Smyrna times., 1890-01-29


and / of Colorado, we decided upon meet
ing to consummate our vows in Burling-
ton, la.
1t was just after this interchange of
pledges that received from. home the
news Of my fathers death. Poor, dear
girlsl My heart was 80 tender Just then
it actually seemed to me must fly back
and take the whole six in my arms and
shelter and provide for them. had
kept up an irregular correspondence
with Hsrriet-bless herl How could she
care for the little ones? We never any
of us had been over fond Of our father,
but his death had taken away the prop
of the house. I sent Harriet q thousand
dollar draft, requesting her, if she need
ed more, to draw on me; and, somehow,
not in this act perhaps, but in getting so
near to the sympathies and affections of
old times, felt ten fold more the man
than had felt before since l became
rich. Life itself seemed actually more a
reality to me. After this episode it was
not so easy to shut myself out from all
material surroundings and sit down to
the business of dreaming out the para
disc into which this woman was to con-
duct me.
The next letter had the privilege of
pondering began "Dear Frank" To
me! If had acted the donkey in pri-
vate, no one had ever yet, since 1 had
left home, presumed to address me with
that off hand familiarity. Aside from
the fact of my landed estates, 1 had al
yuavp hold NV ,,orsopo1;k,, i, - ,.,o,- l..
compel respect. Here was one of the
inevitable annoyances, however, must
learn to face, and that soonl Matters
were fastening to their elimination.
She had written to notify me that she
would probably arrive at the station
the letter specified that in my town; its
platform touched one Of my park gates
ION the seventeenth"
Whewl What could it mean? We'd
agreed on Burlington as our half way
station, and the catastrophe was not to
come off under three months. "The
seventeenth" It was now the tenth. /
stood aghast. Struggle to ignore it as
might, a acowardly, ignoble sense of dread
at the prospect Of meeting, face to face,
this pen and ink idol of mine, a dread
had all along been conscious was lying
dormant in my soul, pressed itself to the
forefront and overshadowed every other
sentiment Dear Frank" Only one
little week.
Oh, for the old honest, heartsome
Brother Francisl"
Harkl was l dreaming2 1t was sing
ing in my ears. Girls voices, multitud-
inous, in familiar welcoming chorus.
Was this mirage? On my lawn? An
Optical-'Twas theyl themselves! The
girlsl
Brother Francisl Brother Francisr"
The stone walls of my house took to
vocal speech and echoed, tearing the
words into six different keys, every one
straight off from a real flesh and blood
larynx and tongue and pressed on by a
great, loving heart that throbbed behind
it. 1t was theyl
My very pen loiters for one ecstatic
moment to live over again that joyful
surprise. The little girls grown into
young women. Did ever flutter such
bright ribbons, or rustic crisp, fresh sum-
mer muslins like to those? Such animat-
ed, glad young faces; such skipping feet!
Was ever old bachelor embraced and
fondled and passed about from hand to
hand to be exulted over and admired as
Twas!
They had simply come home, and,
bless the Lord, my heart and my house
were roomy enough to hold them all.
Not doubt had ever entered any one of
their innocent heads as to my wanting
them and needing them. The question
was, how ever had ] managed to live
without them? My John Chinaman got
up dinner such as never hoped could
grace my table before the arrival of its
mistress-(ohD Croquet sets, lawn ten
mis- fixings, side saddles and saddle
horses-six-six very beautifully fur
nished chambers. parlor attractions with
out stint OF count-everything young
ladyism could crave was at their dis
posal before sunset.
For the next six days we held un-
broken festival in honor of our reunion.
Oh, but there was lump Of lead at nv
heart. Could l tell them? What would
our sensible Harriet say? How Eliza
would chatter over the romance of
Brother Francisl And the little onesl
Had l a right to show myself, | whom
they so honored and looked up to, as the
ridiculous fossil / was-spooning over a
bundle Of old letters, the writer of which
l had never set eyes on? Would re-
Joice to see one Of them playing the role
she'd played? No; million times mol
Those simple, fresh hearted girls. Only
to imagine that it could be in the heart
OF woman to do it, would have brought
the blush to every one of their young
faces.
Only one day more / locked myself
in my chamber to re-read my Lizzie's
last letter "Signed," it said, ''for the
last time, Lizzie Kent" Just now. |
own the touch Of the thing was repug-
nant to me. But the event it heralded
was too near for me to pause. WHY.
here was something l had overlooked /
After that signature, on the next page,
scrawled hastily, it seemed, evidently
an after thought, this: Look for me,
dear Frank Qll stop that nonsense if /
Hve), on the train which reaches there at
4 o'clock p. m. If / am belated, I will
telegraph from Kansas City"
No dispatch had come. OF course the
trains were on time. Only twenty-four
hours. Well, the emergency must be
met, and there was no way could think
OF but to take Harriet into my conf
dence. Harriet is not person given to
exclamation points. l hated to lower
myself, as knew l must, in her eyes,
by the relation. If it was fact that the
advent Of the girls had swept my mind
clear Of the befogged sentimentalism
which had Teigned there in my loneli-
ness, 1t was equally fact that this sister
had not in her the capacity to believe
that any man in his senses would be
guilty Of the follies with which I had
been entertaining myself for the last
twelve months.
And how good she wasl She listened
patiently, studying my face, meantime,
with something of the look with which
pagan might have gazed down on the
remains of his shattered idol There
were sorrow, pity and deep solicitude in
it. But she uttered no ungracious COM
ment. OF course she had set me down
as insane, but she was mindful of the
trite maxim for such cases, "humor the
patient"