St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1896-02-29

finer fibers of his nature had not be-
come SO warped but that they revolted
at the contemplated piece Of cruelty.
More than once that evening he won-
dered if his affection for her would not
have eloWed with undiminished bright
ness if he had never been promoted,
and he half wished the separation was
not necessary. He compromised with
his conscience by putting off the final
action until he had sounded j. Evans
Montgomery on the subject.
He arranged for a meeting between
! the tws, for the next Sunday. On Mon
day he asked for Montgomery's opinion.
I've been half inclined to consider
my admiration for Miss Hubbard in
serious light he said, as a prelude to
their conversation. He did not wish
to commit himself wholly, and gave
Montgomery only q smattering of con-
Laence. sIf only she were in our set -
he added, regretfully.
Montgomery flashed upon him mo-
nentary look of sharp intelligence, and,
perceiVing with his keen, fnely-tutored
instincts the true status of the case, an
swered, thoughtfully:
Yes, il she were. Butr-she isn't.
and, what is more to the point, there
isn't the remotest possibility that she
ever will be. No, no, Hutchinson, it
will never do. You must look higher"
Montgomery's verdict carried more
weight to his mind, all sopped as it
was with sycophantic adulation, than
the decision of any jury would have
done, and he determined to daily no
longer. He never could tell just how
he did it, but, somehow, before the
week was ended, the engagement had
been broken and he found himself at
liberty to spend all his spare time in
Cooking higher"
He kept on looking for six months.
Then his heart sickened and his par
tially-ganished manhood received
fresh impulse from some mercifu1
source and he resolved to make few
things right. 1t nattered not what j.
Evans Montgomery thought, nor what
his act in general thought. He loved
the girl in spite of himself and them;
the scared look in her eyes and the
pale, pinched face that confronted him
the night of their final interview
haunted him increasingly, and he
wanted to plead with her and try it
all over again. He had seen her but
twice since their separation, but he had
little doubt of the outcome Of his ven-
ture. She had been very fond of him.
and women are made Of truer stuff than
men.
She came out of the same shadowy
corner and stood in the light Of the
same lamp and greeted him in the same
cordial way when he called to make his
peace. They were alone, and there was
no hesitancy on his part that time, for
the best things in his whole nature
prompted the action he was about to
take.
I've come to tell you" he said, and
the words tumbled over each other in
their rapid expulsion, that love you;
that I want you to forgive me. am
without you. need you.
You must come into my life again.
I fancy you have discerned the reason
Of my asinine conduct, and want to
tell ysu now that, so far as am con-
cerned, ,. Evans Montgomery may Z
"HTsh,' she said. mo apology is
necessary. No plea you can make will
gain you moments consideration.
am going to be married Thursday
His heart grew heavy and numb.
Mechanically he reached for his hat
and turned to leave her. VIXEN he
reached the door he stopped and facad
her again.
May ask" he said, slowly, who
who is the man p
Certainly she replied, calmly 1T
II ]. Evans Montgomery" - Chicago
News.