Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1895-07-04

i 80 y AAAsAAA AosALk NOASeAtutSu Tic CnlCl
cause for the trip to town. Richard
Strong dismounted and presently ap-
Peared with a letter in his hand.
| None for YOU he said. This is
for me. from the governor. I'll wager
it has something in it about cousins
| Let me see," said the girl. holding
ont her hand. He tore the letter open
i and gave it to her. Then he swung
himself into the saddle. and they start
| ed slowly down the street.
Suddenly the girl gave faint cry.
Papa has been writing to him!" she
exclaimed.
| Writing to him? What for?"
| He has asked him to pay us a visit
on the score of relationship, and your
| father
"Well?' said the young man, ex-
citedly.
He says he will start Immediately
the very next day."
! Let me see the date of the letter.
Ye gods. it has been delayed! He must
have got here this morning"
THE train has been in two hours" "
she said, glancing at her watch
Il must see him Immediately" said
her companion, nervously turning his
horse first one way and then another.
'Who would have dreamed that both
the old boys would take that cousinship
SO seriously?"
| II did, sir. / knew from the very
beginning that it would make trouble
some time"
From the very beginning?" repeat
| ed the young man, pausing in his ex-
element long enough to note the force
of this chance admission. 80 you
acknowledge, do you
| There's the hotel bus cried the
girl, hastily changing the subject.
| Perhaps the driver can tell us some
thing"
A long. empty vehicle was passing
| them on its way up the street Strong
called to the driver and he stopped.
Ibid you bring up tall gentleman
this morning, with white mustache
and goatee and gold eyeglasses
''Yes. Sir. Your father, don't you
! mean?"
The young people exchanged startled
glances.
"How did you know?"
He was inquiring for you. sir, as
soon as ever he got to the hotel; and
when he found you had gone, he went
and hired a buggy"
"A buggy-what for?'
''He asked the way to Judge Wes-
tons place in the Montecito. He said
the judge was a near relative of his"
The omnibus proceeded on its way.
I'VE must hurry" said the young
man. squirting his horse to a canter.
1.-The less time they have together be-
fore explanations are made the bet
ter"
What do you think they will do?"
asked the girl
Il don't dare to think. You see, on
everything except this family tree
business our respective parents are as
far apart as civilized humans can be.
Your father, now, is an elder in the
church, while mine has lost all the re-
ligion he ever had; and he has never
recovered from the habit of using
swear words acquired during years of
service in the regular army"
Heavens! Let us ride faster. Papa
will have slain him before we get
there"
Really, Catherine" said the young
man, when they had slackened their
pace to climb the hills, ''it would not
surprise me if they positively refused
te enter into partnership as fathers-in-
law"
Never mind, Richa rd,'' said the
girl, smilingly. Father has never
yet refused me anything, when my
happiness was at stake-as it is now"
Strong shrugged his shoulders
'Mine has" he answered. ''He is made
of flint, the old general; and if he
should take it into his head to say no,
it would be awkward in ways l don't
like to mention"
Never mind" said the girl, smiling
again and lifting her veil to the rim of
the jaunty sailor hat.
And a moment later the young man
felt much encouraged, and the gallop
was resumed.
On slight knoll surrounded by a
grove of ive-oaks and faced with an
avenue of old palms. there stood the
ample residence of Judge Weston. AS
the young people came through the
gate and entered upon the graveled
roadway, they observed two elderly
gentlemen emerge from small forest
of rose bushes and start brisklv down
the path toward them. Presently the
shorter of the two took his companions
arm and they walked along in evident
peace and amity.
''They haven't found it out yet" the
young man whispered.
Judg Weston assisted his daughter
to alight- Catherine" said he, this
is Gen. Strong, the father of our young
friend"
The general bent low. in an old
fashioned obeisance, and Miss Cathe-
rine instinctively made him courtesy
out of the minuet-
Father"
"Dick, my dear boy!"
''See here" exclaimed the Judge,
suddenly. You were mistaken, Rich
ard, in what you told me about old Eb-
enezer Strong"
The young man braced himself for
struggle.
"And 10 think, Dick" cried the gen.
eral, reproachfully, that you never
once mentioned to the Judge that your
great great grandfather, HeEekiah
Strong, married a Weston"
"And that brings us even nearer than
we had supposed" added the Judge.
Fourth cousins instead of fifth"
ut was stupid of me to forget that"
said the young man. huskily.
"And now that I have seen Miss
Catherine" said the general, taking
her hand and passing his arm about