The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-10-13

AN UNUSUAL PLAN OF ACTION Is
MATURED

CHAPTER xxx.
AN UNUSUAL PLAN OF ACTION is
MATURED.
He was awakened by the unaccustomed
| silence. AS he lay with his eyes open, his
| first thought was that ali things had
stopped-the world had come to its end.
Then remembrance came and he stretched
! in lazy enjoyment of the stiffness and the
soft feather bed upon which he had slept.
Finding himself too wide awake for more
! sleep, he went over to the little gable win
| dow and looked out The unfermented wine
of another spring day came to his eager
| nostrils- The little ball had made another
turn. Its cheek was coming once more into
the light. Already the east was flushing
with wondrous vague pink. The little ami
| mails in the city over there. he thought,
would soon be tumbling out of their beds TO
begin another of their funny, serious days
of trial and failure; to make ready for an
other night of forgetfulness, when their abb
| surd little ant-hill should turn again away
| from the big blazing star. He sat long time
| at the window, looking out to the east,
| where the light was showing; meditatlng
on many idle, little matters, but conscious
all the time of great power within himself
He felt ready now for any conflict. Inc
! need of some great Immediate action pressed
upon him. He did not identify 1t. Something
| he must do-he must have action-and tnat
at once. He was glad to think how Uncle
Peter would begin to rejoice in him-se-
cretly at first, and then TO praise him. de
was equal to any work. He could not begin
| it quickly enough. That queer need to do
something at once was still pressing, still
/ unidentified
| BY he was down stairs. The girl, fresh as
a dew-sprayed rose in the garden outside,
| brought him breakfast of fruit, bacon and
eggs, coffee and waff1es He ate with relish,
| delighting meantime in the girls horld
| freshness, and even in the assertlve, trl-
umphant whistle of the youth busy at his
! tasks outside.
When he set out he meant to reach the
! car and go back to town at once. Yet when
| he came to the road over which he had
loitered the day before, he turned off upon it
with slower steps There was confusing
whirl of ideas in his brain. a chaos that re-
| quired all his energy to feed it, so that the
| spring went from his step.
Then all at once, a newborn world CO.
| hered out of the nebula, and the sight of its
measured, orderly whirling dazed him. He
|
tention, so stunning in its audacity that he
| all but reeled under the shock. 1t seemed to
him that the thing must have been germi-
mated in his mind without his knowledge; 1T
| had lain there, gathering force while he
| rested, now to burst forth and dazzle him
| with it's shine All that undimmed freshness
| of longing he had felt the day before-all the
unnamed, unidentified nameless desires
| had flooded back upon him, but now no long
| er aimless. They were actually definite He
wanted Avice Milbrey-wanted her with an
| intensity as unreasoning it was resist
less. This was the new world he had
| watched swimming out of the chaos in his
mind, taking its allotted orbit in planetary
| system of possible, rational, matter-of-
course proceedings.
And Avice Milbrey was to marry Shepler,
| the triumphant money king.
He sat down by the roadside, well-nigh
| helpless, surrendering all his forces to the
| want.
Then there came upon him to reinforce
this want a burning sense of defeat He re-
membered Uncle Peters first warnings in
| the mine about cupboard love- the gossip
! of Higbee: IF you were broke. she'd have
about much use for you all the talk he
| had listened to so long about marriage for
money: and. at the last. Shepler's words to
| Uncle Peter: II was uncertain until copper
went to 81" Those were three wise old men
| who had talked men who knew something
! of women and much of the world. And they
| were so irritating in their certainty. What
| a fine play to fool them all!
| The sense of defeat burned into him more
| deeply. He had been vanquished, cheated,
! scorned shamefully houted. The money was
| gone-all of Uncle Peters complaints and
| biting sarcasms came back to him with re-
| newed bitterness; but his revenge on Uncle
| Peter would be in showing him big man
| at work, with no nonsense about him. But
| Shepler, who was now certain, and Higbee,
| who had always been certain-especially
Shepler, with his easy sense Of superiority
with woman over any poor man. That was
| a different matter There was a thing to
| think about. And he wanted Avice Milbrey
| He could not, he decided, go back without
| her.
Something of the old lawless spirit of adj
i venture that had Spurred on his reckless
| forbears urged him to carry the girl back
| with him. She didn't love him. He would
| take her in spite of that; overpower her;
| force her TO go. 1t was a revenge of superb
| audacity. Shepler had not been sure of her
| until now. Well, Shepler might be hurled
| from that certainty by one hour OF deter
| mined action.
| The great wild wish narrowed itself into
| a definite plan. He recalled the story Uncle
| Peter had told at the Oldakers about the
| woman and her hair. A woman could be CO.
| creed If man knew her weakness. He could
| coerce her. He knew it instinctively; and
| the instructive belief rallied to its support a
| thousand little looks from her, little intona-
| tons of her voice. little turnings of her
| head when they had been together In spite
| of her calculations, in spite of her love of
| money, he could make her feel her weak
ness He was a man with the power
! 1t was heady wine for the morning. He
| described himself briefly as lunatic, and
walked on again. But the crazy notion would
not be gone The day before he had been
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