The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1896-07-14
CHAPTER 1N.-continued.


side during this colloquy, being haunted
all the while by the dread lest she i'm
peril her life by her imprudence Tn,
thermometer was at least 20 degrees be
low zero. Every stray hair in her tenn
pies was thickly covered with hoai
frost, and the upper front Of her cloal
was silyered by her CONCEALED breath
Moreover, there were wolves in Tn,
woods, which roamed in large pack
near the highway and sometimes attack
ed horses and travellers 1t was therefore
with divided mind he had listened tC
her, being prevented by his anxiety foi
her physical welfare from according tn,
full significance TO her words
Gould we not continue this debat,
to better advantage if You would resume
your seat at my side?" he asked with
deep solicitude
II shall never resume my scat al
your side.
He pondercd this declaration in puz.
zled distress for several minutes, but
yet failed TO fathom its full meaning.
There was deadly earnest, passionate.
resolution i'll her words which startled
and vaguely frightened him, but he
was yet far from dreaming that they
portended anything more than lovers
quarrel, u momentary rebellion
Please tell me, Hnlda, wherein ]
have displeased you, he said, with an
almost touching contrition I'm try,
dear, to make amends "
Great God'' she cried, painting with
kind of desperate impatience. Does
not that remark show you how hopeless
it is to enlighten you? 1t is not any
thing that you have done that object
to, but it is what you are.
But you certainly knew what l was
when You engaged yourself to me. 1t
would be suicidal now for me TO give
up my profession. "
Your professionl If it We're only
that it would be comparatively easy.
But we live in different worlds, Mr..
Falck We speak to each other across
an abyss. 1t is woll that we have dis
covered this before it is too late. "
1t began TO dawn upon him now that
she meant to break her engagement,
and it was not so much her protestation
Of incompatibility which gave him this
impression as the formal "Mr Falck, -
which he had grown umaccustomod 70
from her lips Nothing had given him
an acuter sense Of happiness than the
sweet familiarity implied by her calling
him 'Anthon, and never had his name
sounded SO delightful before. Now the
more formal appellation seemed to come
to her so naturally that he could not
help thinking that this apparent init
macy had masked great amount Of re-
straint He even OWNED retrospectively
how difficult she had found il TO treat
him en- canarade, and with a pang of
jealousy he remembered how naturally
she had laughed and joked with Mr..
Brun and with what instructive ease
they had lapsed into informal relations.
She had accelerated her walk and
was now moving briskly over the snow
covered road, as if with an apparent ef-
fort TO get away from him. Mr. Falcb,
seeing how hopeless it was TO persuade
her, contented himself with keeping
alongside of her. She glanced at him
now and then over her shoulder, and
his face looked strangely withered. lie
seemed to have grown suddenly old. and
he shivered in spite Of his furs. For
half an hour they kept thus abreast OF
each other, and not a word was spoken.
Mr.. Falck felt stiff in every limb and
insidious chills were creeping over him.
All the world seemed to have been
stricken with a deadly blight and all
sights and sounds had become trite,
dreary, meaningless. His breast was
oppressed with sense Of soreness and
vacuity, though his heart kept thump-
ing away inside Of 1t with the mechani-
cal iteration of a steam engine.
'Hulda, dearest, do please come and
resume your seat, he said at last i'm
ploringly. "What will they say at home
if we return in this way?''
1T does not matter TO me what they
say, she replied coldly.
''But we shall not get home until
near midnight.
you drive ahead. l shall not detaiu
you.
what have l done that you should
treat me thus?"
you have done nothing"
The name of Mr. Brun was on the tiI
Of his tongue for he was well aware,
whatever she might say to the contrary,
that that plausible youth was at the
bottom Of their trouble. He felt a sud
den wild desire TO curse him, to trample
upon him, TO tear him 10 pieces, Neyel
Ia his life before had his unperturbed
soul been conscious of so fierce an agi
tation. What right had that light heart
ed trifie 20 come between him and her,
What right had he 10 blight his life, tC
steal his happiness? twas the rich man
robbing the poor man Of his only lamt
-rObbing him in mere wantonness fol
a pastime because he had for the moment
nothing better % do. For nothing could
have persuaded Mr.. Falck that his riyaI
had serious and honorable intentions
though possibly he might be lacking the
courage or energy to break relation il
which he had thoughtlessly entangled
himself
He was aroused from these reflections
by seeing Hulda pause at a barnlikC
structure few rods from the road and
quickly step across tho fence, the toI
rail Of which was emerging from the
snowbank
''For Gods sake, what are you going
70 dog' he cried in breathless terror.
She did not answer, but slipping hel
slender hand into the crack between, the
two doors she pulled the inside bolt anC