Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1894-03-09

the fiat which bore equally upon us
both. ! told him we owed II to our
parents And when you, hearing
through Cato's treachery that he was in
the summer house that day, sent him
your insulting message, | almost de-
spised him for the promptness and
meekness with which he obeyed it. He
went away, and in my heart ] called
him coward. began TO cultivate
hatred in my own person. Your leaven
was at work, you see, father | owed
| IL TO YOU 10 learn how To hate.
Dennis came back To see me six
months ago, father. He told me then
that he had been looking for Sibley.
He could not wiring this rusty old secret
from his mother. You would not adj
nit him to your presence, but If he
could find Sibley he would face him,
man to man, and demand to know what
it was that stood between the houses of
White Cliffs and Glenburnie."
The old sybarite leaned forward in
his chair in an eager attitude of atten-
ton.
"Well? and Sibley-did he find him?"
1T was not a difficult thing to do, IA
Their Sibley is in New Orleans-has
been in a good business there for some
time now. You knew thatp" He dropped
his eyes silently
at is pitiable, father" she went on.
impetuously, ito see parent drop his
eyes before a child-a helpless girl at
that! But was it right, father, TO leave
me in ignorance all this time that Sib-
ley had written to you, telling you il
you would relinquish your absurd vow,
and take your proper place at home, he
would come back and help you?"
"Sibley is an unruly, tempestuous fell
! low-troublesome. did not want him. :"
"Not so easily trodden under foot as
n girl. But he is coming back, father.
| He and Dennis are good friends. Dennis
| faced him like man, and Sibley had to
confess that he was as ignorant as the
rest of us. Bat out there in the breezy,
fresh current of life that those two
move in this poor, ragged old scare
crow that you and the older Lorimers
have been shaking at each other all
! these years tumbled all TO pieces. II
had no substance of its own. found
that out for myself to-day, father"
I HOW llt Oltl lldl dSNcNl, NlOg BthlN.
"By kneeling at the bedside of a sick
woman and asking her TO tell me if, as
her vision grew larger and clearer, the
fret and the worry of this whole miser-
able business did not grow in
fnitesimally small. She said it did.
And she told me all that | wanted to
know. told her, father, that | had
promised Dennis TO marry him and go
away with him, TO make a home for
ourselves, if he would find Sibley and
bring him back here TO take this un-
just burden from my shoulders. | told
! her should not feel comfortable at the
thought that we had kept it all from
| her She had a right to know that we
were going 10 be married in spite of
her. in spite of you. in spite of the mis-
era BILE old threadbare vendetta. And |
came in here TO tell you the same, ia
Their"
what did she say?" He ignored the
! closing sentence.
'She put her arms around my neck
She kissed me, father, and she called
| me daughter She told me TO tell you
that there would soon be no one left
y
feud be buried in her grave"
mo one left for me to hate! And-I
have loved her all my life-her, and no
other woman, ever
Father
His gray head had fallen forward on
! his breast His lids were closed and
impurpled. He stretched out his hands
blindly. gropingly. He was trying TO
say something. Ida lInelt close by the
side of his chair
My brave, brave child | am glad il
has ended SO! Give Sibley my love
and Dennis"
IL was so sudden, SO utterly incompre-
! hensible that even when the family
physician told her that he had known
for years that her father must eventual
! ~ 90 in just that sudden fashion from
! heart-failure, she found il hard TO be-
lieve that he was no longer there at
| Glcnburnie, wasting his manhood, ig-
noring his responsibilities, demanding
daily tribute of her, bodily, mentally
and morally.
Thank God, he died with blessing
on his lips for Lorimcr," she wrote 70
Sibley. and sealed the letter with a
black impress of martlet.
II am sorry he did not know about
Sibleys child, Dido" she said that
night, reaching out her hand for touch
of the hard faithful one that had never
yet failed her. II meant to have told
J him. But"
"You done it all for the best. 1t amt
all cleared up yet. And he had a mighty
turn for pesterin' about things. 1t
would have just given him a lot of ques-
tons TO ask which nobody but your
brother could answer"
"Sibley will be here in day or two"
Thank the Lord for all His merciesr'
And Dennis too
wan smile fitted over her white
face. and. closing her tired eyes, she fell
asleep with her lovers name on her lips
and her hand lying like snowflake in
black Dido's clasp
CHAPTER XIV.
Why should not one derive all the
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