The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-12-01
Our Daily $bort Story

. lifetime. and even into eternity. think tor the day in which you will come to claim me. Always yeur own Vioief For one brief moment Danvers held the yellow sheet to his lips: then laid F with e smothered sigh, across the dancing ire and watched the fanass close ravenous tongues about &.
 The rest of the letters, full of the same empty prophecies. he contemplated grtmiy for awhile, before tossing. them in heap into the grate. When the last had black ened and curied and sifted to bits. he turned away swiftly, a sudden paleuess oyerspreading his face, and walked the length of the room to an open window. Wher some tune had passed he came slowly back and, lifting the packet from the table. snapped the rotten cord which bound It. The next minute he was star ing duly at the piles of typewritten manuscript that looked up at him mock ingly. A folded sheet of paper fiuttercd to the floor, and lay there unheeded for several seconds. Presently Danvers stopped and picked 1t up in a little me- chanicai fasshion, smiling skepticaiiy in anticipation of the p: inted compliments and regrets--that would greet his eyes if he opened it.
 For some time he hesitated between a 6tIouk ucotEo IO uuIn u uufcdu anu hu equally potent curios ty to look inside The latter conquered and he unfolded the sheet gingeriy with fingers that were not too steady.
 A blur of penscript confronted him; the only thing quite clear through the sud- den mist in his eyes was the date In the upper right-hand corner--twenty years back!
 When he had sufficient collected him. self he skinned quickly over the super scription and address drinking in the vital part which followed: ~ While en- tirely endorsing the style and general plot of your novel we would advise a some. what different ending-something trihe more satisfactory as 1t were. We tcel certain that you can readily accomplish this and that you will be willing to do 50. under persua sion of the assured spccess we feel justified in predicting for thls work. We accordingly return the Ms for your correction" .
 Danvers read and re-read the written words In a sort of daze, their true im- port at last forcing itself on his reaiiza. ton.
 What fool he had been to throw asld'. tho msnuscript without so much as even glancing inside the cover! Twenty years of hopelessness loneliness, and gloom the result and now 1t was too late!
 But was it too late? He asked him. self the question with a sudden heart- throb. The publishing firm was an old and well-known one; 1t was beyond a doubt at the very zenith of its prosperity today and-weli he would make the trial, anyway.
 Time passed rapidly to Danvers for the first time in a score of years. After a month of tireiess labor the manuscript had started on its fateful jouE ney. Three months passed-four, i've. and finally one day. after what had seemed intermina ble ages. there came a letter the herald of success at last, and perhaps happiness. One more week went by dragging itself with ieaden feet. while Danvers waited feverishly for the coming of another let- ter In answer to the one he had sent, swift-winged on the very day he had won the right to do so. It came at last, and this is what he read: T said that should wait for you, dear. did not? And have never ceased to hope and pray-and wait! Through all the years that have come and gone I knew that day must dawn when you