The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1895-04-18
feel II r1bat WOUND ha her tri,,mnb

size dUUelu6u udy ANU nfSut, early dllu
late, till prizes for correct modelling,
for drawing, for coloring, began to
adorn her room and she wrote them
at home to destroy the blue and green
landscapes, as she was collecting
something better to take their place.
Three years had gone by. There was
an announcement that the largest art
school in the United States was to
award large prize for the best
study mlade from the model, can Old
Fisher Woman The competitors
must all work from the same model
and in the studio of the school which
offered the prize. Twenty artists
and many st ldents had already
entered the lists, and the first name
given among the competitors was
! chat of Preston Howard, Priscilla s
summer artist
Priscilla crlmnpied In her hand the
paper that made this an nlouncement.
and then she Strengthened out the
| wrinkles and carried it to her paint
ing master.
"May L go and try it?" she said.
"Certlinly,' be answered, eff you
| don't mind the extra expense and tire
| time it takes from your course here. y
| 81 don't mind anything if l can win
1t, Slle Sdlu.
every we'll, then go and do us all
| the credit you can" and he smiled
| epcourlgirgly, for lie saw a deter
mined expression in her face that
promised well.
Half an hour later Priscilla was
steaming toward her new work.
Three hours later she had reached the
huge, histling city, and before night
| she had been entered among the COM
petitOrs. Her place opposite the moi
ell was chosen, and her easel and chair
| fixed. Near the chair there was one
initfalad like a steamer chair, and the
other art Implements going with 1t.
The palettes and paint boxes were
also decorated with "P. H" She was,
therefore, so we'll prepared the next
morning for her summer artists ap-
pearance that not the slightest change
in expression, nor the tiniest move
ment of her eye betrayed her know
ledge of his presence. He started,
| looked ait her in a puzzled way, and
| finally took his chair with creak and
jar that caused many Of the cOmpetit-
ors to look up and frown at him.
Priscilla went placidly On with her
drawing, apparently lost to every
| thing but her task. SO they worked,
| Slue ny Slue, IleSh W lleSh, DIS II NeIe,
| no model more silent than they.
A month went by; then calne the
final day-t the day of fate, of failure,
or success! On line We're hung the
twenty-five competing canvases. The
committee started hard and wisely at
them, stepped forward, reduced the
number to Is, 10, 5, 2, and these two
were PriScilla's and Preston'S.
There was considerable readjusting
Of eyeglasses now and a shifting of
the light; then the verdict was all
nounced:
| Miss Patridge's Fisher Woman
for accuracy of drawing, correctness
of perspective and exactness of color
| ing is awarded the prize" Already
a purchaser had signified a desire to
buy it. Preston Howard sent serv-
ant for his Fisher Woman" and took
her humbly home.
| The artists and students held an af-
ter-meeting in which they congratu-
lated Priscilla sincerely. All the COM
petitors were present but Preston
Howard; he was conspicuously absent.
This was the one little thorn in Pris-
cilla's triumph. She would have liked
to have had him there, not to thrust
her success in his face, but because
she had still lurking fondness for
the first air castle she had ever built.
| The following morning she went to
the studio for the last time before
her return to her own art school. She
gathered up her paints, set the easel
against the wall, and was halfway
downstairs on her way to the station
twhen face to face she met her artist.
He raised his hat, and stopped her
/ n or mn 61ry 1tiE hnr
handbag.
"Are you leaving u.s.. Miss Pat
ridge?" he said.
swered, turning pink and white, ''if
1 wish to catch my train"
"Never mind the train. There will
be another, and 1 would like to show
you, if you will yet me, why you de-
feated me in the competition for the
prize"
| This remark did not quite please
her. To her sensitive ear it seemed
to say that even yet he doubted her
ability; looked upon her as harmless
art interloper; yet she followed him.
He led her to private studio, where
on the easel was the portrait of a
fresh country girl, her eyes blue and
shining with determination and her
yellow hair in a Psyche knot hard
twisted; her features regular, but
fixed.
"Oh dearv' she exclaimed 'Is
that I?'
Eyes; and it is the way you have
looked ever since you began your
! Fisher Woman Your face haunted
me; 1 could not get it out of my
mind till 1 painted it with might and
main." Then he stopped and flushed.
"Mr. Howard" and now she put out
her hand to him. I'm sorry I looked
that way. You must be glad I'm go
ing"
But was he? It couldn't have been
so, for a few months later Priscilla s
pictures were signed Mrs. Preston
Howard Chicago News.
Enormous business has been done
lately at French fairs by a man who