Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1901-06-15
the open door at the sound OF every

Inc open uOOr ut the Soun' OF every
footstep,
"Confound 1t, Annie, Could come
back TO you with a face like this and
you the ptettIcst lass on the Tyne
side"
she Is fumbling with her apron
string. There's u half.cOquettish bend
Of her heal-with the gray hairs al
ready ut the temple awakened per-
haps by some faroif echo in his pas,
slonnle voice. She looks UP slowly,
and does not answer his question,
"Tell us" she says, slowly. TELL us
where we've been"
Been oh, don't know, lass!
don't rightly remember. Not that 1t
matters. Up the West Coast, trading
backwards ana forwards. I've got my
masters certificate now. Serving first
mate on board the Mallard to F0l'
, mouth for orders, and they ordered us
to the TYNE, brought her romd-l
| knew the way. l thought you'd be
married, lass. But maybe We are|
"Maybe I'm DAFT put in Annie,
coolly.
Il greatly feared" the man goes on
with the slow Self-consciousncS of one
unaccustomcd 10 talk Of himself. u
| greatly feared I'd Inject mp with BARN
| of yours playing in the doorway. l.osh.
! | could not have stood that. But
that's why | stayed away, Annie, lass.
So that You might marry a man with
n face on him. l thought YOU would
not know me If held my hanQker.
chief over my other cheek
There Is Il strange CLEAN in the wom'
ans eyes n CLEAN that one or two OF
the old masters have succeeded in
catching and imp0rting to the face OF
their Madonnas hut only one or Two.
How did you come by your hurt:'
she asks in her low voice.
Board the CID Waterloo going out
You mind the old ship. We had a fire
I In the hold. ana the skipper he would
go down alone TO locate it before we
cut n hole in the deck ana shipped the
! hose in. The old man did not come up
again. Yc mind him, Old Rutherford
! of Harrow. And / went down and
locked for him. 1t was an in
fcrno OF smoke and fire, anu
! something in the cargo sinking like
like a witrh's cauldron rs it burnt
I rot a hold of the old man, and was
| fetching him ont on my hands and
| knees, when something busts up and
sends us all through the deck. l had
three months in Valparaiso hospital.
| but | saved old Jack Rutherford, CT
! Harrow. And when got up and looked
at nv face saw that it was not in
the nature of things that l could ever
! ask Il lass to have me. So just stayed
away and made believe. that-that |
had changed my mind.'
The man paUseS. He Is not glib or
! speech, though quick enough ct sea,
| As he takes up the little teapot and
shakes it roundw.sc, after the manner
OF the galley, his great brown hand
shakes too.
Il would not have come back hero,
he cocs on after silence, "Dut the
Mallard was ordered to the Tyne.
And Il chap must do his Grty by ms
: Inmates and his owncrS. And l
thought it would be safC-afier eleven
wears. When | saw the old place aEi
| ymrlt the smell Of the old woman :
/ rrying-pan could not get past the
door. But l hung around. looking to
make 81 q there were 70 BARNS play
! inc ON The floor. have only come iii,
lass, to pass The time Of day &nd TO
tell YOU ye're a free woman
lie is not looking at her lie seems
10 find tlat difficult. SO he does not
see the queer little smile-iathcr sad
der, in itself, than tears.
And you stayed away eleven year"
because O. that:" says tn, woman
slowly.
"Ay, you know, lass. Tn no great
hand at the preaching and Bibles ana
the like, but ii seems pretty clear that
) them who's working things Cid not
think il fit that we should marry. An!
: so it was sent. l cot to think it 50 i'll
ljme-least, | think il'f that sometimes.
And no woman would like t. say
That's my man-him with only half a
face. SO just stayed away
"All for that ask the woman, hcl
face, which is still pretty and round
and rosy. working convulsivcly.
"Ay, Lass
"rhen, honey" she cries, softly
"vou dnna understand uI womcn.'-
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