The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1899-12-08

stick. Santa Claus is coming tomorrOw.
A door opened, and the mother Of the
: child called the little one.
| "Oh. how do you do Mrs. Thorn 2" said
Het.
Come here, Aice!'' said the woman
and grasped the child and bore her away.
Het laughed
There were women outside, women
she knew and who used to seem miser-
able to her. Now she went up to them
and spoke to them, and when some of
them held back she laughed again. All
this was experimental. There was no
room for her, surely.
Her face was very cheerful az she
walked away, followed by the glances of
the women. Her face was very cheerful
as she went along steadily, without
| haste, no evidence of confusion about
her. She went past all the holiday haste
and confusion as far as the park and sat
down on bench there, looking straight
before her. Snowfakes dropped around
her, upon her; sparrows came close and
hoped to her feet, and she did not pay
any attention. The hours passed,
o'clock came and the whistles of fac
tories discharging their hands for the
day. Morgan's hands were also dis
/ charged, she thought. She was miles
away from Morgan's, but she could see
one Of the hands. thinner than he used
to be-" going to his room, where he
s'cooked for himself"
She flung up her head. She would not
think. A furrow came between her brows
Six o'clock! Labor had also stopped in
that picturesque" place from which she
ho1 T. hov ~x,l u.
called the place "picturesque?" All, the
pretty girl in the car. the girl who spoke
of willing sacrifices! ID
She started to her feet She could not
rest. She had rested for two years. The
electric lights flashed out as she went
down the handsome avenue, her feet sore
/ from the unusual strain put upon them,
/ but tireless. She wondered II the pretty
girl lived in one of them. She walked
and walked. anywhere, anywhere, and all
round her were happy faced people. some
q bearing huge trees of evergreen to be
trimmed tonight amid jollity and pleas
ure. Everybo body seemed to have bundles.
Z Wagons ratified past loaded down with
mysterious packages, and everything was
haste-happy haste. Lights glowed in the
windows of the houses brighter than on
any other night in the year. Delicious
scents of extravagant cookery assailed
her nostrls from areas. The sky had
cleared Myriads of stars shone above
her. One in the east glowed like bea-
con. The star in the east! All this hap
py preparation came from the GrsI' Using
of the star in the east! And tomorrow
would be Christmas day! Even the pic
turesque" place from which she had
come would have its share in the re.
joicing.
Seven O'clock. Eight! Then she made
for one point, eXhilarated, glad. Walking
and walking, she came to it. She was on
bridge, where people paced in couples.
In groups-lovers, quarrelers and worse.
Strangely enough, she thought again Of
the pretty girl in the car and wondered
If "he" had called and met "papa." She
looked over at the water. 1t was like the
crinkly hide of a creeping beast, oily,
thick.
Was there nothing else for her to do be-
fore that? Harry She faded away into
the gloom. \ clock struck g.. HOW her
mother and Lizzie must be worrying!
4 She got into the region of Morgan's
and found a shop open and inquired
where Ludlow lived She found the
house. The windows were all dark.
Harry must have back room. where he
Dat duu Ituu dIleF WOIhluS HOURS. one
would like to have seen his window, just
for moment to have singled out his
window
She was still looking up at the front Of
the house when the door opened. She
jumped aside. She thought it might be
Ludlow coming out, and she could not
face him. But a woman had come to the
DOORWAY and stood there. Once more
/, Iet looked up at the front Of the house.
Then she turned away. Al che corner
she locked back The woman still stood
In the doorway. and the windows were
all black. She rounded corner. and the
house was gone.
| Now for the long, cool rest, away
from thought and the dire effort to sup
press it. Her mother should have peace.
Lizzie should not have living shame.
She was in the glare Of an electric
light, and she sped across the street and
got into byway.
ing, stumbling along, she heard its plash,
Its unrest, so monotonous that it was
like rest. She was under the bridge now,
creeping along by Shiny stones.
Hush! Was that some one following?
No; it must have been her own feet over
the flints. She reached the corner of
pier and looked down at the tide SO near
her feet Suppose that pretty girl in the
car should
A clock struck 10! The train she
should have taken for the west was gone!
She looked up to the sky Her eyes on
that eastern star, she suddenly said
aloud, "Alouher"-her heart calling for
companionship in the hour of her great
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
Then. her arms outstretched. her body
41.-.
name rang out upon the night, Harry.
Harry, Harry" and she let herself drop.
But there was an arresting force. She
felt herself drawn back.
"Hetty." voice said, al saw you.
followed you. ! knew this was the day
when you would come from that place,
! and | was restless and walked the streets
till now. My girl. you shall not keep me
from you any longer. love you more