Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1893-02-09

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admitted.
"Did he have a let-down any time
do you Think" Arlington persisted.
"a let-down, no. The women were
always too jolly eager to have him at
any price. Lord, I've seen hundreds
of women try for Amyatt, hundreds
of 'em!"
"That's just it," put in Arlington,
eagerly. "They all try-but they just
have to try. It'squeer, for Amyatt's
a handsome chap, and rich as Jew"
Cant say, I'm sure. Just now he's
so taken up with his underwriting
and every spare minute seems to &C
to that"
"But why did he take upnovel- writ.
ing?" cried the lad.
Faith and l can't say" Trevor
laughed. "But his love-making's
mighty pretty for a woman-harer,
don't you Think"
Meantime the object OF all this
thought was in the sitting room OF
his comfortable quarters overlooking
the green, which occupied part of the
barrack-square. 1t was a pretty
room, with walls of dark olive green,
relieved only by four or five pictures
in plain gilt frames, all OF them origin.
ais of the illustrations of the story
which made his name famous-no not
his name. but that by Which he chose
to be known to the world
For Major Amyatt did not write
under his own name, preferring for
many reasons to be known as "John
Dawes the chiefest of which was
that as q beginner he had scarcely
time to contemplate the possibility
OF other than failure, and he mad no
wish to appear before the regiment in
the light OF non-success: So, al
though for some time his intimates
had known him as the popular
author who stood second to none as
afalthful delineator OF army men and
manners, to the world at large he
was still John Dawes, and but few
knew that the name was not his own.
A handsome man was Major Amy
att; and looking at him rs he sat at
the table, one could not wonder at
young Arllngton's curiosity concern
ing his past life, 1t would be hard to
say positively that any trace Of dis
ppointment-what Arlington called
81 "leU down"-marked his pleasant,
fresh face, or lurked in the steady
gray eyes, that were as clear and
cool and undisturbed as lad OF six
teen.
He had q frank and tender smile,
too, and he was smiling then over q
letter which lay open upon the table
before him, q letter which had been
forwarded by mis- publishers, through
whom it had been sent, q letter
written in clear, uniformed chld's
hand, on paper which had been ruled
with pencil lines.
My dear Mr.. John Dawes" it said, II
have read all your books and like them
very much. But please, l do want to
know if Laura is going to marry Gerard
King do nope you won't go and marry
her to any one else, because am very,
very fond of him. So am ofneariy ali
the Others, but like Gerard best.
Laura is my name, too. l hope you
won't mind my writing to- you, though
am still rather little. ] am nine, or at
least nearly nine, and have no brothers or
sisters, 50 that l read great deal. But 1
have dog called Gyp, and my mother is
not very old, so that she plays with me
good lot.
with best love, am your loving little
! friend, LAURA HoL1.
up. Sit was quite my own idea to
write"
Like most writer's who have won a.
hold upon the hearts of the people,
Amyatt was accustomed to receiving
many letters from all sorts and con-
dltions OF mon and women who were
utter strangers to him, expressing all
manner OF sentiment about his work.
Nor was this the first letter he had
had from child; but it was the first
that had touched him so deeply as
this one did. There was a quaintness
about its phrases, a brave frankness
about its sentiment, freshness in it's
tone, which won his heart.
81 hope you won't go and marry
her to any one else, because l am very,
fond Of him." Laura is my name,
too" II am nine, or at least nearly
nine.' And at was quite my own
idea to write.' Amyatt read the let
ter again, with a feeling which, if he
had been q woman, would have
brought tears into his eyes, but which,
as it was, gave him a suspicious lump
in his throat and that tender smile on
his lips.
"Dear little soul,' he said softly, II
must write to her"-and forthwith he
drew some paper before him, and
wrote a long and charming letter to
the new little friend who was nine, or,
scrupulous little soul that she was,
''at least nearly nine" Then he, too,
added apostscript, which was, "Write
to me again"
Amyatt's little friend did write to
him again, a letter full OF glee caused
by his. Then Amyatt answered that,
for he couldn't leave the poor little
woman's pretty words unanswered,
don't you know; and so, before long,
quite a brisk correspondence passed
to and fro between them.
He still kept up his nom de plume,
though for no particular reason other
than that he wished to avoid the
trouble of an explanation, and it
was all the same to her; and long let
ters filled with accounts ..ot her child's
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