Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1897-04-15

theroe dropped hac' beside the horse
and they began TO speak Of the missing
letter. The talk reminded the engineer
that ne still had Thorndyke's mail in
| his pocket.and he passed il MP and con-
ssderately went on ahead again while
Philip read the letters. There was one
from Helen and. yielding to something
Ike suggestion of moral cowardice.
Philip left it until the last When he
opened it, he saw than il had been writ
ten on the same day as that about the
marriage portion, aud the iiIst words
proved that i was an after-thoueht.
II have just mailed one 'etter to yea.
she wrote, "and it was hardly out OF NV
hands before ! began to be SORRY that I
had semi it, As remember IT now. II
was al ABOUT tie money,and ought to
have known that YOU would do what
VAS just ana righ, without any urging
from me. What I want TO say NOW is
what I should have said then; that I
cannot endure this separation mocb
/ louger-that the love which have tried
50 hard to keep out Of my letters for
/ fear ! should make vou come back ia
/ your hurt refuses 10 be hidden under
meaningless and commonplace phrases.
'0h, Philip. if you love me. please
don't LEI this misfortune raise any bar
| rler betw cen us. You know what Aunt
Bellam left me-you know that it is
mine in my own right. and ! entreat
you not TO turn my gratitude into
/ misery nv refusing to share this money
with me. But YOU VIII NOT l know YOU
will not; and if we had nothing else. we
should still have each other. and what
more could we ask?
I'm some respects. know YOU
better than you know yourself; and /
know that if you can have your health
you will vet win place among those
who have fought their way into the
foremost rank. BE good to me, Philip.
dear, and let me share the battle and
the triumph with you. Come back to
Us if you are we'll enough and If YOU arc
not. please let me come to you,"
Protheroe heard something between
groan and an imp@cation. and he
stopped and waited for Philip 20 come
up. Did YOU say anything?" he asked.
Nothing worth repeating; | think /
was tempted to swear a little at the.
crookedness of things IN general wish
! chat cursed horse that threw me had
ken his neck or mine, or both"
hoes our ankle hurt?"
yer thing hurts
Prothel BE did not attempt To drive
the conversational bail any farther
He was preoceupied with his own con-
Germs, and he had been trying TO deter
/ mine what he should do when he
reached Duncan's. Would his part in
the affair be ended when ne had seen
/ Thorndy5e safe in the house Of his
friends2 or would he be expected TO
help his rival ia the fight with tie com
pany? How would Elsie receive him
after his late transgression? How could
nc endure 70 meet her in the presence
Of the man She loved2
They were troublesome questions.
but the engineers perplexities we're as
serenity itself compared with the
tumult of conflicting emotions which
had slain the peace Of mind Of his com
panion. Before he had read three lines
of Heleu's Letter, Thorndvile was sink
ing into the neither depths Of self-abase-
ment; and when he had finished il liz
felt that it would he q comfort If he
coGld get down into be road and strew
4 dust upon his head This was the laye
he had put aside for the sal5e Of a nero
impulse born Of sick mans fantasies;
The tire gold that De bad tossed cos.
temptuously into a melting-pot heated
| by-the remainder Of the simiie was
drowned IN a submerging wave Of self
| contempt. And now, at this present
moment when he was cursing his recll-
less Inconsistency, and wishing from the
bottom Of his heart that he had had the
decency TO die quietly in the odor Of
good faith, she had his letter and she
had learned at hisown hands upon what
a broken reed her love had been leaning
After the storm came the calm of
desperation. lie had wrecked Helen's
life and his own, and Elsie's happiness
trembled in the balance He could at
least save Duncan's daughter and In
the riot of distracting thoughts this
was the only one that offered a grain of
comfort. lie would expiate his folly
| by devoting himself, body and soul to
the task of making Elsie as happy as
she deserved to be. And he would
! speak to her as soon as he could find
tie opportunity he had the
time 70 sink stiIl deeper in the mire Of
tickleness. he told himself, bitterly
BY the time ThorndyKe had reached
/ this conclusion, Protheroe was. leading
the horse down the trail on the Little
Chiwassee side of the mountain, and an
hour after dark the smai procession
stopped At Duncans gate.
You're heavier than you used to be;
1 don't think you're going . die Of
consumption" sad rrotheroc, renem-
bering another time when he had
helped Philip a.sriouut al the farmers
cate.
'No; rpore's tne pity, rajo.ned
Phillip, angraciously 1t would be bet
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