Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1901-04-16

W CT 10 anu hdnl4AiS ~ AdIS lISAl AGio
on the horns of the moon, now" she de-
clared, "but a Cameron hat shall never
find nail in my house again. Three
times now, that John Cameron has been
here after you, Hetty, and if he comes
the fourth, I'll scald him. l wonder you
can sit there and look me in the face af-
ter what you have done. Surely he
must have bewitched you. But twice he
has sat up with you, the last time only
the Sunday night before the fight, after
you making a monkey of the decent man
who is kin to the Mulveils. And yet you
so fighting for him; against your own
people, too. What would your father
say, if he could see you now, I'd ike TO
knOw?"
IF my father were alive, he would be
ashamed of me if wouldn't fight to pre-
vent the cowardly murder of a helpless
man, whether friend or foe"
HIN. Well, l don't say: No alto
gether to that. When you saw thing
like that about to be done, of course l
wouldn't blame you for stopping it, if you
could; but what business had you to be
there to see it? Why must you poke
your nose into the mems fighting among
themselves"
''To save John Cameron's life"
F'Well-all right; you saved it-though
there's neither luck nor grace in a girl
fighting against her own people. But
you saved it, And now let that be the
end of your colloguing with him. Let
me hear no more of your John Cameron.
If he comes here again, as | told you be-
fore, I'll scald him-and you may speak
to him just the once more to tell him
So"
Hetty knew her mother was in earnest,
and that it would be useless to attempt
argument with her, so said nothing in
reply; but if Mrs. Mulveil imagined that
her dictum put an end to that love af-
fair she was never more mistaken in
her life.
John Cameron of course had to be in
formed Of Mrs AIulveirs uncompromising
hostility, but it did not seem to depress
his spirits greatly.
That's all right" he said, complacent-
ly. IF she takes any comfort in feeling
that way. I have no objection. In fact,
| think it is rather fortunate she comes
out so f1at-footed about it, for now you
see, Hetty. there is nothing for us but
to go right off and get married. Your
idea of waiting until spring will not do
at all under these circumstances. You
see thatE"
But Hetty did not quite ''see that"
She hesitated at a conclusive revolt
against and casting off of the accustomed
trammels of maternal authority. 1t took
tine to convince her that her mother was
not and under no probable circumstances
ever would be, amenable to reason in the
matter of John Cameron. And until that
had been established beyond question in
her mind, her meetings with John were
necessarily clandestine, infrequent and
unsatisfactory. They saw each other at
church and spelling school, but she did
not venture to permit him to accompany
her home from either-or hardly even
speak to her.
That they ever had opportunities for
exchange of those weighty tribes and i'm
portant nothings that lovers find it so
necessary to say and so sweet to hear
was almost wholly due to Danny. John
had given him that promised gun, and
the imp's gratitude was as unbounded as
his JOY. Johns generosity had quite won
his heart and made his service in the
lovers behalf active, energetic and con
tinuouS. 1t was only necessary for his
sister to say to him: Danny, Pm going
over this afternoon to Aunt Eliza's s." or
ito Mrs. Plotts," or to some other neigh
boris, and the chances were ten to one
that, either in going or returning, she
would encounter John Cameron. But the
season was against open-air courtship.
Cupid in great-coat fur cap and over
shoes is little like himself as lovers know
him. John, being a decidedly practical
young man, did not take kindly to divorc-
ing love and comfort to suit the within
of any old woman.
Don't get your back up at my saying
so, Hetty," he would argue, but it is
derned nonsense for you and me to wade
around knee deep in the snow, getting
suuffiier every day, when we might just
as we'll be sitting costly by our own fire
side, in our own home. leaving those
who don't like it to do the wading and
snuffling around outside to their heart 5
content"
The impression was growing gradually
stronger in Hetty's mind that John was
about right.
Their only really comfortable inter.
views were at the house of Mrs. Davis
the distant neighbor whom Hetty had
| been visiting on the day she rescued John
| from his perch on knob of the Devils
/ Backbone. That good woman intuitively
| grasped the situation upon the occasion
of the young couples first apparently ac
| cidental meeting in her presence and
| thereafter, if the course of their true
! love did not run smoothly, the fault was
/ not hers. During hours at a time she
! would leave them alone together in hel
| cosy sitting room, while she busted hey
/ self with household duties in the kitchen
! singing like lark for sheer sympathetic
happiness of heart, and keeping a SHARP
/ lookout on the lane. TO see that nobody
came to surprise them.
But that was all too good to last. Mrs
/ Mulveil looked with suspicion upon tn,
great Intimacy that seemed TO have sud
denly sprung up between Hetty and Mrs
Davis.
Il don't see" she said ENORMOUSLY I,
Mary Elder. for what she wants to rid,
over there two or maybe three times il
q week. L IL pc OOuuG IL no nose y
sharon or Liberty Tree quilting pat
terms She does be going after all the time
And the easy way she takes it about tina
John Cameron not being let come snoop
iu- around her isn't natural 1t wouldn'
surprise me 4 mite il she met him owe
there. and I'm just going to find out tn
first time she goes to Mrs. Davis again
But don't You tell her l said so"
No. l will not" promised Mary.
And she did not. But that evening
when she and Hetty were sitting togeth
er by the kitchen fire. Mary, affecting a,
air Of mystery and pretending fear OF be
ing overheard. said. in an impreSsiv
whisper:
y was looking at s book Of Danny
to-day-the one about birds and beasts
and came across something that | do no
believe
Hetty. who was no thick-witted CIR
unable 10 take 4 hint. comprehende
readily that she was TO look for . mean
ing under the mere words which, in them
selves, were certainly NOT Of so inceu
diary a character as TO demand such eau
ton in their utterance. But she simpl
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