The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1902-04-18
CHAPTER VII-Continued.

down the stairs. and Mrs. Preston
knocked at the door. IF there is any
thing can do for you. my boy" said
President Royce. going up TO Edward
and putting hand on his arm. "you
know am at your service"
THANK you. sir: you have helped me
already" said Edward. and. then he
opened the door, and Mrs. Preston CAME
in. She simply repeated her message
concerning Willis and soon went oui
with the president.
When they were gone Edward Blake
college student, did some really serious
thinking. The presidents talk hao
cleared up the atmosphere good deal
He was able to see some things more
clearly. AS he sat by his desk, going
!, over the conversation he had just haG
with the president, he felt the force OF
his argument. He was not so much IL
love, or rather he was not feeling to
ward Miss Seton in such a way, that
he was insensible to any and every
form of counsel from another person
He was somewhat surprised at some
things the president had said, but he
understood his position, on the whole
very clearly, and the more he thought
of it the more he respected it.
AS he sat by his desk he opened one
of the drawers in it, and, after lifting
off some papers that lay on the top, he
took out n photograph of Miss Seton
1t was, to tell the truth q very poor
picture, and, to tell the truth again
Edward had actually taken it out Of q
book that Ida had left in the >parlor OF
the hall one night while Edward was
calling on Freeda. Ida had charged
one of the other boys present that even
ing with taking the picture, never
dreaming that Edward Blake, the un
demonstrative, had taken it. There
was a scrap Of Miss Seton's writing
with the photograph, that Edward haG
found in the hall also, and he placed II
alongside the photograph and looked
gravely at them. Then he put them
back in their places in the drawer and
shut it up, and after moment he rose
and walked up and down through the
room.
The boy was actually at one crisis of
his life. There are more crises in every
young mans life than he himself is al.
ways aware Of. But Edward probably
realized this one with more or less un.
derstanding Of it's gravity. 1t is not
easy to state just what his final resolve
was in so many terms. 1t is perhaps
enough to say that he realized the fool.
.ishness of allowing q new and growing
passion to spoil his college course, and,
even more than that, possibly in the
end render the life of another person
unhappy, or at least throw an element
into it that would hinder its free and
natural development.
This much can truly be said for Ed
ward, at, this place in his college
course. He went out the next day and
began his work under different i'm
pulses from what he had felt for long
time. Tie had conscious feeling of
dread at the thought of meeting Miss
Seton in the laboratory that afternoon.
almost as IL she had been present dur
ing the presidents talk or at least had
been where she could hear it. But he
was relieved to find that she was just
the same, and he discovered that he
was able to meet her and talk with her
in freedom from embarrassment that
of late he had not been able to assume.
1t is not the place here to tell what
Edwards whole experience was in the
matter, nor how the interview with
the president shaped it all for him as
the year went on.
1t is enough 10 say that he had the
manllness to go on with his studies in
his old time spirit Of vigor, and if, as
the days went on, he found no lessen
ing of his feeling, but perhaps a deep
ening of it, he realized that the feeling
was not spelling his life. That much
he was at least conscious of, and even
more In time.
The term had come to an end, and
another summer vacation faced him.
Freeda went home again. and, as the
year before, Edward planned to stay
in Raynor and carry his paper. He
went home for few days. just to see
the folks, and then came back again to
resume his work. The hall was again
deserted. and 1t was lonesome business
TO keep up the same old life. with the
boys gone. The president, too, had
gone to Europe on summer visit to
Germany, and there was no secretary's
work for Edward to do. as there had
been the year before.
He had been back from the farm
two weeks and had settled down to a
regular routine OF vacation work when
he began to feel physical WEAKNESS
that was new to him. He had been
taking his meals with few Of the
boys Mt the club. but they hid all left
at the end of two weeks, except two
or three who were carrying papers.
and then Edward had begun to board
himself. He bought a small oil stove
and experimental more or less with
cooking, but did not get on very well.
He disliked the business of getting his
own meals and only continued 1t on ac'
count Of economy.
He woke up one morning with a
strange feeling of lassitude. and with
great difficulty he got up and cooked
some oatmeal and made cup OF cof-
fee. But when he went down to the
laboratory. whore he had secured per-
mission to continue his chemistry. he
dragged himself with difficulty through
tho forenoon md when dinner time