, 1902-06-06
The Mountain Of Transfigura.
lion.
BY HALL

~
Copyright. 1872. by Daily Story Pub. Col
Dwight Van Vert was not deformed
in any way. and yet he was fearfully
and wonderfully made-there was no
denying that. His luxuriant crop Of
fiame-hued hair took on quite without
culture. indeed despite all culture. the
contour OF a fuil-blown prize chrysan-
themum, from an archipelago OF
freckles resembling Il sepia map IT
Oceanica. His nose rose like the
tower OF Lebanon that looketh toward
Damascus. To right and left a spread
ing ear tapped defiance to IL threat
ening head wind and this was but the
cupola, so to speak, for an assortment
of legs and arms that had apparently
been selected quite at random from =
pile Of left-overs in some forgotten
corner of the creators workshop. All
OF which description is grossly exag-
gerated of curse. but in no way mis-
leading. for | found out long ago that
in portrayins Van it was absolutely
necessary to ~.Xaggerate in order to
make one realize how far from beau
tiful he was.
From the day he entered school he
was the legitimate prey OF tease and
bully. suppose it was hard on Van
at first. for at home his mother had
not called him Bricktop nor his father
tainted him with the upward tilt Of
his nose. but he took it all with
stOical heroism. thrashed whom he
could. diverted whom he could. helped
some with their lessons and bribed
others by judiciuus outlay of his spend
Ing money until, at graduation. he Wal
AS popular as any fellow in the class.
howbeit as far from handsome as when
d little tad of sin.
At college he came out at the head
of his class. He took ii year in Eu-
rope after that, then he came home.
went in with his father and fell In
love with Grace Serene.
OF course. he fell in love with Grace.
Grace had "A nose Phidias could not
have bettered. a complexion like the
blending of the wild rose and the lily
of-the-valley. IA figure that was the
glory OF a tailor-made and the po-
theosis Of Il ball gown. hair she could
let fall in lustrors pillows to her feet.
eyes so big and brown and deep It
made you dizzy to ooh into them. It
was simply heartbreaking to cOntem-
plate. and all the more SO when the
victim was u personal friend.
Van never took me into his conf
dence. but | suspect Grace had figured
in his plans ever since his first day at
school. when she had asked to have
her seat changed because 1t made her
feel 50 bad to look at that little Van
Vert boy" Anyway. h. had always
done things for her; written to her,
sent her presents. and now he vent at
it deliberately to pay her every our
teOus attention affection could suggest
or money furnish means for.
II you have ever lone anything in
vivisection. you remember how you
felt the first time you saw a live ami
NAL cut to pieces. 1t Is not a pleasant
sensation, but with some Of us 1t came
to be almost chronic while we watched
Vans courtship drag out its sickening
length.
He was such a good fellow and she
such a nice girl. To pour his soul out
In her. service and yet never bore her
seemed to ave become the purpose If
his life; to let him know the truth and
yet spare hin all she could seemed to
be hers.
Grace and her mother spent the sum-
mer at the lakes. and so did Van. In
the latter part of November she went
into the city IN her aunt's invitation,
and Immediately Vans business took
him in at least as often as once Il week.
When she returned early in February,
and Van was as attentive as ever, |
knew that hat blindness -of-love bust
ness (man's love- Is a true story, for
Van never seemed to realize that she
had been running away from him, and