Democratic Northwest and Henry County news. [volume] (Napoleon, O. [Ohio]) 1894-1905, 1895-07-04
SHE'S ALL THE
WORLD TO ME.
By HALL 0AINE,
author of "The Manrmdr," "The Deem
SteT," etc.
PRoEAL
CHAPTER X.

tne Two days tllat tollOWed between tnht
day and Christmas morning occurred the
whole series Of appalling events which 1t
now remains TO us 10 narrate.
Mona Cregeen and Danny Fayle, with
Ruby between them, were walking along
the shore from Orry's head toward the
south. The little one prattled and sang,
shook out her hair in the wind and flew
down the sand, ran back and claspcd q
hand Of each and dragged Danny aside to
look at this seaweed or pulled Mona along
to look st that shell, tripped down to the
waters cdgo until the big waves touched
her boots and then back once more with o
half frightened, half affected laughter
loaded scream.
Mona was serious and even sad, and
Danny wore O detected look in his simple
face which added O melancholy interest to
its vacant expression. Since we saw him
first in the house Of Mylrea BallEdhoo,
Danny had passed through bitter expe-
rience There was no tangible sorrow, yet
who shall measure the depth Of his suffer
ingS
When the new element Of love first en-.
tered into Danny's life, he knew nothing
Of what it was, A glance out of woman's
eyes had in an instant penetrated his ma
ture. He was helpless and passive. He
would stand for an hour neither thinking
nor feeling but with look of sheer stu
pidity If this was love, Danny knew it
by no such name. But presently ray Of
sunlight floated into the lads poor dense
intelligence, and everything around was
bathed in a new, glad light. The vacant
look died away from his face. He smiled
and laughed He ran here and there with
jovial willingness. Even Kisseck' S sneers
and curses, his threats and blows, became
all at once easier to bear. "Be aisy with
me, Uncle Bill, +" he would say "Be aisy,
uncle, and I'll do it smart and quick as
tonishin." People marked the change.
cts none SO daft the lad is at all, ut all, "
they said sometimes.
This was the second stage of Danny's
passion-and presently came the third.
Then arose a vague yearning not only to
love, but to be loved. The satisfied heart
had not asked so much before, but now it
needed this further sustenance. Curious
and pathetic were the simple appeals made
by Danny for the affection Of the woman
he loved, Sometimes he took up huge
fish to the cottage of the Crcgeens, threw
II,
he talked to Mona of what great things he
had done in his tilme-what fish he had
caught, how fast he had rowed, and what
weather he had faced There was not q
lad in Peel more modest chan Danny, but
his simple soul was struggling in this way
with desire to make itself seem worthy
of Mona's love. The girl would listen in
silence to the accounts of his daring deeds,
and when she would look up with glance
Of pity into his animated eyes the eyes of
Danny would be brave no more, but fall
in confusion to his feet.
Then, bit by bit, it was borne in on
Danny that his great, strong, simple love
could never be returned, and this was the
last stage of his affection. The idea of love
had itself been hard to realize, but much
harder to understand was the strange and
solemn idea of unrequited passion. Twen-
ty times had Mona tried in vain to convey
this idea to his mind without doing vio-
lence to the tenderness of the lads nature.
But that which no artifce could achieve
time itself accomplished. Danny began
to stay away from the cottage on the
brew" and when, in pity for that un-
speakable sorrow which Mona herself knew
! but too well, the girl asked him why he
did not come up as often as before, he an
swered, "I'm thinkin it's not me you're
wantin up there" And Danny felt as If
the words would choke him.
Then the whole world which had
seemed brighter, or at least less cruel, be-
came bathed in gloom. The lad haunted
the seashore. The moan of the long dead
sea seemed to speak to him in a voice not
indeed of cheer, but of comforting grief.
The white curves of the breakers had some
thing in them that suited better with his
mood than the sunlit ripples of summer
sea. The dapple gray clouds that scudded
across the leaden sky, the chill wind that
scattered the salt spray and whistled along
the gunwale of his boat, the mist, the
scream of the sea bridal these spoke to
his desolate heart in an inarticulate Ian
guage that was answered by tears.
Poor Danny A hurricane had uprooted
the only idol of your SOUL and for you the
one flower of life-the flower Of love--was
torn up and withered forever.
Lover Yes, even the image of happy
love had at length stood up for one mo-
ment before his mind, even before his
mind. That love itself might have been
possible to him, yes, possible to such q one
as he was, though laughed at-"rigged,
as he called there, there everywhere
this was the blessed vision of one brief in
stant. He thought Of how he might have
clasped her hands by the bright sea and
looked lovingly into her eyes. But no, no.
no. Not for him had God sent the gracious
love, and Danny turned in his dumb de-
spair to the cold winter sea, shrinking from
every human face.
sis there not storm comingp" said
Mona to Danny as she and Ruby Tertook
the boy on the shore that morning
AYE, the long cats tail was goin of
at q slant while ago, and now the round
thick skate yonder is hangin very low"
AS he spoke Danny turned about and
hooked at the clouds which we have been
taught to know by less homely names.
Danny, Danny" interrupted the little
me the sailors say when the wind Is get
ting upP"
"Davy's putting on the ooppers for
the parson, " answered the lad absently
and without thesemblance of smile. For
the twentieth time Ruby laughed and
crowed over the dubious epigran.
Mona glanced sometimes at Danny's
listless face as they walked together along
the shore with the child between them.
His look was dull and ut certain mo-
ments even silly. Once she thought she
saw tear glistening in his eye, but he
had turned his head away in an instant.
There were moments when her heart bled
for him. People thought her harsh and
even cynical. law, allis cowld and freez-
in is the air she keeps about her, they
would say. Perhaps some bitter experience
of the past had not littie to do with this.
Nothing SO sure to petrify the warmer sem
sibilities as neglect and wrong But in the
presence Of Danny's silent sorrow the
girls heart melted, and the habitual up
ward curve at one corner of her mouth dis
appeared, She knew something of his
suffering. She could read it in her own.