The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1897-01-12
OVERLOOKED.

II is late IN the night don't know
what hour ] Oily know that tonight sleep
md can form no friendly combination.
have come to my desk to look over papers
and letters. Why not burn my lctiors2
Ones mind is clear in the soft silence Of
the night, and much Is plain that daylight
does not know.
can see that IL is unwise to keep letters
md yet II Is u foolish habit that have in
Gulgcd. l lave them all pigeonholed here
IN my desk, milcstoncs i'm memory's back
ward road to boyhood. Heavens, how they
bring back other daysl How they bring
up faces dead and gone, and others not
dead but faded away and lostl
What a Kaleidoscope of friendships and
loves of sentiment and passion, of wisdom
and folly they represent us they lie before
niel l will light fire in my fireplace and
drop them in.
Here are few written long years ago,
when l WAS boy at school The writing
Is slender and graceful, yet with certain
dash and style very characteristic of the
one whose hand held the pen.
Hellol / quite forgot these letters
Florines, as am sinner. Ye gods, but
she was prettyl can see her now, sitting
on the table, making IA cigarette, swinging
her little feet and chattering gayly in her
diabolical but fascinating English.
Shall l burn these? They are all l have,
and my mother will write me no moro.
Yes, let them go 1t only saddens me to
| look them over, and why court sadness? l
| drop them on to the fire. They burn steadily
with a quiet white flame as pure as the
| love Of which they were but faint OK
preston.
Here are some from Conrad, my little
brother-at least he was my little brother
| when these were written, and then later,
poor lad, he went quite wrong, until ut
last he ran away and we heard of him no
more wonder where the boy is tonight
! 1t is ten years now. i wish he could know
that am sorry for him and that would
gladly take him back If he would but
come.
These few thin notes tied with q ribbon
-ah, l will leave them until the last.
| This great bundlc, written on all sorts Of
paper, is made up Of letters from Carlos,
some written just before he went to col
lege, then struggling along all through
college life; then they became more seri.
Gus us Carlos went in for u commercial
career.
Here they are on tho paper of various
hotels--that was while Carlos was on the
he soon tired of that and came back to the
dream of his life and studied law. Then
he became engaged. What Jolly, affection.
ate letters they are, to be sure!
And then he married, and that was the
end Of it, fer, of course, his wife did not
like me. l wonder why the vito Of u fol
lows best friend so seldom Goes like II fel
low? The letters mean nothing now-they
might as well burn.
In they go, one 1T time. They burn
like fireworks, with little bursts of shoot
ing stars. Here are Ted's lettcrs-th,
dear old chap. don't know why KEEP
them. They are mostly telling me how
happy he is in his married life and urg
ing mo to join the married men. Ted, oil
boy, you never knew about these few let
tiers tied with II ribbon
We'll, in thty go, your letters, Ted
They'll burn steadily, like your friend
ship-not impetuous, but Il good, comfort
able, easy going sort. l think I'd rathc
have the rash, impulsive friendship of love
1t may not last as long, but it is aliy
while it does last.
Yes, l like ailIs and valleys and dashin
streams, torrents and rocks and Chamber
ing vines. l see no beauty in "a wide ex
panse of level plain, clad in monotonou
Veruure' Inns ptcnaSe inuso NC Auno an
MES letters Yes bless her dear old heart
Mha6 u piicid' quiee lame they IL make
1hey ought 10 smell OF uowers ana heN
Ino"h nay anu ohe appie piossolils ol he
DeVoh orchi.ru.
ohe IS hoo oiteh ioVeu WIN such sWee
simpnc,ty as hers mere are u lou Oh ou!i
anu enus-a couple Oh letters from SouS,
Kate, u few from dear old dad when h
I lf,i, 1i,,lp of uIri1
"ao uoihS uip.9 "o "uiiu' ''hi
iroih NY sis'er iroiii her Lar "es'ern ioiii'
into the IRE one by one, ana the III
flares up, and l catch u word or two in tn
light of it's flame as it glows in red an
amber and blue and gold.
They are all gone save the few tied wit
} ribbon They are only six Yes, here
, one more. / thought it was only six, an
wrote her scores. Oh, Janet, why di
you never answer that last one, when
come TO Inc at last ana told you how niue