The Somerset reporter., 1890-03-06

We'll, here | am nj last, he began
again, after lying still few minutes
| When ! began ! meant " tell you about
woman. OF course there was more
than one. | never could resist pair Of
| bright eyes, and they didn't resist me
much either. But not one Of them would
have stood by INC through thick and thin,
nor did care for any one of them long
There was q Spanish girl In Mexico who
would have enjoyed running knife
through me; but New York was TOO far
away.
There's girl, though God knows
| how | came 70 find her-who made life
seem like a different thing. She Isn't
much over twenty, but she's wise enough
for forty. Talk about what you will.
she always has something 70 say some
thing that puts things In q new light
And you cant forget 1t you 90 away and
it keeps on saying itself in your head.
Il don't say that she cared about me ,
! never pretended that she did. | knew
she was sorry, that's all. She saw
straight down 70 the bottom Of my heart
and II there was a spark Of honor there
it famed up. told her just how | had
been Knocked about the world, and that
] knew | was OF no more account than 4
Isn't too late OF course | knew II was.
| knew should never amount to any
thing. | hated to work; didn't start
right. I'm thirty-one years old. But she
always said 80 softly, too, 1t isn't too
late 1t sent me into a.lawyer's ONCE
finally. We had some foreign cores
pondence, and | made myself useful. !
did know how TO read. | haven't lived in
libraries for nothing. Perhaps, after all,
could pick up something Its the IN
expected that happens, who knows; |
said 10 myself. Gay! | never was 80
light-hearted in my life. Perhaps |
should be somebody
'She went home, nally-they live 10
Cincinnati. Her mother said | mustn't
write 10 her; but next Spring-well |
meant to go out there. The cat can look
at the king, you know. But then | got
this cough | had light overcoat; it
looked all right, but there wasn't any
| warmth in 1t. And it was so Internally
cold. | was checking Of my debts. She
said, one day Il never trust man who
is reckless about money matters That
struck home, can tell you. 1t set me TO
thinking, and made list of everything
| owed. | used to get up In the night
and strike 4 light, when | remembered
one that wasn't down. | meant to pay
every cent Every penny could scrape
went for that. You wouldn't believe how
long could live on a V. | took receipt
every time, and | put them all in an en-
velope with her initials on it. thought
maybe | would show them to her some
day. It's in my Shakespeare now-at
that sonnet, shell know. There are some
books of mine, and this ring when I'm
cold you take it off and put it up-you
will. won't you? There's a good soul !.
The man who gets her ought to make
something of himself He won't be
snutied out like tallow candle"
Then Ire stopped and held his fingers on
the ring 'l'll write down the name to-
morrow" says he; I'm alive yet And
with that he gave little sigh like and
turned little more on his side. He was
all tired out, and was glad when he
dropped on.
But Lord bless you in the morning we
found he was gone.
saw his sister; she came finally. She
was slim, high. strung little body,
dressed all in black. She looked and
looked at him, and after while she
stopped over and began to take the ring
of his finger. | tried then to find out
about the folks in Cincinnati.
She had eyes a little like his. She
| looked me straight in the face as keen as
could be.
mo, we haven't any friends in Cincin-
natl, says she.
| Land He hadn't never told her. Blu
I've wondered, sometimes, If that girl
ever knew what became of him - The
| Independent