The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1900-07-17

let Yourself go. old man, for once ia
20 with YOU If | hadn't got an engage
nant with my wheel. | say, man ! ~
-ouarn,I glad the boss has come rodh"'
ue Amt half bad. Now put on your nat
and start-shCo- -a
vas half past eight-there was tune
10 get the 10 o'clock train that wen
s+rai~ht toward the little dark bFooh
,1aar the willows. There was time
time.-tine,
If Peggy had only stayed long e"oue'
10 know, 1t would please PeggJ'
M The 10 o'clock train. Gregory Knox
sat back in his seat ana "lsheo "sai
,ba- Peggy could know. He had hall a
-,j,1 70 telegraph her. u On second
thought. decided to wait and write from
c;r.s He could tell Peggy so many
thines that would be interesting, then
tou- har Uncle Simeon looked. ana how
,,c old ulace had stood the wear ana
.aor II 20 vears-and whether the tail
tree auDIes tasted as good as they used
to-anI if the trout were biting we'll. He
voui1 write Peggy a long letter-the first
letter he had ever written TO one or me
Girls. He was glad the first one would
be to Peggy.
Two weeks later, Gregory Knox, brown
and happy. got off the train in the crowd
ia CITY station. He walked away with q
srringv stride that fitted his little stoop-
Cd figure oddly. People turned to look
again at his happy face.
The whim seized him to walk by Bruce 5
and see how it looked from an outsiders
e~tandpoint-to stand and look idly III the
big windows, as outsiders did. linen
another whim to go in at the great SWING
ing doors and loiter through the aisles-
- 49, mn TOR o1Ctn MOI
tbat-that would break the spell.
..Tll buy a little mite Of a present for
Peggy-that's what Peggy always said
CHATS what" and he smiled at the
thought. His heart was hungry to see
Peggy. and he had reckoned that she
ana ma and the girls would be home,
now. in a day or two. Their month was
over.
Now. whatll | get?' he unused, idling
| along lazily and refusing TO look at the
familiar faces Of the clerks. What do
Peggies like? Fancy notions Of some sort
i may nave TO go to old Adams counter
now, Not if l can help it. It's too near
my old stand. and I'm not a stockin' tend
er yet-not till tomorrow
He could not decide on what to get. He
distrusted his own wisdom, in anything
hut stockings. All. yes, s~tockings-why
not? Peggies all wore stockings, and sud
denly he r~emembere the rusty-black,
gobble-darned stockings his Peggy had
worn that day at the beach. He would
have to go down the stocking counter
aisle after all.
"Stockin's it IS, then" he said, tramp
ing away in that direction.
But just at the turn he looked down the
aislc.and uttered a low murmur of as
CD;C1poCD He could q orcaIv credit his
eyes. He was getting old and they might
be failing him. But nearer yet, the
vision was the same. He knew it was
Peggy behind the stocking counter.
Peggy He stood and watched her. She
was waiting on a customer, and did not
see him. Her face was a little pale and
weary, but she smiled ingratiatingly, and
tWirled the stockings about with an air
OF long acquaintance with their kind.
Peggy. In an instant it was all clear
to him. He knew it was to Peggy be
owed his beautiful two weeks of rest. 1t
was Peggy's doings,
He felt an irresistible impulse to vault
over the counter like a boy and take
Peggy into his arGs. The sly, little,
harun-scarun girl!-tO cheat her old
Daddy, He wanted to squeeze her pale
little face between his palms and kiss it
ii llAIiI'tl GU lll1itS. ne Nd1lltu u SCOlU lGE,
and thank her, and get her away from
that place. The stocking counter at
Bruce's was no place for biithe little
Peggy.
TIL customer was turning away, and
Peggy was putting back the boxes. Even
from that distance Daddy could see that
she put one in the wrong place!
In the moment Of starting down the
aisle, he changed his mind. An instinc-
tive delicacy restrained him, and he hur-
ried round the corner out of sight.
No, he would rot spoil Peggy's little
scheme. She would like it better to have
it so on uninterrupted. Peggy was travel
ing incog'' now-he would wait. But he
told himself that by and by he would
have it out with Peggy. There was a
reckoning day ahead, somewhere.
He went home and waited. Close up
at Bruce's was at 6 sharp, but it was
late twilight when Peggy came home.
She knew Daddy would be there, and she
had fingered on the way. He heard her
coming in, and called out brusquely:
Who's there? Hold up your hands,
Cant do it, daddy, they're plum full.
Why don't you have a Light"
She spoke with nervous hiliarity, mum
bling something indistinct about trains
that lost time and herdic men that went
round Robin Hoods barn to unload their
passengers.
I'm the advance guard, you know.
Daddy she cried. Ma and the girls are
coming tomorrow. l had a let-mm. that
is, the months up. No more putting on
airs for the knoNes, Where are you.
dadIy-on the couch? It's dark as a
pocket"
"a man gets all-powerful tagged out,
tendin' stockins, The couch oughter be
the place for him. he groaned dismallv.
She felt her way to him. across the room.
At the couch she knelt beside him and
felt his face.
If l find the crow feet, I'll know it's
you and not a counterfeit daddy. Here
~ FrrSa177F--