Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1903-12-17

ingly.
YES" she repeated slowly. "a child
Ia beautiful child"
Then she turned away and looked
out Mt the beautiful snow fakes, APP
parently occupied with her ewn
thoughts.
"Y~ bare heard" she said at last,
in a aeor. low tone. "of the ter ible
blow which has fallen upon me?"
She touched her black dress as she
spoke.
Yes, madam"
Il have been sitting here for hours.
she said. dreamily, more to herself
than to her companion, shut not alone.
Phantoms-the phantoms OF the past
have kept me company"
There could be no more convincing
proof Of her shocked and broken pride
than was evidenced by this strange
violation Of her habitual reticence.
eft seems TO come home to me ev-
cry day, every hour, with keencr and
more awful pain. the knowledge of
nay loss. And there never was a boy
like my boy-neverl Never one SO
brave and l~ion-hearted and high-spir-
led; sc gentle and tender, and low
ing. Look-this is his pictured"
She had begged It Of Cynthia, only
last night. Now she drew it from be-
meath the heavy folds OF Grape which
covered her bosom, and opening the
locket of dull gold, held 1t out to the
girl before her.
She clutched II with almost feyerish
eagerness, and holding 1t so that the
reflection OF the blazing sea-coal FIRE
fell upon 1t, bent above II.
All. how we'll, how well she knew It!
that proudly-poised head, those pas
~sionate. midnight eyes; that firm,
frank. gravely smiling mouth.
"Ah, nay Lowell" she whispered, and
drew her breath sharply-"my owA
love!"
did you speak, Miss Athertoh?"
She relinquished the locket, hurried
ly. and sank back In her chair, with
a shake of her head.
Without, the last CLEAN of daylight
had vanished, but still the snow was
falling.
Within. the shadows doomed darker
and darker. But ever as they deepened
the fire leaped redder and redder in
r~oll,cking challenge. and drove them
back, defeated.
Something In the very silence OF the
girl near her seemed tacit sympathy to
the elder woman, for she talked on and
on. as sno had never talked even to
Cynthia.
She told anecdotes OF Gives child
hood and boyhood; she related In
stances which, II reckless, at least
proved indisputably his most exquisite
and ~chivalrous sense OF honor.
The shadows and the freight were
fighting a royal battle, and their min
gled purple and scarlet checkered the
room, when my lady began to speak.
in a lower voice, OF the woman her SON
had loved.
The recital OF anything so personal
and so private was wholly unlike her,
but she vas in every way wholly un-
like her old self tonight.
He was going to India with his reg
Uncut and be came down TO Blackcas-
tie to say goodbye to Cynthia and
me. That evening-the very evening
OF his arrival-he told nae ne was n
gagged to q girl whom he loved deeply,
madly. Her name was rather peculiar
Laurence Lisle!"
The quiet. dropping squire opposite
made neither sound nor motion. She
sat perfectly still, her hands tightly
locked together. her hair glintins to
pure gold In the nreshine.
Il was stunned. I strove to argue, TO
reason with him; but struggling
against his fiawless faith and wild en-.
thrsiasm was like beating back with
weak hands a mighty sea-"
And still her listener did not move
or speak-cnly sat there, like q statue
carved from black marble.
Il don't know what makes me tell
you all this" she went on. wearily.
Perhaps It Ia because / must speak Of
It at any cost. and to Cynthia l dare
not! Well Che 10 dead; I must remem-
Der thstij-weli. we parted as we had
never ported b~oforc--in anger"
Let her go on. Laurie Lisle told her
self, f1~ercsly-let Ter go oni When
she was quite through she would tell
this proud dame that. the time for ex-
posture had come; that she knew-she
knew; that 1t was q Carrington-a
Darlington OF BIackcastle--her son at
that-who should have been manacled,
scourged aud chained to q workbench
in the Enlleys Of Toulon. Let her 60
on!
Tor, you see. he vowed to marry
this woman ne loved, even after I had
told what she was-the child Of"
"Ah-h!"
The piercing cry rang through the
room. The girl had sprung to her