Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-02-14

Has anything anything made you un-
"gnhappy?' he said. with an air Of surprise
| ''Oh, I'm not unhappy" he answered, with .
look In his eyes that made her heart ache.
| But MI Sibley's journey was long one, into
me TIMBER district OF western state When
ne came home, six weeks later, he found very
different condition Of things from that which
he had left. The men were in the woods, the
camps supplied, the new year promising to
open well, and all had been ordered and at
tended to by John. But John himself was
sleeping in the counting room. and as he did
not 60 up to the house any moro Mrs. Sibley,
was sending dinner down to him, and Annie
his little wind-nower, looking as If the wind
could blow through her bad grown into the
flower.
They we're alone in the warehouse next day,
the porter and the boy having gone home for
come back, SIR" said John, in q voice meant
TO be calm, but which sounded in his own ears
as hollow as II 1t came from an empty shell.
Because must take my turn now. IT'S tho
close OF the year. find that cannot be with
| you mean you want little rest and change?
Certainly" said Mr.. Sibley fussily. Certainly
T unafs right. I've been advising il, you know.
4
work here any longer"
"No, sir. You see yourself I'm only good at
,nything for about 20 long. I've grown reck-
less. must CO."
., ~ DO Son, s,s ;ss anything Of the sors roared
Eyes, sir. THANK you for your goodness to
me. It's been more than You think. More than
you can ever know. lit breaks me all up-to
60. But must"
"Ioot her. y, cr;ad NJ S;hi.v or ,,. ..,a
there was an out about you, if could only find
1t. And here it is! What is this bee in your bon
! not Johns its it Anniey' he said in a diff
ferent tone, one that had all fathers tender
no answer-''that's all right"
hung head.
"You can't marry my daughter. sir !" began
the master, and he stopped, thunderstruck, to
comprehend the statement. Then, 'You can't
marry my daughter. sir y he cried again, LASH
ing himself into q rage. II should like to
| know what's the reason you can't marry my
daughter! Do You mean to say that you came
here; young whipPer.snsPper from nowhere,
heart and ruin her life and"
stop, stop, stop, Mr.. Sibley" cried John
a. white a. ashes. II should ruin her life, in
deed, If stayed"
He waited a moment, looking his employer
| full in the face-as Mr.. Sibley afterward told
| his wife-as fixed as IL he were a saint carved in
| marble among all those bales and barrels Il
| meant to tell you" he said presently, moving
| his lips as II with an effort II meant to tell
you as soon as you began to be 80 good to me-
And then felt 1t was my only chance in life,
and couldn't / thought. too, it would give
you pain-a mans punishment pursues him
all his life, you see-and l hated to. And
hated to see the look you would have to give me
when told You. And l thought then, perhaps,
You would never know-it was in u state
thousand miles away. And kept along. And
when found was beginning to care for her
made up my mind that must go--and it was
hard-and IL never dreamed Of her caring
for me! would as soon have dreamed of an
angel out Of heaven STOPPING to me! And when
l found out that she did felt sure she would
get over it with me out Of the way-and-and
only waited for you to come back"
What in thunder are you driving at?"
"A man who helps the helpless gave me
suit OF clothes, and worked my passage down
here. When you gave me that team to drive l
was just fortnight out Of prison for theft"
THAT so?" said Mr.. Sibley. And he turned
| on his heel and went into the little counting
| room and shut the door:
How many minutes, how many hours John
stood immovable, just as he had been left
| among the tuns and bags and boxes, he could
not have said. All thought, all emotion was
wrung out OF him-he was not even suffering.
| At last one Of the hands returned; John nodded
to him, took his hat and coat and went up to
the house to put his things together.
They were few, his possessions there but his
hands trembled so that it took him some time
When he was through he heard the murmur of
voices down below. should he leave the house
where he had been so kindly treated without
word3 He went down and hesitstingly turned
the handle of the sitting room door. Mr. Sib-
ley was there, too.
T-!-only came--to say goodbye. Oh, sir !
l would give my right hand if"
lyon can give your right hand now, john"
said Mr.. Sibley. You Gun give your right
hand to Annie. I'm willing. Her mothers
willing. She's,willing. As for what you said
| in the store we won't consider that. Tn glad
that's the only out about you. You couldn't
have been anything but a boy when all that
happened. You're hardly more than a boy
now. l don't believe there's ten men alive
that hasn't taken pennies, or apples, or some
thing that didn't belong to them, sooner or
Inter. You got into bad company some way I
| suppose, and q temptation came that was too
much for you when you were weakened.
You've grown since them grown the right way;
strengthened. II you'd been born crooked
you've had every chance since you've been
with me to feather your nest. You could have
run away with handy capital for rogue more
than once. You're an honest man by nature,
| john"
..Oh. am, am, mean to be ~ cried John,
with shaking voice.
solemnly. when we've become 80 that nothing
| on earth could make us commit them again.
The Lord forgave you long ago, John, when
| the possibility of doing that wrong again was
drowned out Of you. / don't know why
should set up to be any better than the Lord
Now, we'll never speak of this again. Well
never think Of it again. Well begin the year
by putting the old things behind us. You're
| as honest a man as me, John. Your mother an
me 60 together here; we believe in you; we're
going to prove it by giving you the dearest
thing on earth that's ours. It shall be new
year for all Of us. 1t shall give mo what I
wanted all my life and never had, and that's q
son-and if picked the world over. John,
couldn't find one more to my mind than what
you be. John. Come, now," said Mr.. sibley,
putting up his bandanna, 'you amt going to
have time to think it over. Old Peachblows
| in the kitchen, just down from the woods. I'll
| send him for the minister. Mother, there's
some black cake in the stone jar, amt there2
Well, well have a quiet wedding here this
| afternoon, and settle things. and then you and
Annie can 60 OF for that little change we was
speaking of. You 60 to Annie in the west
parlor, now, Jonn.
| Written for The EVENING Star.
Natures Lymph.
Though the rain be cold or the wind be keen,
Or the snow piled high in the street.