Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1902-04-02

MISS bafDafa ElWell WAS very pref
ty girl of a breezy. fresh, western brand
of prettiness, and SWANS of Lemont
and Of the neighboring big meropo-
lis had told her so in terms of varying
frankness. Finishing school IDEAS still
floated through her brain, and she look
standpoint of a nineteen-year-old, novel
reading girl. To her the good clothes
/ of man We're the index of his worthi-
ness, or Mt least such sentiment did in
some degree nj this period in her life
mold her opinions of the other sex.
She put it this way to Imrie: Marry
a man whose duties require him to as
sociate with those dreadful canal men?
oh, really, could not think of i'll And
| then your work is so-so-well, dirty,
you know. Besides, Mr.. Imrie I'm sure
do not love you" The last sentence
was uttered with marked effort to
bring it out in tone that would carry
conviction with it.
Crushed and sore in heart, the unsuc-
cessful sutton left her and wendell his
way to his lonesome and checrless room
| in the hotel, there to make himself
more miserable with bitter thoughts.
| But do not allow yourself to become
prejudiced against her, for she is the
heroine of this story and is Il brave lit
tie girl.
So 1mrie was furnished with one wo-
| mans view of his calling and spent
many minutes in the following days in
wondering whether he had been wrong
| In liking trade that built railroads
and canals and such mean things and
required him to mix up with ablebod-
led, strong men who wore overalls ten
hours out of the twenty-four. 1t being
the only business he was conversant
with and as he had been fairly success
full ut 1t for man of his age, he did
not contemplate a change in his line
| of work, but the next day he did write
to the home office asking to be trans
| Memphis work, where the climate
would not be as severe on his health.
Such was the reason he offered, and
nobody knew that he wanted to get
away from the vicinity of Lcmont be-
| cause 1t was the scene of his disap-
pointment In n woman he had installed
in his heart as an idol fit for his wor-
ship. He wanted to obliterate all rec
objection of her entirely, to forget her
as though she had not been always in
his thought ever since his advent on
the canal. He wanted to forget the sol
| itary walks, the buggy rides alone to-
gether over shady roads of that part of
| the unchaperoned west, which he could
not do while he was Obliged to pass
her house four times day to and from
the hotel where he stopped.
| With cold, stiff lifting of his hat
he greeted her when she happened to
be in the garden when he passed, and
in the same spirit was his salutation
returned. In her innermost heart, how
ever, she longed for him to stop and
speak, and yet that same heart was all
a-futter with fear lest he should do
SO as his steps brought him nearer the
gate. Her eyes, when his back was
turned, looked shyly out from under
their lashes and, wistful and pleading,
they followed him down the graveled
walk. Gould he on that evening have
been induced to subdue his mental up
braiding of all womankind and look
back he might have seen her standing
on the porch with an arm encircling
the post looking longingly in his direc-
ton. For n moment. then, his name
was on her tongue to call him back,
but it remained unuttered until his
| figure was lost in the gathering dark
ness. For awhile she stood there and
then, with a little sigh, turned and
went into the house.
During the next two weeks there
was continued the homage due the
prettiest girl in the village, and so her
thoughts We're diverted more easily
from the occurrence of that night than
were Imrie's. One there was, young
man Of the family of Arson, who,
wounded more deeply than the rest,
came down the thirty odd miles from
the city Of Sunday to spend the
afternoon and evening in her company.
He was nice young man, take it all
in all, and was possessed of admirable
assurance in ladies' society and more
wonderful collars. On the last occa-
sion of his weekly trip he had con-
trived to carry his visit over the sue
ceoding Monday, which was holiday,
and this Monday was the pay day on
McDonald's section with which this
story has to do. About o'clock that
night they sat upon the yeranda that
Tiled In corner between two wings
Of the house. The air was warm and
moist and heavy, and from the canal
came the soft patter of the machine
rock drills and the dull coughing Of
hosting engines. He was beginning
to say goodby, as it was near train
time. She was listening little
YEARLY, for he had outstayed his vel
come.
Suddenly there arose from the direc-
tion of the center of the town a clat-
ter of many voices raised apparently in
anger. Breaking so abruptly into the
quietude of a village night it sent n
thrill of nameless fear into those that
heard. shrill whoop punctuated the
discord, and now and again grating
drunken laugh rose above the noise.
Then the ring of n breaking window
pane was heard; moments silence.
and the babel, louder than before, and
added to by an irate proprietor's BIAS
phemous tongue, broke forth afresh
Its that dreadful canal crowd This
must be pay night" explained Miss FL
well to Arson in answer to his query.
A little figure glided down the street,
hurrying from the noise as fast as two
bowlegged pins could carry him. He
mumbled some indistinct breathless
words as he passed.
Barbara went to the gate and looked
up the street, and Arson held an UNI
brella over her head. A couple of hun
dred yards away the light from numer-
GUS saloons that drew their sustenance
from the canal workers shed n weird
and internal illumination over crowd