The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-01-13
An Autumn Story.

1
y wish you would.
"Good-bye till then"
Goodbye and she looked merrily af-
ter him as he strobe down the path and
was lost beyond the bushes. Then the
smile faded. She mounted the steps wea-
rily and rang the bell.
! Great drawing rooms lay on either side
| of the hall, rich with ebony and crimson
hangings, ard filed with the aIl-pe-vc;i-
lingo dor Of the flowers. The girl went
SLOWLY uD the staires and entered her
own room. Crossing it. she stood for a
| moment before the long mirror As the
| tail reflection met her eyes she smiled
| in spite Of herself She was an autarln
girl with brown and gold locks TO match
the leaves that the frost touches ard
| with which October winds love to pay.
Her eyes were the autumn skies in their
| cool. blue depths. and her cheeks were
| as the white clouds about them.
In summer one would not call 1er CAV,
but IN autumn. when she sat before the
great log fire, she reflected part Of its
warmth. The merry sparkle of her ey yes
! laughed back at the suffering flames,
| and men stood about and worshiped her.
! Her name was Margaret.
| She liked her name and her hair end
! the fall days which were hers by right.
All her life she had been beautiful. all
| her life men and women had loved her;
| but the women complained of her cold
ness The men looked deeper aad saw
| the warmth they could not reach. Some
! called her mysterious. but this seemed 10
/ lend her even greater charm. They un-
derstood part of her nature-haf, they
! said; behind this half rose a wal, end
only through its chinks did warmer
CLEANS now and then shine. out. But
they had known her only in summer. In
the minter everyone left town, and she
and her father lived alone, apart from
the world, in their beautiful home. One
saw her seldom then. But now, now
it would be different. 1t would be diff
ferent. And the girl thought of the man
who had just left her, and smiled again
He had come back, and perhaps the
winter would not be so dreary, for they
We're old friends. She had known him
always. AS children they had played to-
gether, and had read and cried over her
first stories. Sad little stories they We're
that never ended happily.
He did not like TO cry, and one day he
had said that when ne was grown he
would go into a far country and would
find q story to write about that had no
tears in it. The girl now vaguely won
dered if this was the story. She did not
care very much. Still,if NetaoinrdIu
care very much. Still, It was good to
laugh, and she hardly remembered hav-
ing done so since-she rose suddenly. and
by force Of habit and strength of will
brought back the smile to her lips. But
a shadow lay in her eyes and an I'M
heard throb hurt her heart.
He came. She was seated in the great
room with It's crimson l1angings among
the golden beams of an October sun A
small tea-table stood near her, and on a
crane water was boiling in a brass ket-
tie. The logs on the hearth sent up long
lines Of Tight into the wide chimney and
hush was over everything.
Il am glad you've come" she said.
an< her hand was firm and COOL
Il wanted to come before, but I was
afraid" and the gray eyes looked into
hers.
"Afraid?" She had seated herself
again, and was watching the figures
which the wind was making with the
sunbeams on the lawn.
l thought, perhaps, to find you a great
author and filed with scorn for mere or
binary mortals."
She smiled There are other reasons.
too. You might guess them if you
choose"
Il am not very good at guessing" She
was wondering if she could use his plot;
perhaps, after all, he had forgotten to /
brin it. She, rousing herself, pointed TO /
a low chair by the tea-table 81 wish |
you would sit here" she said, at is
much more comfortable than the little
chair you have. Try it, and then [ viii
make you some tea. Do you still like
tea?"
"Of course. Why do you ask? Every
man likes tea. What would become of
US if we didn't?"
''Oh, but do you really like 1t? Other
wise 1 would rather not make it"
oh, please"
"No. I don't like to do things people
do not like; would you believe it? l
really care great deal about people. II
have always thought how beautiful it
would be to have one person all to my
self; just one to whom I could please"
His eyes glowed. Put you have every
one"
That is just the trouble. I have 'ev-
1t is everyone who thinks me
cold, because 1 am pleasant to all. WHY.
girls are brought up TO be pleastnt-I
mean, what would happen If we should
snub one and smile on that one; If we
should tell abroad our likes and dislikes.
Just as We feel them? We have to pre-
tend. We She broke off suddenly. 1T
IS so unfair" she continued. rising ''be-
cause we are not cold; We do have feel
ngs. 1 wish some one would believe
ne. 1 wish you would!' She had for
gotten the plot, and was standing against
he mantel. looking down into the glow
ng logs. Her gown fell in long straight
ines, and the flames leaped crimson over
face and hair. He had risen, too, and +
stood watching her
You think me cold, don't you? Well.
isten," She hesitated a moment. CLASP
ng and unelasping her fingers, her eyes
vent on the yellow fender
There was once a man-there were
nany-but this one came oftener than
he others. He was tan and big. and
alked TO me Of foreign countries. where
le had Travelled and Of the people ne had
zen, and read TO me histories and sto- {
les, and l liked MS voice-and by and s
W liked him. Just a little at first {
hardly knew it-but after awhile-I az ,
.ot know and liked him beter-a great
Zealand then he went away-across the ]
water somewhere" Her hands were quiet j
ow; her voice steady; her eyes shone
ark and clear. as she looked at the man q
efoTe her. That was all others have
ome and gone since then, and I have 7
liked them ali. only. she caught her !
reath, cit could not be that again. and ;
o people call me cold grow very l.red .
( il sometimes. but her voice chang c
i, Il tlink ] should Ike 20 hear tie
lot II your story now She smiled up
Z him. His face startled her.
Then IL an instant Il ali flashed over :
eH He mad read 20 Der; ne had gore
way and now be had come back and ne :
ad thought she meant-