Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1885-01-16
THE MAN FROM NOD.


stone at the butchers dog, and then
falling back on his base of supplies by
the old we'll curb, found himself close
upon the man in the hammock, under
Miss Denny's applc-tree.
See here, ? said the man, as the ur-
chin came to strategic halt, :. wonder
If your mother would sell you to me, and
would she hsggle over the price. How
does it strike youg'
That depends. Wot would you do
with meg'
. Really. don't know. You admit
you are fat, and might want to ship
you to the Cannibal islands as a specula-
ton Or might want to make choir
boy of you, il little of that hoarseness
could be taken out Of your voice, and
your hair persuaded to stay anywhere.
There are lots of ways of using boys in
the place I came from.
Say" said the boy. with new show
of interest. lido you know wot my
mother says2p
81 must confess that do not. Tie
versatile female tongue"
'sShe says that she guesses you don't
live nowhere. She says that you may be
pirate and you may be a preacher for
oil anyone knows. She says that you
do nothin' but eat and sleep, and that
fore you come here thew must have kept
you awake all night with nothin' to eat.
Say, mister" and the wheeling tone of
the mother was unconsciously adopted
by the boy, 'swhere did you come from,
anyway ~
The man in the hammock dropped
back with smile, and, shading his eyes
from q spray of sunshine that fell down
among the apple blossoms, said lazily:
II have been told that your interesting
mother is sort of missionary of personal
intelligence for this neighborhood. |
like to encourage home industries. and
just to help her along, you may tell her
that Miss Denny's lazy boarder, who GER
tainly dues eat and sleep great deal, is
just out of the Land Of Nod.
The boy was true to his mothers ex-
ample. Comprehending the one phrase,
that could be Of service to her, he shot
homcward like an arrow, that il might
be safely delivered before being iostlcd
out of his needless little head. And be-
fore the cows were well asleep in their
beds or dew besprinlxled grass that night
the people Of Farmdale, from the red
school-house on the hill to the tannery
in the hollow, were in full possession of
the first admission as to himself yet
made by the mysterious stranger who
had fed the fires Of their curiosity
through four long weeks Of the bud
ding spring.
The moon that looked into the eyes of
the peaceful kline thar night, found time
also to touch the white shawl that hung
about little Miss Denny as she sat on the
steps of the old farmhouse, around
which the village had grown. The ham
mock hung empty near by. while back
under the honeysuckle vines, sat the
man from Nod. not asleep and not eat
ing, but as indolent in attitude and
speech a. when negotiating for the pur-
chase of sixty-odd pound of shock
headed boy.
The woman was pulling q spray Of
green to pieces with vehemence that
showed her protest against the thought
to which his lips were giving form.
ssBelieve me, Miss Denny, that you are
giving yourself courage and faith you
don't possess that one woman in ten
thousand cannot possess. You see that
when Rebekah of Mesopotnmia followed
the chosen servant of Abraham into a
strange land it was no great venture on
her part. He had told her Of the home
to which she was to 20, Of the man she
was to wed. It was family affair, you
see, and her father was relative of the
father in-law which was to be. Now, do
you really mean to say to me that even
though you love man with oil the love
that such women as you can give, you
would take him on perfect trust would
give him your future on . chance, and,
placing your hands in his, walk fearlessly
with him out into the daIk2'
II would And why not7n
IT is against nature against woman
nature.
ssBut il loved hint If loved him
as Z woman should love before she weds.
could trust him with all that it was
best should not know, and 90 with him
into bonds Of exile
believe that. know It. But
martyrdom, my child, is nothing beside
: right to knowledge that goes unsatis-
fed. You would meet lion unmoved.
but Let this mysterious and undescribed
lover refuse { . tell you Of himself. his
profession. bis mother, his past and his
income, and you would lay bar before
him beyond which he could not adj
vance You would say to him: You
will not trust me. and dare not trust
yop The marriage license would never
Re put 10 use
Ton do not understand me, IT.. shn
said siuply. could not give the love
E4N42 4N An -.