Pike County press. (Milford, Pa.) 1895-1925, 1903-06-19

= XII ANNNt WNAA-hAHA hfa-N III" WA'AN
career. Full well his memory pic
tured that morning four months be-
fore when he had driven the homely
family cart 70 the depot to meet this
daughter Of his employer, and how
she had treated him with striking
hauteur. She had even mistaken him
for her fathers coachman, and yet
her very prudishness seemed but to
lend a glamour Of romance to her,
which had caught him in veritable
webl How often she had entered
her fathers store, accompanied by
some of the youthful professionals
of the place, and seemed to delight
In airing her superiority 70 this
common Office mani True. her pet
tishness and affectations sat well
upon her dainty figure, and certain
indefnable odor of perfume seemed
to pervade the dinginess Of the Office
when she entered. AT times he
seemed to see beyond her outward
nature, and at these rare intervals
he caught a momentary glance OF a
character which, II allowed to as
sert itself, might have endeared her
TO the coarsest mortal. He often
noted how old Josiah watched her
every move, and how the staid, old
fashioned home Of the Jamiesons be-
came the center of the fashionable
house parties and afternoon teas.
Then as a browning tribute to the
witcheries, young DIR. Ames. voted
by all the mothers of marriageable
daughters as the swellest match in
the district, had quite lost his heart
to this coquettish little heiress.
Since the day of their first meeting
Tom had fought down his feelings
by applying himself to his desk with
redoubled vigor, endeavoring to con
vince himself that his opinion Of her
was much the reverse of favorable.
On this night in question he had
ceased to wrestle, and upon the eve
Of resignation to the hand of fate
he had summed the whole matter up
and voted himself one of the great
est fools that ever lived. A square
pink envelope lay unopened upon his
| dresser, and after arriving at this
/ fairly satisfactory conclusion he tore
of the head and scanned the CON
tents, although he could have guessed
what It contained. It was an invita-
tion which the youthful mistress of
the Jameson household had sent
him, to spend the evening, no doubt
prompted by the advice of her father.
The weather had developed into one
of those January blizzards which pc
riodically sweep across the North
west prairie, almost overwhelming
the town which lay within its circle,
and Tom was loath to brave it's fury
for such a cause, and yet uncon-
sciously he began to dress, and in
time he had reached the home of his
employer. To his surprise he found
that but one guest besides himself
had been hidden, none other than DIR.
Ames, who of late had been almost
a constant visitor.
Supper had been served. While Jean
and the doctor conversed in low tones
at one end of the long drawing room,
Tom sat at the other with Mr.. Ja-
mieson and exchanged mutual conf
dences on the business aspect of the
coming season. Yet he was not who'll
iy Indifferent to the scene before
him. The little lady looked peculiar
ly bewitching and altogether dis
dainful, and to his eye she was play.
ing her cards with the young medical
with a tact and grace which appar-
emily absorbed his entire attention
The hour was wearing slowly along
to Tom especially, and then a hur-
ried summons at the door brought
Mrs. Jameson from the regions OF
the dining-room in answer. A sudden
noise, as Of people scurrying past
followed, and Tom realized that the
call Of fire had been raised. Mrs
Jameson cried out in a frightened
voice that it was the mill, snd ther
Tom had passed her in the hallway
and was out on the street.
Already the flames, caught by tn,
storm that howled without, were
lighting up the town like a new sun
The scene of indescribable con
fusion which ensued could never b,
forgotten by those more intimately
concerned. The crude hre-fightinf
apparatus frozen solid, refused K
work, and as the red streamers wrap
about the mill and swept across tn,
roofs of the warehouse and storei
adjoining, the people knew that 10
siah Jamieson's worldly possessions
were doomed.
Tom, looming out in the released
mettle of a college athlete, made her
culean efforts to stay the ruin. Fol
lowed by number of men he thaweC
the hose, directed the streams of wa
ter, helped to throw out the good
from the store, cleared the Office O
its precious books and papers. Il
fact, storm OF heat mattered littl,
to him then, for a covering female
wrapped in a mighty fur-Hned cloak
had looked up into his grimy fac
through a mist Of tears and had sais
something. He never tarried to heal
what 1t was, but leapt again int th'
battle royal.
In the early morning a shoulder
Ing heap of ashes and half-burn
woodwork alone marked The spo
where Jamieson's store and mill ha'
stood, and around II in a jumbled-ul
mass was the merchandise which ha,
been saved. Only one small building
which had been used as an ohic
had missed the fury of the flames
and that was only through the q
gantie efforts Of the men and for
tunate yeering Of the wind
Josiah Jameson had been seizel
with a paralytie stroke during tn
destruction Of his property and la,
at his home with two doctors in con