, 1898-08-23

0iit sEo girl I(lG shle lTUul ucr ulOlcStd-
tion1 She hurried down to the fence.
the moor guiding hels footsteps as it
peele1 oct from underneath a cloud.
Soon it snono full and white over the
entire Landscape. bringing into bold re-
lief every object in the garden. The big
wine Leaves w>re ~silhouetted against
the darker background. The dewdrops
srarkled like diamonds, and busy ants
that crawled over them were distinctly
visible. Suddenly Martha stopped.
There, away up near the top Of the
fence. she saw a ladybug perched on a
leaf which stood out straight and firm
like a tray. 1t was asleep, sound asleep.
and Martha had NO trouble in breaking
the leaf from the stem and securing the
coveted prize.
"~Ladybug. ladybug. fly awayi
Bring me a beau without delay"
cried the girl, hope, longing, anguish,
expressed in her voice.
A loud groan answered in the dis
lance. The girl trembled. Help, helpl'
cried the voice of a a
Martha's first impulse was to fly to
the house, but her better nature assert
ed itself. A human being was in dis
tress that was clear. She must go to
him; that was also clear.
"Where are you?' shouted Martha at
the top Of her voice.
Here, under this clump Of cotton
wood trees. Help, for heavens sake
II am coming, answered Martha,
this time not SO loud, for the cotton
wood trees were not far off. She climbed
over the fence and ran as fast as she
could TO the spot indicated, which was
about a hundred yards away. There in
the moonlight she saw lying in the
grass q nan He wal young and hand
some, and he wore the garb Of q hunts.
His face was pale and distorted
with pain. but a look Of gratitude shot
from his feverish eyes as they glanced
up at the tall. graceful girl bending
over him.
"Where are you hurt?" asked Mar
tina.
II was thrown from my horse" said
the injured man, while hunting this
afternoon. In the fall I broke my leg.
The horse ran away, and at first I was
glad Of this, because l hoped that the
riderless animal would tell the story of
some ones injury and that help would
come to me. For hours l waited for the
sound Of a human voice without avail.
Then I dragged myself to tho edge Of
this field. l must have tainted, for
when 1 recovered my senses it was
night. I tried to sleep, but the pain was
SO intense that 1 could not do so. Then
came your voice. 1t was like the voice
Of an angel"
1t did not take Martha long to debate
what she must do for the injured man.
Her fathers most intimate friend was
DR.. Godlove, the town physician. 1t
was a mile to his house, but she was
young and agile, and she knew the doc
tor would come with her instantly. In
less than III hour she returned, bringing
with her DIR. Godlove. followed by a
light spring wagon, into which a mat
tress had been laid. The doctor and the
driver placed the injured man on the
mattress and lifted him to the wagon
bed. Then tho drive back to town be-
gan.
It vas slow, because the least jar
caused the patient to groan with pain.
The doctor took him to his house even
before the young man was able to give
him his card, which he did as soon as
he was comfortably laid on the bed in
the guest chamber. The operation of
setting the broken limb began. and
when that was over the young man
dropped into q sound sleep brought
about by opiates given by the doctor.
Martha learned from her old friend that
the injured man whom she had found
under the cottonwood trees was the son
Of IL of the richest merchants of Phil
adelphia. He had come to the Virginia
mountains on a hunting trip and was
about to return to his home when mis-.
fortune overlook him.
The six weeks which followed we're
the happiest in Martha's life. DR.. God
love insisted that he needed her to help
him nurse his patient, and thus obtain
ed permission from Martha's aunt to
keep her at his house. The request was
made at the instigation of the young
Philadelphian. who had fallen in love
with the girl rs she bent over him in
tho moonlight and brought him the sue
cor that had been denied him so long.
It is needless to say that Martha loved
him In return, and before he departed
for his home they were married in the
Doctors parlor. The young wife confid-
ed her romance Of st. Andrew g night to
n Of her schoolgirl friends, and ever
since the charm of the ladybug is held
in high regard by the young folk Of
Honiton. st. Louis Republic.