Waterbury Democrat., 1901-01-11

in his chair. He ayvoke with start to look at his watch, and found that he had not yet put it on.
 Good thing didn't put my faith in that alarm" he said. "It's missed fire or else 1t wasn't loud enough to wake me-
 As he started for the bedroom the clock went off with crash and bang and a jingle that made him jump. He recovered from the shock and ran in to look at the cratic thing. The hands indicated six o'clock Still uncon- vinced, he took his watch from under the pillow and looked at it. Six o'clock.
 That meant an hour and a half until breakfast, and Wilmot was already con scious of feeling of emptiness. He remembered that he had some crackers and cheese in his cupboard, and he brought these out and devoured them, but they did not seem to have the right kind of taste, and the cold water that he drank chilled his system SO as to destroy his desires to smoke. Never theless he smoked and listened for sounds of breakfast preparation and repacked his suit case and bathed his face again to freshen himself up, and in course of time Ella, the second girl, knocked at his door and told him that breakfast was ready.
 But the cheese and crackers and the | pipe had destroyed his appetite and the breakfast, for some reason, did not | taste good, anyway, SO he could not | rid himself of his incipient headache, 1 nor the feeling that Ee had been up 1 all night and had slept in his clothes. l It took him half an hour to ride down l town. and he had now two hours, but | he decided that he would get out and l see what the fresh air would do for him. He could walk up and down the l street until she came, and it would
 be good thing to tell her that he had been waiting an hour and half for
 the glory of her coming.
 The air was more than fresh. It was
 raw and the wind was cutting. By the 1 time Wilmot got to town he was al-
 ready pretty thoroughly chilled, and
 he began to tramp up and down his ap-
 pointed beat at once with vigorous
 strides, hoping that the exercise would
 warm him up. But his feet continued
 cold and his hands numb and stiff, walk
 as he would, and even the glow of devo- l tion left him after half an hour. l he NSul OFSE lO d SuCeDldCk SGduu, ,
 and, seating himself. told the boy to
 apply plenty of friction. This instruc-
 tion was carried out and Wilmot got
 up and resumed his tramp in better
 spirits, but 15 minutes more of the
 cold wind sent them down again, and
 he went into cigar store and bought
 a cigar. He fingered there little 1 while, for it was comfortably warm
 inside, but he grew uneasy and went out again and walked.
 As for the girl, she slept very
 soundly and comfortably, was awak-
 ened by her mother at s:3O o'clock
 and had time to. eat her breakfa st
 comfortably and arrive at the tryst
 five minutes ahead of time. She was
 properly indignant to find that her be-
 trothed was not on hand and walked
 up and down the block twice; then,
 feeling chilly and observing that a
 confectioner's shop window command
 ed the street corner, she went in and
 ordered chocolate and sat down to
 watch and wait. T. 1 Winet got up and went out for the
 first time at ten o'clock exactly, but
 at that time the chocolate was just
 being served and the girl did not see
 him as he passed. The second time
 she may have been looking at the
 clock. Wilmot was anxious, but not
 entirely discouraged, for he had made
 up his mind to allow ten minutes fol
 accidents. When that time expired he
 began to think'that perhaps the time of meeting had not been definitely un ,derstood and that it might have beer , 10: 30, after all. At 10.3O he went out
 and telegraphed to the house, aHl while he was doing this the girl came
 out, walked twice more up and dowI the block, stamped her little -foo1 and went back and ordered eclairs
 Wilmot returned, bought cigar ant sat down to watch the disembarkins street car passengers with strainine f eyes.
 Once more Wilmot made sally this time to the telephone office t call up the railroad people and be I seech them to search the waiting l room and the Lemont platform for { t young lady.
 "Can you describe her?" asked tn. :. man at the other end. Wilmot though g that he could, but on attempting i g was incoherent and stammering. Tn, F railroad man grew pleasantly sarcas t tic and Wilmot hung up the receive: 7 in a rage. It then lacked 15 minute
 of II o'clock.
 t Half frantic, he ran out of the dru. t store and back to the car. There, a. t he stood wondering what he could q, - next, he felt a slight touch on hi j. arm, and, turning, found the girl. Sh' e was locking pretty, but not amiable l and Wilmot looked neither pretty no .- amiable.
 e q suppose you have good eS s cuse," she said, with deadly calmness z, 'I hope so, Pm sure" : "I was hoping that there might b C a good reason for your lack of pune r tuaity,'' he returned, in frigid tones t Ut isn't that object to waiting, bu t it is natural to think that only a cal
 lous indifference could have kept III h waiting here in the cold for two hour e and quarter and indifference fror d the woman one has loved" l. 0I 1il-a 4, at !" she in tarruntad