Clarke courier. [volume] (Berryville, Va.) 1869-1997, 1900-02-21

ioIS after the two well mounted fig
ui"S dropped down the road together
ana wci.' rut Of sight. Sereta among
the rOSr:, =, .cl,ed her fingers more than
c1iiiuoE. samuel. should think the
nGini:al VrD.l Ike Il change" she said
iiVrcciy wh,u sic had cut all the mink
buds and N..iSeG carefully around the
curved beds 90 begin ON the red.
SamUel stared as If he had been chal-
lengcd rr,:A the burning bush. The
admiral Mss Swecta. the admirars
py'renniaL $Nlost OF the men that
come here = just blown away seed.
half sowu or wind sOwn-come up first
III one garden. then in another The
admirals rooted like red laloc. He
don't need ,ransplantin now More
! likely strange soil would Kill him out
right
IL wa disappointing that the ccnver-
satiOn at dinner that night should have
taken strictly technical turn. 1t ran
hay. II fairly few-On naval equip
ment tactics and maneuvers till the
sleepy hostess withdrew unnoticed.
Left all to themselves. IL burned out
with big guns toward morning. when
/ the stranger suddenly opened attack
/ on the old subject of the admiraTs iso-
lation. urging the necessity Of renewed
contact with men. the familiar charm
OF old scenes. while the admiral listen
eel as If TO faronf music unmoved: II
am like that dear fellow Stevenson.
Roger. my boy. l. too. have lived and
loved ana closed the door"
"Rvf sg,r,f. sl,, N-,f.
I'm YOU. admiral Gray hairs do not
make moss grown wits There's not a
man in the service To match YOU
Thanks" interrupted the older man
briefly. Welt-luSt ist vOrbc II I can
avoid Weit-SchmerIz here i'm the over
grown corner of my pasture fastness.
don't let envy OF my peace poison your
happiness. am too old. and Screta"-
"Ah. yes Screta. broke i'm the
younger she is NJ the other end OF
the path You and she are like the two
last petals of the daisy rhyme we used
To say our cate 10y 'paSSioncmrnt- pas
dc tout, You live i'm your library and
your thoughts. She lives in your Shad-
ow and the companionShip Of that hy-
percritical old gardener"
Your voice betrays irritation. Rog-
er." said the admiral hlandly. sam
uel did not forget himself. hope"
"No-that is. | tried TO talk with him
bit about slips this morning. | was
admiring his yellow lilies. but ne took
no interest in my botanical researches.
That is neither here nor there. how
ever. l"ur ward has eyes that no rose
bugs can appreciate and nature that
would whiten up some of the dark
places OF earth considerably if proper
ly applied. She ought Ia see less OF
herself and more Of lie began to
say people Of her own age. but ended
worse 10y adding. The things her
mother would have given her. fun and
dancing. and
stop" cried the admiral God for
bid such fate as her mothers was
FOR her, Thus far her feet have tro
in angel Innocence. she is happy AS Il
boy. high minded as saint. She has
never tamllVrcd with her emotions nor
felt the wasting reaction from pleas
urc. She doesn't know her heart ex-
cepi a> she knows her lungs-by name
She is youth. graceful and unSpoiled,
classic aS Greek Nou cannot make
cut on Straightcr lines"
For Il time things went on i'm the old
routine. EXcepi that the admiral
smoked more AMI talked less no one
would have guessed anything had hap
pened. No one saw the battle fought
or took account Of self indulgence slain
or carried drink 10 the dying convic-
tions or SOftcned the going OF well low
ed preferences. but after many DAYS
and nights the campaign ended as sud
denly rs il began. and the admiral was
every Inch commander still as he
went To End Sercta with surrender ON
his brow IL was bedtime. and he
found her on the terrace bidding the
stars good night. one of her many
quaint OhScrvanceS of childhood.
There WAS Il touch Of pagan wonder
on her upturned face as she stood
there. He stood beside her and breath
ed last long breath of complete con-
tent They look down ON many n
heart and country tonight" he began.
Think of the AlpS-they must love
such tall peaks best because they are
nearest and then the sea that toSSeS
their image back To them in million
shifting alterations. and the forest full
OF sleeping and waking beasts and the
flaring flowers of the tropics. the sullen
desert and the hearts of men You,
too. little friend. would yOu like To be u
star and have all the beauty and mis-
cry of the whole world spread before
you?"
Was he i'm earnest? There was some.
thing new in his manner. oh. was he
In earnest? She did not speak. only
dropped her eyes to his face. and her
upper lip quivered slightly. Did he
mean it? Strange desires pressed upon
her; the world beyond the garden
seemed calling as the norman called
his wife In Il poem OF Arnold that was
still ringing in her ears. She was
outside the behavior of custom now
troubled. yet glad.
1T is time" he continued simply
yes. il is time. | did not realize that
you had Outgrown the lilies"
al, 4