Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1896-11-05


porting over them as joyously as ever
did Egyptologistover freshly discovered
hieroglyphs which set at rest much
mooted point. Out above the rest of the
letter stood two words, for u.s." Mrs.
Loring's niece would hardly leave her,
but here was proof that both of them
would come to Rodneytown. That L
could succeed in convincing the elder
lady that nothing serious allied her was
hardly possible; it was quite on the
cards that after month or two she
would depart in huff; but, in the mean
time-well. I didn't trouble myself
with the details Of that predetermined
period. The great central point of in
terest was that for several weeks, at
least, Dorothy Gray and I would be
thrown together. For the moment
Lamar, Banks. and all my recent wor
ries were forgotten.
Mrs. Weston" said I, bouncing upon
that good woman as she passed the
door of the Office, please do me great
favor. 1 have an old friend-patient,
mean-who is anxious to put herself
under my care. ] must find boarding
place for her. Can't you take her in ?"
well, now, I'd real like to, doctor,
but I amt got the room." she an
swered, with kindly regret in her tone.
'Is she all by herself?"
mo, she isn't" confessed. 'Her
niece is with her,
Little girl. is she?"
'No; young lady," answered, try
ing to avoid the consciousness of
twinkle in my hostess eye.
Its too bad, I'm sure; but we're
pretty full house as it is said she.
However, don't get discouraged. Try
Mis- Clark across the road; she don't
use half that big house since her boys
went out west. It'll be a good place,
too. Mis- Clark's a good provider, and
as neat as hull paper of pins"
Over the way to the house of Clark I
fastened. only to find it's mistress dis
inclined to receive boarders. "City
folks notions," she averred. were not
to be endured. But she began to re-
lent little when put her yielding ON
the ground of a personal favor; and
when dwelt generously on Mrs. Wesz
toms praise of her as a housekeeper, she
led me upstairs to two rooms, sphinx and
span and very comfortable withal, and,
with pretended nngraciousness, said
that my friends could occupy them,
provided they could 'stand plain livin'
and palmer comply" 1 closed the
bargain on the spot.
Mrs. Weston met me at her door, on
my return late that afternoon from a
drive, in the course of which the an
swer to Miss Gray's letter had been in
trusted to the mail.
"You look like a new man," said she.
r1x So1y oil -
tim a new patient does perk you young
doctors up!''
"The more the merrier, of course"
said L
you're lucky to get two such special
suffers. You'll be gettin' rich, what
with the new one and the old one over
yonder."
She pointed to the house on the knoll,
which showed a dark spot among the
lowlands lying about it fresh and green
and bright in the slanting rays of the
setting sun, now nearing the crests of
the hills to the west.
''Seems like blot on our landscape,
don't it?" she said, with her eyes still
fixed on the somber mound.
Yes thought I, perhaps in more
ways than one"
TX.
One evening, about fortnight later,
I stepped out of my Office for the double
purpose of enjoying pipe and a stroll
in the open air. The hour was late, at
least for that community of early ris-
ing and early retiring, and few lights
were to be seen in any of the cluster of
farmhouses. A faint CLEAN from one
of the upper rooms of the house across
the way showed that Mrs. Loring was
wooing slnmber under the protection of
her night-lamp. She and her niece. tav-
ing arrived that day. were now in full
possession of their new quarters. Both
had stood the journey well. Mrs. Lor-
ing, in fact, was never more cheerful
than when on the wing. The invalid
had greeted me with effusion, while
Miss Gray had displayed a cordiality
that was almost too full OF friendliness
and too lacking in self-consciousness to
please my fancy. Cheerful good-fel-
lowship was, perhaps, all that had rea-
son to expect in her; yet it was very
fattering result of many a tete-a-
tete in the moonlight of the tropics.
The night was clear, and, though
there was no moon, it was pleasant to
stroll along, reviewing the events of
our acquaintance and Speculating uDon