Mower County transcript., 1904-08-24

49, 4 ssEEE g 80 4 zFf''Tsss
tie Httles Glass faced lock boz, Instead
Of pansang to speak to them ne bfsted
himself with hooking over the letters
and turned down, toward the ware
house. One Communication was from
confidential broker, informing Hill.
yer that, wheat had risen to $1OS
h,'shel and advising him to hold on
as the market showed a decided up
ward tendency. Meeting the negro
porter Jake on corner, Buckley gave
him the letters and told him to take
them up to Hillyer, and then, for lack
| Of anything else to do, he entered the
warehouse, shut the door after him
! and went back to his room. Here he
| sat down at the window in the sun
shine, and almost before he was aware
Of it he had allowed a feeling of utter
despondency to descend upon him.
"What is the use?" he asked himself.
! "How am to fight it through" For
half an hour he sat thus in the very
dregs of despair, and then suddenly a
picture rose before his mental vision
a picture Of old man Hillyer as he sat
there on the bed in the vague lamp
light, recounting the one mistake of his
life and the grim fight he was still
making to overcome the consequences,
and flush of shame stole over the
young man. 1--WE promised him." he
said aloud-'I've promised him to be
a man, and SHALL shall!'
Just then the church bells began to
| ring. They were all harsh in tone, being
cheap cast iron, except one which had
been smuggled into the village during
| the war from a larger town after the
church to which it belonged was de-
stroyed by fire. Its tone was sweet
and mellow and rose out of the general
! clangor like promise of peace to suf-
| fering souls. 1t was ringing in the lit
tie belfry Of the church Lydia Cranston
| attended. She was an Episcopalian,
| but as there was no church Of that de-
nomination at Darley, and her father
was partial to the rather progressive
young minister of the Methodist church,
she and her mother went there regular
| ". And it must be confessed that
| George Buckley had on many Sun
! day since forming~her acquaintance at
tended that particular place of wor-
ship, and chiefly for the opportunity
of seeing her. He knew that it would
be a difficult thing for him to face
the little congregation. divining the
| thoughts that would rise in the minds
| ~ oil En NJ hn
ageously and went.
He was vaguely glad that the first
| hymn had been sung and that there
were no loiterers, as was frequently
| the case. on the steps. Reaching the
door and looking in. his heart set up
! lively beating as he saw Lydia Gran
| ston with her parents in their pew.
| The major was the only man in Oar
| ley who sat on the ladies' side OF the
| house. He seemed never to have re-
| marked that he was acting in an eXcep.
| tional manner in this regard. In an
other thing he was different from 9th
er men. He was. perhaps. the only
male individual in the village who
wore kid gloves. His silk hat was on
| the floor at the end of the pew. and
across it's top lay his gold headed cane.
upon which was engraved respectful
| tribute from his regiment. Indeed, the
| Cranston family had decided air of
| the old regime about them, and it was
! all the more noticeable because of the
few families of quite their own rank
at barley. Lydia, tall, graceful and
fair, was really pretty girl, and, what
was better. she was very we'll Informed.
Mrs. Dugan had often remarked that
the best barley blood too-were actual
ly afraid of the Virginia girl, and, while
she thought it most peculiar and de-
plored the condition of things, she at
| tributed the lowborn George Buckley's
standing in Lydia's estimation to the
fact that he could talk to her about
books an the like an had the natu-
raj cheek Of his class"
The central aisle was carpeted, and
George stepped softly to one Of the
seats in the rear and sat down. He
| was glad that his arrival was noted
| only by a few. The young minister
| would have been conspicuous in a lar
ger place than Darley. He was six
feet four in height, very dark and re-
markably slight; his eyes were dark
| blue, his features sharp, and he wore
| his black hair long and was clean
shaven.
When the service was over George
stood and waited for Mrs. Hillyer, who
was coming toward him, in her stiff
black silk, with a welcoming smile.
"Glad to see you out, young man."
she said as she Joined him. '"That
! was a rip-you-up-the-back, pay-up-or-
git-out sort of sermon, wasn't it?
You n Mr.. H1llyer d better pass
around yore bad accounts tomorrow,
an maybe you'll git the benefit Of it.
seed old Peter Cashel duckin' his
head time or two.''
To be, Continued.