The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1896-01-28

hey were TO commence together on 4
morrow perhaps IL was the
of their bright, earlier days,
which made that handclasp long and
lose and never to be forgotten. Then
he doctor turned, and his wife watch
~ the tall, thin figure as he went
Town the path and through the gate. |
as he was climbing into the old
she was seized with q bright
dea, and snatching up the warm
.fghan which she had knitted for him.
he ran cut, calling Henry, Henry, |
AXE tuis, it Is so cold.p
Henry pulled up the old white horse
md waited for her, the stormy wind
blowing bis long gray locks about
under bis hat.
"Thank you,n he said, with indul-
gent, negligent thank that men give
when they think o oma has taken
unnecessary trouble.
Mary stood watching him as he
drove away, until the mists that were
trailing down from the mountains in
thick clouds wrapped him round and
seemed to sweep him out of sight.
She had many things to do that morn
Ing, and she went about them busily,
singing now q snatch OF one old tune
and then of another. First, of course,
there was the housework then the
last stitches in Henry's black coat
that she had been new lining and
brushing up with proud thoughts OF
how he would look as he wore 1t in
the old church ; then there was a hand
some black silk necktie to be hemmed,
which she had saved and scrimped for,
and had finally bought with what
seemed to her q really daring dis
psaO n r6 nf avnnncn tnoopn,oh NJ, IN la,a
stylish kind of'silk would have done as
we'll. The necktie was to be q sur
prise ; and Mrs. Rutledge hemmed on
1t with pleased and trembling fingers,
q happy light in the old eyes as she
bent close to see the stitches. After
the necktie, there was O dress 10 Fix
up" a little, and then the final pack.
ing and Strengthening up; for they
were to start in the morning.
Almost before she knew it, the day
had gone, and four O'Clock struck. A
sudden foreboding seized Mrs. Rut-
ledge-he was SO seldom later than
the hour fixedl She went to the win
dow and looked out. 1t had been rain
ing steadily since ten O'Clock, and a
gray wall of mist, heavy and menac-
ing, shifting but never retreating,
made a desolate island of the little
house and yard. Look any way she
would, still that blank barrier shut
out her vision. The ceaseless patter
on the roof, which she had not noticed
before, began to make itself audible
q dull and insistent murmur that would
not be ignored.
Its all right; there Is no use in
worrying he'll be here soon," thought
Mary, setting herself r~esolutely to the
task OF getting supper. "I1l have
just about time to make some hot bis.
cult, and he likes them particularly
well after a long drive. IIl have to
hurry, or he'll be here before they're
DONE"
She put on the teakettle, stirred
the fire, and then plunged into the
biscuit making with q feverish haste,
glancing every now and then at the
clock.
"Guess I must be uncommon spry,'
she thought, as she showed the tin
into the oven, and commenced putting
out the plates and cups with a clatteI
cheerful. She was littening all the
time for the rattle of the old phaetor
as 1t came up the road but there was
no sound a v the sullen sough of the
wind, and the ~cease]ess, Irritating
patter on the roof-no sound except
one other, growing minute by minute
more loud ana ~ominous-the roar O
the river. The San Gabriel ha.
tremendous possibilities of destruc
zion. 1t has been silent and harmless
for months, but to-day, fed by swoller
mountain torrents, 1t had spread itsel
out to twice its usual width, and was
flowing past the house, muddy ant
thick, with a %sullen, slowly-increas
ing roar. 1t showed no waves, i
seemed not unusually swift or deep
u huge mountain logs were swirlins
past, helpless in its grasp. Relent
the more terrible for its seeming limo
cence.
Mary looked at in dismay.
1.-The Azusa bridge is safe" she
thought; "but the north fork I" The
north fork, where the ford had to be
made amid quick-sand!
Would he venture And then she
thought, with a sinking heart, of tina
other times when, fearless lest she
should be frightened by his delay, he
had crossed q New England mountain
in the face of a terrific storm. riskine
his life. Certainly he would venture
h could do nothing but wait
Darkness settled down, and the muir.
muir of the rain increased, while out.
side the tawny, eddying width of the
river could be seen dimly through the
gloom. An unutterable loneliness crept
over her. Going to the wood-shed for
another armful of sticks, the gusty
wind blew out her light and spattered
angry raindrops into her face from
between the cracks, and she returned
out of breath.
He will not come tonight" she
thought but her heart was compressed
with a heavy dread.
The ticking of the clock grew louder
and more insistent. The hands point
ed to ten. She had read two chapters
of the Imitation" and then had
looked through their local paper with
out compromising a word OF either.
1t was time for prayers, and she open
ed the Bible, his Bible-and read the
psalm which he would have read that
night
n will lift up mine eyes unto the
hills, from whence cometh my help {;
made heaven and EARTH"
Dropping on her kness, she buried
her face In her arms. 80 God, pro.
tect him !" she sobbed, piteously. The
patter OF the rain on the roof had
grown deafening, and the howl of the
wind and the roar of the river gave
suggestions of universal dissolution.
After o moment she added, with New
England tirmness, "Neverthleless, no
my will, but Thine, be done" But the
words were spoken with the lips, and
not with the heart. Swiftly her
thoughts went back over the years
they had spent together; the deep
joys, the bitter sorrows of which none
but thew two had known.