Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1903-12-31
Short STORY
Of the DAY
TWO LOVERS so TRUE.

Mabel S. Merrill in Spring
field Republican.-Abel Crane stood
at the door of his house
on the hillside. From the door
way to the intervals far below his
fields swept, softly undulant and sweet
with the fresh aftermath. Mortality
Hollow, down into which he could
look by turning to the right, was de-
pressing enough by contrast. 1t was
a curious round hole in the bill-range
as II the crust of the earth rad drop
ped In. There were swamp lands at
the bottom and the evening mists
were beginning to reach up ghostly
hands toward the still sunlit uplands
They called 1t Mortality Hollow be
cause everybody who ever moved
into 1t had died. either of malaria or
the blues-everybody. that Is, except
the two who lived there now, Hiram
Moore and his daughter. And Hiram,
IL was whispered among the neigh
bors. had begun to die some time ago,
but had stopped halfway, held back
by something, perhaps his love for
Ioduskia, who was her fathers one
earthly treasure.
Abel Crane turned from the con-
temptation of the Hollow back to his
own smiling lands.
Lodusky might do wuss," he NUT
tered; they haint cent to their
names, and Hiram won't live long I'M
less he's fetched up out o that DEVILS
fryin' pan in short order. | don't
know what Loduskyll think of II. |
amt what you might call genteel-but
company manners amt as necessary
as victuals-and there's one advan-
tage about feller's beln' humbly, he
don't have to come down TO it in his
old age. A house that's never had
any paint on Il don't look nigh so bad
to my mind as enc that has had 1t and
wore it all off l shan't look any
wuss'n | do now when I'm 20. praise
the Lord"
lt was easy to believe this. since
at 80 he seemed TO have an unusual
gift cf disadvantages as to personal
appearance. One eye was missing
the result of youthful passion for
firearms. The other. very round and
blue, looked out with an expression
Of injured innocence from under q
shock of sandy hair that was lifted al
the middle of his forehead by a huge
cowllck. and could under no circum
stances be induced either TO stand III
or lie down. but hung waving in mid
air He had the mouth of the humor
list, mobile and slightly drawn down al
the corners. He had also a twist IN
his left leg. and drawl in his speech
that never failed to touch the risiblt
nerves of his hearers. and his clothes
appeared 20 have been purchased IL
a at OF insanity and put on in hi,
sleep-under the influence. probably
OF nightmare.
Altogether he was not romantic
figure. nut his naturally sanguin,
temperament lifted him above an,
anxiety on that account, rs rule
and. having fortified himself with IN
foregoing bits of philosophy. h
started on his pilgrimage 20 the Ho'
low with an air of irrepGessihl
cheertulness.
Hiram Moore's house stood at tn
bottom Of the Hollow, on small bar
rem knoll overlooking a loop of tn
sluggish stream that wandered dow
TO the marshes beyond. Two gnarle
willows clasped the rude doorway
and made an arch Of dark green abov
Loduskia's head as she came out &
welcome Abel There was dim ligh
from the room behind, but the shad
ows chung about the girl standing
there. She looked like shadow
that had taken shape and drawn to II
self the still, weird beauty of tn,
night. Paul. Abel's young half
brother, called her Dusk, and the
name was apt An artist might have
painted her as Evening" with the
mystery of twilight In her eyes and