Waterbury evening Democrat., 1890-08-05

she chatted pleasantly to draw Lina's
thoughts from those possible-only lust
possible-iidings of Mrs. Cheere's.
Hardly ten minutes had been spent SO.
when Marjorie caught sight of Dorcas
walking back again toward the gate,
with Col. Stuart at her side. She made
no allusion to this, but ON his return he
came straight into the room to the girls.
Searchingly Marjorie's eyes met him as
he entered, and the question that they
asked SO mutely he answered with .
quiet smile.
Miss Chester" he said, gently, as
he stood beside her, ST have ordered
the pony to be harnessed in Adelaide's
little carriage, for want you to have
! drive. Such day as this should not be
wasted indoors. Miss Marjorie, you
walked from Hawkedale, SO I want you
! to have the drive, too. If I say so, shall
! You immediately refuse because I say
SOP"
MAY drive, Lina?" she asked, her
: eyes gentle and wistful as she read his
! gaze, and the cool contradiction far
enough from her lips now.
"Thank you, Col. Stuart" said Lima,
her weak hands locked before her as she
I rose. "Has Gerard Gomez"
eyes, he has come" the officer an
swered, hardly wondering at the ques-
/ ton, because he knew how ever present
with her was the hope of Gerard's re-
turn, land he is at the old home. He
went straight to the cottage in Neither
lane, as I fancied he would, and Mrs.
Cheere has just been to tell u.s."
"He-he did not come himself ?"
faltered Lima.
"He would be tired, and hardly care
to have the trouble of greeting us all
yet, however anxious we might be to
see him. Besides, he would naturally
wish to first meet you alone"
"Thank you; then-may go?"
Col. Stuart opened the door without
answering. Something either in the
news he had just heard, or in the girls
face, made him fear his own voice.
Miss Marjorie, he said, when Lima
had passed out of hearing, "you are her
for ME to take her. Will you? 1 will
tell Adelaide as soon as she returns"
90 will drive her to the COTTAGE"
Marjorie answered softly, "and then
come back. If you and Adelaide let
ME, I can fetch her again later on. Col.
Stuart, l am afraid he is ill.,"
81 am afraid so, too" he answered.
81 He looks so, Dorcas says; but he is
travel tired, dare say. When his SIS
ter has been with him, may CO."
Very silently the two girls drove
through the town, and then along the
lane to the two white cottages. Once
they spoke of the primroses ON the
hedge-bank; once of the bells, which
were ringing merrily as they passed
through the town and once or twice of
sunny lane; but never once of the
thoughts nearest their hearts and each
time quietly, as if in the hush of
shadow they could not understand.
"Good-by, Lima dear, " said Marjorie,
softly, as thepony stood before the wicket
gate, which Mrs. Esdaile's trim little
groom held open 81 will come back for
you in two or three hours time"
Then she turned and drove away,
without waiting for any reply, and Lima
fastened up the garden-path, trembling
unaccountably as she neared the cot
tage. Bright and warm as the sun
in the CRATE, which had been brushed
and polished by hands that had more ex-
perience than those which used to try to
keepit bright in the old time. Drawn
close beside it was a stiff little horse
hair couch, which Marjorie would have
recognized as Mrs. Cheere's, but which
Lima had never seen before.
Gerard was not lying on it now. At
the sound of her step he had risen with a
strength of excitement, which, for the
moment that it lasted, was like the
strength of old times-just for the mo-
ment that it lasted. And while he held
her in his close and tender clasp he
whispered that he had found what he
sought; found it all just as their mother
remembered.
Each day, each hour of all those
two MONTHS" he said, 81 felt that 1
might find it, and knew that when I
did should come home to tell you.
How could write to tell you, dear /
And could write to say had not found |
it, when, before the letter reached you,
might have done so? You see now.
Lima, why you have waited. Dear, was |
not hope with you all the time, as it was !
with me?"
Lima, her eyes wide and bright, and |
erbreath coming quickly, stood to listen
to his words, both her hands held fast in |
his.
Gerard" she faltered, trembling |
feebly in her untold joy, cit is worth
waiting for. Our own mothers name
can live pure and bright in our own |
and ILL.,"
"a little, dear, The answered, gently;
"but I have not told you half have to
tell. Lima. oh, Lima. you should have |
seen the old mans Joy when told him
of our mothers marriage hi- joy and
his remorse and his regret and some
thing something like love, even for |
you and me. He would never have con-
sented to my leaving him again yet, but
that have come to fetch you; and to
let that selfish interloper know that
what told him was going to find I
have found and to"
"To see the old place again, Gerard"
she put in, her quiet voice soothing and
calming the excitability which Ahe knew
must hurt him, while he looked SO weak
and i'll the excitability which had al
ways belonged to his nature, in spite of
all his brave, patient forbearance.
She laid his head back upon the cush-
ion of the hard little couch, and kissed
his feverish lips again and again, start