The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1896-01-08

After dinner Fred went through" the
| contents of the trunk, making boyish re-
marks concerning each article rs he threw
| IL aside Al inwardly WINGED az these re-
marks and could scarcely restrain himself
| from knocking him over ON the spot.
What makes you so crustys' quoried
| Fred suddenly as one of his choicest Jokes
| was met by gruff H'mi" There's no
| fun IN you, and why you want this stun
beats me Your sisters would turn up
their noses at secondhand clothing, II II
| Is pretty. But IL ism 70 worth fussing over,
| so take IL along No doubt IL would prove
a white elephant on my hands sooner OF
later"
Not until the trunk was safely In his
room could Al breathe freely. Even then
IL was no easy matter TO keep 1t out Of his
sisters sight They made both pct and
a confidant Of their one brother and had a
fashion of dropping into his room az all
hours 90 tell him ~ their schemes and
woes He had pushed the trunk under a
mahogany table IN the corner, the old fash
toned cover of which reac he'd almost u the
floor.
When he told them he was going away
for little business "trip, they bcset him
with questions and petitions 90 be taken
with him, finally declaring they would
clean house while nc was gone and "sort
out his trash -
So behold him, in the dead Of night
carrying the white elephant" up the mar
row attic stairs, humping his head on cy-
cry rafter and getting cobwebs In his mus
tache. He covered IL with old clothing
pushed big box in front of it and then
crept down stairs, feeling as guilty as II
he had been concealing some crime AT
breakfast the girls both talked at once
about the burglar who tried TO get In and
how they pounded on AIS door and could
not even get an answer.
AT noon he was off, and as the train
whirled onward he became possessed with
fears. She might not DO at Hastings she
might not care for him after these three
years; she might even be married or dead.
Arriving at his destination at last, he
only stopped to leave his bag at a hotel
and walked rapidly To a familiar house in
the suburbs. Ringing the bell, he in
quired for Miss Burr in matter Of fact
way, as II he had seen her the day before.
He watched the girls face as she spoke
and saw no trace of surprise She simply
said
"Miss Burr may not be able TO soc you,
but come in and / will ask
Presently he was shown into "A small
sunny room, where, ON a couch, lay the
one girl he had ever loved. He meant 20
explain at once the-cause Of his foolish GO
ing and eager coming, all oi which he had
framed into frank, beautiful sentences
but somehow they forsook him and lac fell
back on the commonplace. She received
him with quiet words uf welcome and then
said:
Pardon my position, but am such an
invalid that IL is n trial to sit up"
"An invalidv he echoed family.
eyes" she answered Ibid You not
hear of my accident several months agoY
On coming home from visit | stopped 70,
]. -.--o or SO in "a London hotel The build
II sae q tsl "a. ls-c
It, The horror OF the scene l. so stamped
branded would be- more appropriate
word-on my memory that l cannot bear
to talk Of IL. lost everything except the
ulster which was wrapped about me, and
would have lost my life but for the brave
fireman who broke my fall. oh no, / am
not seriously injured, she continued, in
answer to his half spoken question,
Though have been i'll ever since 1t was
such a shock, you know. +"
BY deft questioning he succeeded in
making her say:
Eyes, lost my trunk. It was left at
the station IL expected 90 go on in day
or two), and the deposit ticket was de-
stroyed with my pocketbook. Railway
people are necessarily particular about
identifying luggage, and for weeks ! was
too i'll To even remember st. Besides,
had only gone for short outing, and IL
held nothing of much value, except some
keepsakes that were dear 20 mo.
A deep Il ash stole over her face at these
words He watched it for one delicious
moment, and then gathered her mp in his |
arms, exclaiming:
81 will bring them back il you will pay
the reward want.
Thon-or, rather, after he had tortured |
her impatience mercilessly-he told her OF |
Fred's "bargain" bought at auction. She |
begged for II, coaxed, pleaded, all in vain. |
He declared she could only have the little |
leather trunk as wedding present. And |
a very happy wedding party it was too
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