The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1900-04-28
VIII.
UPON THE BLEAK HILLSIDE.

station and met Miss LetSOn on the
platform she did not recognize her, for
her own eyes were filed with tears
that shut off her sight. She heard the
rumble and clatter of the departing
train but she could not see Ii. Miss
Letson was moved by her distress and
did not trust herself to say more than:
| I'm so sorry, dear"
Miss Stella did not answer and they
| returned to the house in silence.
Search was made for the purse, but
| ~ Miss Lessons pocket was overlook
| ID II was not recovered.
| Miss Stella was determined to set
cut for home in buggy or on horse
back, but the one livery stable in town
| had not a horse left in its stalls and
the two young ladies visited every per-
son in the village who was the owner
| of q horse and not one could be Sc
| cured. With one consent the people
| al made excuses and the effort to pro-
cure either horse or conveyance proved
| fruitless. Miss Stella announced her
purpose to go home on foot. Every
argument was used to dissuade her but
she refused to listen to their argu-
ments or to regard their pleas.
IL WAS uS1ily LHt CC u NiOCh WhCA
they returned to the Letson home at
The conclusion Of their search for a
h1rse. Lunch was awaiting them and
they were very tired. They went to
1.-The liable but Miss Stella had no appe-
lite md found the bare thought of food
repunive. Still, she ate something,
realizing that for the journey she was
to Undertake she would require all her
strength.
~ cannot eat" she said, 81 will take
With me little of this fruit, il you
tlease; I have no doubt that / shall
0equire something long before l reach
nome"
do be persuaded to wait till to-mor-
row." Miss Letson pleaded again, be-
Ing thoroughly sorry for her treachery.
now that she saw its results.
1T is of no use to urge me; / would
not remain till tomorrow for all
the wealth in the world"
But you will kill yourself IL you
undertake to walk all the way to Mi
nersvale this afternoon. 1t will be
dark before you reach there; yeu will
die on the way. Do listen to reason,
Stella."
81 don't want to listen to reason. I
will not listen to reason or to anything
else that you may urge against my
determination. / shall not kill my.
self and / shall not die on the way.
must reach Minersvale tonight"
"You are too determined"
II have an engagement for this aft
ernoon which / could not, upon any
consideration be induced to fsrego."
1.-THE engagement will be broken be-
fore you get I'VE miles on your way"
1.-THE attempt to fulfill it will absolvs
me. Besides, / know where to reach
him and shall send message fmme-
diately upon my arrival"
She babe her hostess goodbye and
started upon her long walk. The road
| lay over unimproved hills, barren OF
trees, thick with brush. 1t Is desc
| late country, the dreariness of which
is unrelieved by farms or habitations,
save q few wretchea huts at long and
| irregular intervals. From the infre-
| uuency of its use the road was then lit
| tie more than a blind and abandoned
byway and as there were many diverg-
| ing converging and intersecting by
ways it was not always easy to deter
| mine which to follow.
Before half her Journey was accom-
| plished darkness fell upon her and
| walking became greatly more labori-
Gus and fatiguing; for the road was
stony and rough and scanned with gull
| lies cut by the waters of many show
ers and it was hard to travel even in
the daytime. The night sounds be-
| came to her terrifying noises. In the
| whirr OF an occasional nocturnal bird
| there was something that she found
| full of horror. A girl of less determi-
nation would have tainted a score of
| times. 1t was only by resolute exer-
| cise of her mental command of herself
| that she conquered her terror. Often
| unfamiliar, unexpected sounds startled
her; she grew faint, her limbs grew
| weak, and, trembling, almost refused
to support her; her heart would give
one great bound, then cease to beat
and her throat would swell and the
swelling muscles choke her; her breath
| would come in gasps, irregularly, and
| scarcely reach the upper chambers OF
her lungs. At such times she would
| stop and stand as rigid as a statue un-
| til she conquered her alarms.
She stumbled over roots and sticks
| dn0 stones anu lulo SulIcS duG uOiCS
until she was bruised and sore and al
most forced to sit down and give up in
| despair to her weakness and terror.
At length, unable to fully restrain
| her emotions, she felt tears flow over
her face, SO hot and scalding that she
| found herself wondering IL they were
burning their channels down her
cheeks; and she felt for the scars with
her trembling fingers.
The road became more and more OBJ
scure and at length she realized that
she had followed a lateral branch and
was lost. Without the faintest idea
| how far she was astray she turned
about and retraced her steps, hoping
that she had not gone far from the
main road. She was sure that she had
recovered a mile of the lost way and
yet she had not found the main road.
Disheartened, discouraged, she strug-
sled on, suffering mentally and phys
ically every instant and every step.
She was sure that she had covered an
other mile, and then she discovered
that aha was entirely off the road!