The Lamar register., 1903-10-28
CHAPTER xIx.-(continued.)

And as Dora kept to her word and
drove or rode over every day when
the weather was pleasant and together
they wandered under the pines in
many daring place, the color OF in
creasing health slowly tinging the
cheeks of each, while Dora's cough
grew less and less frequent and vio-
lent, and an added grace and spring
showed in Dolores step. though there
was growing sadness upon her lips
and hunted look in the wide dark
eyes that her friends could not under
stand, this woman gloried and exulted
in her power to wound the girl Dora
loved with deeper, truer love than
she could ever give to her, and she
planned out many subtle manner for
wounding and sending her shafts deep
er into the soul of the girl who was.
she told herself over and over, steal
ing away what rightfully belonged to
her.
Lemuel Johnson went often to see
his brother. who grew civil to him
after while, though at first he was
surly, and resented his brothers long
silence and neglect. Together they
talked of the future. and laid many
plans to be carried out as soon as Joe
was a little better.
DR.. Dunwiddie still. positively af-
'frmed that he would recover, but that
this must needfully be slow, and Joe
Johnson was never possessed with pa
tience enough to bear quietly much
waiting. And as the days passed Do
lores waited and waited, the dread
fear shut in her heart, they, would
come for her father from the town.
The subject of the mare vas never
mentioned among them; 1t had
dropped out of the house as suddenly
and completely as though death had
touched it; that day Dora gave her
cousin a sketch of the feeling regard
ing it in the town. though not one of
them understood the girls horror of it.
excepting it might be the ore who
had seen the most of her emotion.
Sometimes the girl was tempted to ask
about it, but the dread of bringing
down something worse upon hersslf
and her father kept her sil-1t to suffer
alone.
But Johnson fingered along in much
the same condition in spite of the in
terest of his friends or foes, from
week to week. scarcely getting better,
yet growing no worse. DR.. Dunwiddie
knitted his brows and looked very
grave and puzzled many time after
his visits: he did not like the appear
ance of things; they were going crook
ed; something must be done and at
once. He did not wish to arouse the
thought of such a thing In the minds
of Johnson himself or Dolores; In fact
he wished to keep it from Johnson
more even than from his daughter. for
he was in sucn an excitable state that
it went much against his recovery
petulant. fault-fnding. with many
word that showed his brute nature an
cruelty. At or against Dolores and
fate his anger and spleen were direct
ed. Dolores was of no use-no earth
1y use in the world. she was without
even the sense of most women, and
that was little enough. Had she been
f. boy things might have been differ
ent; boys were Oh use. And it was not
enough that this i'll luck of her being
a girl was upon him, but he must have
this added to the rest-to be laid up
with not even the use of his feet or
hands Here he was. crippled. help
less. constantly in pain. scarcely able
to move without pain, and there was
his brother healthy, fiorid, a rich man,
with a fine home and the comforts of
life at his disposal.
And what reason was there that his
brother should have the gains and he
the losses? Was he not quite as de-
serving and capable of appreciating
them as he? Fate was powerful
master partial, and many times cruel
in its DEGREES. Life was pretty tough
thing anyway. scarce worth the living.
To lie in that hole of a room day in,
day out, was growing unbearable:
nothing to do but watch the bit of sky
and mountain through the tiny win
dow, the scent of the pines stealing
through, or, closing his eyes, to think.
think. think his narrow thoughts that
never got away from the mountains.
the smithy, the tavern. and the town.
until he was driven nearly wild by
the thoughts that no one else ever
knew, though those who were with
him most guessed nearer the truth.
The thin face, grown pallid with
confinement, would narrow and seem
to contract, the small eyes. set deep
and close together grew cruel and