of non-commit-
emit. But. in the deeper diplomacy of
'anie. it was indispensable that he
ould be committed. So she contin-