The Irish standard., 1897-01-30

1lat Top VI tuo TOCh, 61aSHeu LIP WHSLE
just as he was losing His hold for the
second time and pulledshim te,a firm.
footing beside her. It was nothing but
bit of spontaneous helpfulness, but
none the less the incident served to re-
open the question which Philip had just
dismissed. He sat down at her feet to
recover his breath while she gathered q
handful of the rhododendrons. .,.:.:-e.. e,
"Dd it tire you?" she asked. ...-,
"No, not very much. wasn't think
ingof that. Twas trying to bring myself
to the point of telling you something
that you ought to know"
els it about yourself?"
"Yes."
She sat down beside him to arrange
the flowers. II am listening" she said,
encouragingly. '' &*'<
Il The opportunity had come, but
'Thorndyke trihed with it. $40. you
know why came to Alabama" he be-
gan. - =,
"Why, yes; it was on account Of your
health, wasn't it?"
''It, was; but did you know that my
case is quite hopeless Pr. ~ :~s. &
II knew you thoughtit So" ...-s -.
II still think so-the doctor as good
as told me it was; and yet, do you
know, that just now feel that under
some circumstances might win my
way back to health and strength
again?" .*>@@''. = -,
"That's the way you ought to feel all
the time; it's more than half the battle"
Thorndyke remembered Protheroe's
words and wondered if he had repeated
them to Elsie. II suppose I should, but
can't. 1t was just as you lifted me
over the edge Of the rock; it seemed as
if you gave me new hold upon life out
of your abundance. Queer, wasn't it 2"
This was not at all what he had begun
to say, but the words chose themselves.
"It's astonishing what q retrospective
field the mind will cover at pinch,
isn't it? Now, in that half second while
you were helping me got telescope
glimpse Of my whole life, and it's al
ways been the same way-some one has
pulled me up over the hard places before
I could even try to do for myself. And
it's taken the color out of everything;
there has never been anything left
worth living and fighting for; if there
had been might be able to make some
show of resistance now"
I'm afraid I don't quite understand
you," she said. II thought everybody
had something to live for"
81 presume most people have; and in
my own case the uncharitable might say
something about sour grapes. That
wouldn't be true, though; it wasn't
until I knew I couldn't live that cared
much about it. And there is every rea-
son to suppose that, with the fear of
death removed, life would go back again
to the same old dreary round and be
more undesirable than ever" .
She rose and fastened the bunch OF
rhododendrons in her belt. 'Do you
really mean to say that you have no rea-
son for wanting to live? Would nobody
be sorry if you died?'
Thorndyke killed his opportunity
with one blow. eyes, there may be
some who would be sorry; perhaps You
would care little. But that is entirely
different matter; Tn not good enough
to want to live to oblige my friends, nor
bad enough to want to die to spite them.
Let's go and find the Pocket you were
telling me about"
1t is an open question as to how liter
ally the most sincere person can afford
to be taken in a conversation which
bears upon his own personality. Doubt
less Philip meant to say what was in
him at the time; nevertheless, repent
ance came afterward, and with it more
good intentions. While Philip the self
estimated was as little like Philip the
real as might be, yet there was unde-
niably an accusing conscience which
the self-known Philip sought to nuzzle
with the fiction that the afternoon was
still young. Unfortunately, however,
opportunities for the saying of reluctant
things do not grow upon every bush,
even upon a sequestered mountain top,
and Philips conscience was still unap-
peased when, an hour beyond the rhodo-,
dendron, they came out upon the. rim
of crater-like valley cutting deep
cash in the mountain. 1t was elliptical
in shape. with wooded sides .slanting
uOWn from Ullt DdSc VI llleifCllA Aile; W
small cornfield in the center; but there
was no sign of a house, nor Of any road
leading down from the level of the
plateau. A clear stream gushing from
beneath fat bowlder at the foot of tho
southern slope splashed riotously
through the length CT the valley, to van-
ish again into the mouth Of a low
browed cave at the base of the northern
cliff 80
1.-The happy valley Of Rasselas, with
the Inhabitants left OUT" said Thorn
dyke els this the Pocket?" =
Eyes; the DEVILS Pocket, the noun
taineers call it,"
''Why 'devil's'?" asked Philip.
I'm sure don't know; father says
it's because some people like to name
things after their patron saint"
''That's quaint idea; but the name
fits rather better in this case than it.
usually does. There is. always some7
thing suggestive of the weird and un-
canny in a valley that has no visible out
let. How docs the man who hoes that
corn ever get down to it?"
'Oh, there are several ways to get
down, though not very many people
know them" : - Z.
Il suppose you know some of them;
can't we explore it :"
Il think we'd better not try; it's get-t