St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1899-01-21
H.--CoNTrNUEp.

Il would ask you to come in, but
have my little part, you know-and ]
should hate to have you hear me say
it," Faith apologized. She spoke with
greater freedom, in a full, low voice
charged with worhanly feeling. The
eide through the dark woods had
proved to be one of those perilous
short cuts to sudden intimacy, for bet
ter or worse, by which the way of ac-
quaintanceship is abridged for the
young and fearless. The life of the
frontier is remarkably productive Of
such opportunities, and it seems to be
a question of family and past history
with the high contracting parties,
whether these facile roads lead to the
divorce courts and the newspapers, or
to those faithful and incenspieuous
comradeships which we all know of,
and seldom read of, in the published
stories of the west; western marriages
being like western mortgages is the
ones that don't pay interest of which
we chiefly hear.
what shall you say if anybody asks
you questions?'' Faith inquired.
'Is it necessary to say anything?"
II haEetosay things; the moment the
door opens have, to be ready with my
lie."
I'VE had better say the same thing,
hadn't we?" Darcie suggested. "What
do you generally call it when he is
az -'~-=s.ss
ssNhatp.
"You have some name for it, haven't
you? Headache, Indigestion, cramps?'
"Oh, mercy!" the girl implored,
"Say again what you said at the cabin.
1 thought it perfectly imbecile at the
time, but suppose it will do as well as
anything
He'd been pounding down the noun
tain on a.
mot on "a brute Of horse!' Every
body knows what Colonel ii"
SCOT himself wet to the skin,' Dar-
Gle recited. "Ate a monstrous supper
too soon after
''He ate no supper at all! Don't say
things you needn't say, just for the
pleasure of ,inventing."
Leave out the supper, then. But the
supper's the best reason of ALL"
"And this you call little thing!i
cried Faith, tragically.
did I say little2 / meant it was
common thing
well, men surely are not proudl
This, then, is the common weakness!''
almost any weakness is common
with our half of humanity" Darcie al
lowed; 'but God knows, a man may be
easy ON a fault that's not his own!,a
"The young men have no faults, /
suppose Faith exclaimed, bitterly.
Charity and forgiveness are for the
poor, slipshod fathers, too old to be
cured of their weakness!" 1t was her
wounds imperious anguish" that
spoke in this unnatural tone.
Darcie answered humbly, constrained
by the pricking Of his conscience, and
not unwilling, perhaps, to draw her at4s
tention upon himself:
II know one young man who is in
need of forgiveness yours, If you
could spare him little of it. wish
to confess, before leave you, to
fault in my position toward yourself
a most damaging, fatal inconsistency"
"a fault-toward .me2 You must be
dreaming!s When have you ever seen
me before to-night?"
Never; and yet did you an@uncon-
scious injury before ] knew of your ex-
istence. I am in a cruelty equivoca1
position" 7f
II am not in a very nice position my
self" Faith grieved.
But it is not your own doing. lam
speaking of aets-my own, on my own
responsibility"
Cannot you get out Of this posi-
tion2''
II shall be out of it by to-morrow's
eastern mail. But Iwant your forgive
ness tonight. The thing sticks in my
record; ! don't know what moment it
might turn up and injure me with YOU"
Il don't think it can be very serious,
said Faith, IF you can get out of IL so
easily. I wish could send all my wor-
ries away by to-morrow's eastern mail,
If / were sure they would not travel to
anybody care for