The McCook tribune. (McCook, Neb.) 1886-1936, 1901-04-12

far down on his luck" just now as to
render him patient toward any indig-
nifty, even when administered by a
younger sister. So he took his scold-
ing with meekness, and made no open
show OF resistance or d~isapproval.
though in his inmost soul he resented
the treatment hotly; only he turned
away from Mabel, and addressed him
self once more to his first confessor.
Why don't you abuse me, Mildred?'
he said. Am l beyond even your GEN.
sure, that you refuse to say anything
harsh to me? Have you given me up
altogether? If you have, | know it is
only what l deserve"
Miss Trevanion moved abruptly
away from the side of the oaken win
dow frame, against which she had
been leaning, and went up to where he
was standing, rather apart. She laid
her hand upon his shoulder.
Poor old fellow" she said, softly;
whereupon Eddie T~revanion, in spite
of his twenty years, fairly broke down,
uhu uul1Cu hiO ldSC oh lIo Va oiN
burst out crying.
This vas too much even for the
queens" stoicism; she repented her
righteous anger Immediately, and, put
ting her arms around his neck, pro-
ceeded to press her lips lovingly to the
only portion of his ear at all visible,
while Mildred, with tears in her soft,
blue eyes, told him to cheer up and
have courage, and maybe they'd man
age it somehow, you know with a
good deal more to the same purpose.
AS the girls hung round him in this
fashion, and patted the SHINING Eddie,
until a looker-on would have deemed
him a suffering angel at least, Denzil
stained, scarlet coat. Entering the
picture gallery on his way toward his
dressing room, and not seeing very
clearly, in consequence of the fast
approaching darkness, he came upon
the tableau at the end of the apart
ment almost before he had time to col
lect his senses.
The three figures looked gray and
ghost-like to his bewildered eyes, but
one thing was distinctly evident, and
that was Eddie Trevanion's unmistak-
able distress.
Il beg your pardon" DenZil said
hastily. I'm awfully sorry, Miss Ire
~vanion, to have intruded in this rough
,ooppar hut ,D fortupataI did NOT
perceive you until l was quite close.
However, as / have committed my
blunder, can may try to be of
some assistance?"
Mabel looked up eagerly. Here was
a golden opportunity. Here was a rich
young man with nothing on earth to
do with his money, and unquestion-
ably ~good-naturedi
Gould he be of some assistance?"
OF course he could-the greatest-if
Mildred would only look up and an
swer him. Mildred did look up and
answered him-answered him very dis
tinctly indeed, though scarcely in the
spirit that Mabel had hoped for, hav-
ing intercepted the queens" glance
and interpreted it correctly.
You are very kind" she said, stead
LIVERY kind indeed; but this is a
matter in which, l fear, you can be of
no help to u.s."
Let me try" he implored, eagerly.
Impossible" she returned, coldly;
you do not understand; it is a case in
which no stranger can take part.
Thanks very much all the same.
When Miss T%revanion said that, of
course there was nothing left for the
young man to do but to bow and go
on his way. which he accordingly did,
with a bitterly hurt feeling in his
breast, engendered by that n word
stranger"
VIVA a stress she laid on it! How
obnoxiously it had sounded as applied
by her to him. How coldly distinct had
been her voice when speaking it,
Well, it wasn't her fault, he supposed,
she was gifted with neither heart nor
gracious manner, nor anything else
tender and womanly-only with a glo-
rious face and figure, which of course
did no good to any one and only made
one Where the deuce had Connor
put his brushes? That fellow was
growing more c~onfoundedly careless
every day; and how abominably that
brute of a horse he had given one hun
dred and fifty pounds for last week,
had taken that last water jump this
morning, just when the entire field
was looking on, too! On the whole, it
hadn't been so very pleasant a day, as
he had fancied in the first heat of the
moment, when it was all over and he
was discussing it during the homeward
ride with old Appleby. Hanged old
nuisance that old Appleby was, by the
byei" And so on and on indefinitely
sped Denzilis reflections, while the
cause of them all stood still in the
gallery where he had left her, with
her kind little white hand on Eddie's
shoulder.
Hadn't you better go and get your
self ready for dinner, dear?" Mildred