The Opelousas courier., 1902-03-29

uG6Ut IukA0u Lila oAOAS WV ~
brought him back to the woman and
the child, still On the grass in a close
sn1br8eat
Yes, she was old, and she waited
the child, but it did not matter. He
took the little one iercely by the
shoulder in a grasp that swung her
clear of the protecting arms: n
shaking her, he set her down.
Now you clear Quit" he command
ed. 'If 1 ever catch YOU this side the
GAP, III"
The threat left ali possibilities open.
The little Seeker Ct love fed from b5;
fore his face.
At a little distance Puff stood On
the defensive, with tail erect and a
ing. Halleck flung a clod which mar
rowly missed its mark; then he turned
to his mother. She stood in a defect
ed attitude. the slow tears running
down her cheeks.
"There!" he said. grufiy. Il reckon
that will settle Willett's little game.
If he aims to foist his beautiful plan
OF b~enevelehCe oh to my shoulders |
guess he'll change his mind! ! shall
report this pauper at headquarters in
the msrniHg; and see if the community
has to be ~pesterea any longer: And
Willett ~need:dlt apply to me #hef
the churesA Ahgee}2money!."
Mrs. H&leck Md not answer. Long
| submission had made revolt impossi-
rhh@1J, She went silently to the kitchen,
and set out the. food prepared the day
before. Then she and her son ate to-
gether-still in silence:
1t was always thus but today d
heW element entered in. Each was
subdued by a discovery. The woman
had learned that her Davy was coarse
and brutal, and the man had learned
that his mother was old and in need
of love!
Furtively he studied her face and
figure line by line. The cheeks had
faded, the brown eyes had lost their
laughter, the worn hands their
dimples.
His glance rested on the little chair
in the corner. He remembered a day
when she had brought in a manikin
nodded of butter and set it on the
table, pretending to be Indifferent, but
delightihg in his delight: Then, laugh
ing, she had picked out the Glove eyes
and given them to him, because she
knew his fondness for cloves.
You Shall have the top of his head,
too" she had cried, buttering a Slice
of bread. Aid then the two had
laughed, SO foolishly and happily, just
because they were all the world to
each other!
Now Halleck drew his shirt-sleeve
roughly across his face. tits mortal
hot" he grumbled. There's storm
in the air. l don't believe I'd go to
Sunday-school, mother if I were you.
You might get caught. You amt as
put them little buff linen breeches On
me, and we went to meetin', and raced
the storm, and beat"
She looked UP amazed. I'll re-
member the breeches," she faltered:
Il sat up the night before to make
them for you. You looked SO sweet!
You were always a pretty child, Davy.
Folks don't dress little boys that way
now, but / think they used to look
natural and wholesome-like."
You made the stuff yourself" he
said. 81 watched you. You've worked
pretty hard in your day, l guess. You
don't feel any too timber these times,
a;tbow IF MIN bod I;vo5-D
He stopped, and she looked blindly
into her plate, trembling. When life
is almost done, all one ASKS is that
it's service be remembered. He was
remembering! Out of sorrow and
loneliness sprang a sudden joy. The
faded cheeks blossomed anew, the
sacred fire rekindled in her eyes.
Don't hurry your dinner" How
gently he spoke! "1ll just step out
and see that things are snug. We're
going to have a regular p%our-downl
We'i1-why, good evenin', Mis- Viii
lett! Come in! The storm IL on us!"
Little Mrs. Wil1ett futtered in, as If
blown by the gale. Her face was
troubled and anxious.
well, the land!" Mrs. Halleck
pushed her neighbor into a chair.
Who'd have thought Of SEEM you in
the teeth Of a storm?"
II was so uneasy I had to come"
said the visitor. "It's that dreadful
baby! She isn't at the parsonage, and
I supposed she had run away again,
but I wasn't sure. If anything were
to happen to the little thing"
Halleck paused in the doorway.
"Not at your house? I started her
back an hour ago."
"She didn't come"
A curious pallor crept over the
mans face. He shut his lips together.
"I1l look after her" he said. Stay
here with mother. Mis- Willett."
He went headlong down the path,
looking right and left as he ran. For
the first time since his wife's death,
he found himself praying: my God,
help me find the BABY"
securing the premises unsuccessfully,
their fathers absence adding to the
general dismay. Back Halleck hur-
ried, still praying: Help me, my
God, help mel"
Turning his face to the wind, he
started for the cemetery. Perhaps
the little outcast had remembered her
fathers burial. Breathlessly he fol-
lowed his hearts leading, until he
stumbled over an object at his wife's
grave-stumbled and fell to his knees.
Thu nhioof oo4 1, bo1dino docpor-