The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-12-22

Surely no pupil was " more CRATE
full for help, or more light-hearted
over her tasks, than she was, and her
perseverance and patience converted
the stumbling-blocks Of one day into
the fairly easy words Of the next, until
at last her reading was so good that 1t
was high time she should take to the
pen.
Every night I blessed that little
primer for the way in which 1t brought
us together. To be sure, I might easily
have bought another, but then I should
have missed the touch Of her hand as
we thumbed and fingered the book to-
gether, and have lost the moments
Of bliss when her hair, tossed by the
wind, swept owe my check.
It seems t o me that I can hear her
ripping laughter now as I heard 1t
when I told her that Persia's famous
Ejn;. would have frowned upon her
had she dared to address him as "Ex-
erexes."
"Ah! why" she said, didn't they
give the man a. decent name, like
Maurice, or William, or-or Jack?' n
the mink gave me a CLINT from her eye,
and whispered the last name SO softly
that I went home delighted.
I can see, too, the light that glowed
in her glorious eyes, and the colour
that came ande went as I read to her
of this or that famous knights deeds.
done in honour Of his lady; and the
look Of pleasure that made her face
radiant, did I but praise her, is as
beautiful in the remembrance now as
it was in the actual beholding then.
Though no one but ourselves knew of
our meetings, which were thus some
what clandestine, she saw no harm in
them, and they were so pleasant to me
that I never raised the point, for to the
pure all things are pure, and in this
respect she matched the angels of
heaven!
Then came the lessons in writing. We
made use of a pencil, and how sweetly
she bothered me! first? And sure, she'd
never get the turn of this letter, or the
twist of that, and why weren't they all
as easy to make as o's?"
When September was ending, and the
air began to grow chilly, and the
leaves to 1utter down upon us In all
the glory of their autumn colours, she
brought me her first letter, and I wait
ed to read it until I was alone, and
read it over and over again until it
was mine by heart. Just a few sim
pie words of thanks, just a wish that
she could do something for me to re-
pay me for my patience and kindness,
just a hope that some day we should
meet again, and then the yours,
gratefully, N. C." She spelt it great
fully" and I kissed the word, because
it showed me that I must teach her
again some day.
And all this time Mcguire was spin
ming romances, his star Of hope shin
in resplendent in the zenith when
some story was accepted, and waning
towards the literary horizon, or set
ting altogether for a while, when his
book came back, as come it did with a
regularity that had long since passed
the stage Of monotony. And to keep
him working-and he was happier So
and to leave me free to give my lessons
I advised him to rewrite portions of his
work. to touch it up here and there,
and to illustrate it more freely, so that
It Jared forth fatter each time, until 1t
was bulky indeed.
Now that the meetings. in the woods
were over I cast about for some means
Of seeing Nora in a legitimate manner,
and I made use of her fathers failings
to aid me in my endeavor. Having at
last presented myself q sufficient num-
her Of times at the bar to make my
face familiaS and after running a
great risk Of losing my character Tor
sobriety, I was at length invited Into
the inr err sanctum, where the higher
class patrons assembled to enjoy their
erog and an innocent game Of cards.
And here I was privileged to address
Mr.. Courtney for the first time, and
the n Of my approach. which l
was careful to make as deferential as
possible, won. upon him to accept the
cigar proffered, and before the evening
was over we had exchanged cards. In
the mellowness Of his condition, begot-
ten for his rotations, and in pity OF my
loneliness, CT which I drew an awful
picture, he promised to call upon me.
And, mirabile dictu, he proved him
self a man Of his word, and two days
afterwards he bore down upon us at
the orthodox hour, dressed in his best,
though Their were traces Of someone's
deft frgers in the neatly-mended
gloves, and his cravat-for he was old
fashioned to wear one-had assumed q
more BETTING position than when !
had last had the pleasure of beholding
1t. There were cas- in his we'll
worn frock-coat, and his trousers were
Of a cut that was not Poole's. and,
although he was somewhat of a wreck.
what was left Of him proclaimed that
he had once been a good-looking, we'll
set-up man.
Mcguire had locked himself up in.
his den, and. had my visitor been q
Prince OF the Blood Royal the author
would not have vouchsafed to have
bestowed upon him the light Of his
.countenance, so that I had to do all
the entertaining. d
You're very pleasant here. Mr.. Tre-i
mayEe."" said my guest. as he slipped
his port. for tea a tabooed-"you're
very pleasant here" and he waved; his
hand as though the country for miles
around were mine. '.And I'm sorry
that 1t isn't in ireland we r where
i could ask you to come and see me
in the castle where the Courtneys
have reigned ever since-well, ever
since the Flood But I'll maybe 60.
back again. and then II you're ever
over there I'll be. proud to do the hon
ours s
I told him that I should be only too
delighted to gaze upon so venerable
a pile, and when. N parting he Sig
nified that he should be pleased to: