Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1904-10-19
tightening at my heartstrings. and .


hand up to her face and leaned her
lips upon it.
Poor heart / said, and / bent and
laid gentle kiss on her forehead She
turned her pale, luminous face up 20
me, wistfully. like a child, and {
kissed her warm, red mouth Then ms
heart began humping like hydraulic
ram and my hands trembled strange
~. / tried TO steady them. She would
be so angry if she thought that [
dared. l had kissed Katherine num-
berless times. as a man may kiss his
sister, lovingly. tenderly, but abso-
lutely without a thrill They hal
never been like this ! was at loss
| had never dreamed of Katherine ex-
cept as my dear old friend-my man
hood chUm, and as for her-my heart
sank, for l knew she had been utterly
devoted to old Landry and mourned
passionately for him At least |
thought So If she knew what | was
thinking she would hate me-loathe
me, forever. If she linew-ah, if she
knew. She sat there dreaming, her
eyes. as l thought. on memory's dis
tant mountain peaks; her dear, warm.
brown eyes that l loved.
She turned to me with a little laugh.
tits so nice TO be loved a little,"
she said, as she nestled against my
coat, as if she belonged there. L fought
! with myself a moment. She must
have felt my heart beating / was
horribly ashamed. Then 1 suddenly
lost my self-control, and STOPPING to-
ward her, l took her in my arms and
| kissed her passionately, many, many
times, passionately, eagerly as | had
never kissed anyone in my life-as l
had never wanted to kiss anyone be-
fore. After a time l lifted my head
and waited for the storm. I knew it
must come. felt like a whipped cur.
though every pulse in my body
throbbed with delight and joy What
ever came, l knew now. l was blind
no longer They talk of love being
blind. l say it's the other way about,
it's love that clears our sight--so we
can really see where We have always
before being cropping in a Gin half
! light
She nestled closer in my arms and
! laughed little, low laugh OF content
ment
"Oh, Freddy, boy" she said, 4
thought you would never wake up.
I've been such 4 long. long lime wait
! ing to come home
1 started back and faced her in
! anlazemcnt
! "AnG--and Landry" falteTed
oh my dear, never loved Ian
| dry (Ah So l knew now why he
was glad TO so, poor duder, poor. I'M
! selfish. loving old duEer}
He knew I didn't, bit he-he-
cared. and he knew / loved you. SO he
/ helped me. He told me you loved me-
only you were asleep. ard I've waited
So loDg--so long fer this" sac sighed
happily.
l looked i'll her eyes inereduioasly.
Kit, why in The name o. common
sense didn't Won tell me-"
Tell you? Freddy, how could L!
| wasn't s3re you--you cared. and
sometimes was sure you didn't. II
was only because LanGrT was so posi-
tive that dared to hope. l could only
wait in silence. and since Ian.
dry died it has been SO lonely, SO
| drearily lonely"
Poor old girl said in her hair.
poor darling old eirl"
You've lost whole year" she
cried. "a whole year"
Then you knew year ago."
yes; it's funny, Freddy, but
couldn't imagine why no man ever
moved me the least tiny bit When
Landry told me he cared. | tried to
think / loved him, but he said then
that I didn't, and afterward, he knew
it was you, He watched my eyes, he
said, when you were about, and when
he told me that. / was as astonished
as you were when l told you.
when your horse threw you tina.
! time, then / knew beyond doubt for
l suffered agonies thinking what
might have happened You were So
CHASTITY that was horribly frightened.
felt sure that you were at least
i MANNED for life
And then, she brought me the letter
--Landry's letter, that was not to be
| delivered until / had found my own.
Oh. that letter. If l had only seen it
when Landry died. Kit would not have
grown pale waiting for what was al
ways hers.
you COMPOUNDED blind old bat" he
wrote, what in the name of all that's
holy, do you stay around here for? II
was such an egregrious donkey as
you are I'd go off and die, but I've got
to be the one instead-and I've got
eyes to see. That's ever the way in
this vale of tears
We'll, you must know some time. It
! Will come to you all at once. as the
knowledge of it came to me-then, old
boy, l wouldn't mind being in your
,, boots. I'd give my life for that one
hour as happily ana freely as I'd toss
a copper to a pickaninny. 1t can't be
SO / give you my blessing and what
little can aud TO your future-though.