The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1903-07-17
THE BREAD UPON THE WATERS
BY HENRY NoRcoTT.

Copyright. 1908. by Daily Story Pub.
''It don't seem to be any use. Polly"
said the man. bitterly. Every time
1 think I am getting started some
COMPOUNDED hard luck strikes me and
l slip back more than 1 have gained"
Come. come, don't be a goose" re-
piled the young woman. cheerily. It's
long road that has no turn.
Mine certainly has plenty of turns, ;"
retorted the man. land they are prin-
cipally backwards. Oh, L know I'm a
brute to bring my i'll fortune and COM
plainings to you. but that's just the
point. It's you that is the cardinal
point Of the whole scheme. Here we
slb1lity of marriage than we were five
years ago. It's not fair to you. and
not satisfactory to me-"
The woman laughed a musical. girl
ish laugh. "One would think we were
pair of decrepit patriarchs. plodding
painfully to the grave" she said.
Now, let's see; You are thirty. and
have attained the shocking maturity
of twenty-six.'
Eyes. know" he replied. "The hey
day of youth is passing, and others are
building homes and gathering families
about the hearthstone. And we-well
l am laundering along. peeking into
guns l didn't know were loaded, and
ekfng out a miserable existence back
of an accused desk. while you are
keeping your body and soul together
because of my incompetence by
teaching school. It's burning injuS-
tice. and 1 ought to release you from
your engagement. and you ought to
welcome the release and find some man
who has ability or luck enough, or
both. to take care of you. AS a mat
ter Of fact, you ought to have married
Stewart Wenam. and 1 ought to have
gotten out of the way and let you.
Look at him now, with his millionsi"
Hush, Oliver. you are unfair to both
of us. l am sure we are very happy.
and have been in our love for each
other. Have faith. dear everything
will come out all right"
The face of the man softened and he
put his arms caressingly about her. He
was a fine-loOking fellow; tall and
slender. His hair was soft and wavy;
his brow broad and his face fine as a
Woman's, but not lacking manlness
and strength. The mouth was sensi-
tive. the nose delicate and the eyes
dreamy. He was of the kind the world
walks on-and likes. The wrinkles of
care were beginning to creep about his
eyes, and touch of gray into his hair.
The woman looked rather the strong
eI Character OF the TWO. In her brown
eyes lurked limitless possibilities, both
of merriment and of gravity About
her mouth were suggestions of great
tenderness and unusual firmness.
It's just because you do not make
money and Stewart does, that l love
you and could not love him. she said,
smiling into his eyes. DO you know,
dear. when l first made a choice be-
tween you? 1t was away back when
we all went camping at Iona lake."
why we were only children" he in
terrupted; Il was not over nineteen.
Why, if you knew the years of worry
you could have saved me. you would
have let me know then"
But think of the fun / would have
missed" she replied saucily. do you
remember the queer little old man who
used to hang around the dock at the
village and growl at everybody"
The man laughed heartily. Indeed
/ do. He's the chap / helped find and
fix his glasses. and then he froze to me
until 1 thought 1 never could shake
him."
yes. that was the very episode that