The Washington times., 1904-04-15

ing each other unless they broke new
way across from path 20 path. Or, II a
troop of youngsters started IN al the
same entrance. there was never %uch a
Mace for games Of chase-nOw a glimpse
Of a boys torn hat brtm or the sole OF 4
bare brown foot vanishing roonQ 4
curve. now the CLINT OF girls Wnit@
sunbonnet hanging below mop OF n r.
ing hair or swinging eXcitcdly IN thS
clutch OF a swinging hand. no" CSil
and now d burst OF Laughter. or tiiS
fr antic barking of half dozen eSclteo
dogs. testifying that they were IN thS
game The deserted house. small anu
gray and desolate, was the goal OF eEei3
race and the racers. after St2rIlls ItlI-
might reach II by any route they chose
Years passed. the children on the FOllLt
grew up. and Horace Montgomery stSM
up in the North He had love aia-Is
Of which they never heard. ana u.SS
had love affairs of which he knew noth-
ing although the paths among ms pine
were the haunt OF sWecLf> arts once q
year his agent in Pontomos seht NJ =
tinv bin. together with the tax receipt
for his deserted property. The Dill was
so very small. so much less thah mos
which he dsten received after one order
at the fi0xsts or the confecuoner 5.
that he % ed on it as sort Of pleas
antrv. and his "POntomOc estate be
came a byword between him ana MS
friends. If luck went against Inem Ihey
were all TO find asylum there, unless. as
q great sacrifice he sold II 10 pay their
debts: Il they wished 20 signify that
any event was improbable or remote,
they said that II would happen "heii
Montgomery went to PonJomoc-
Once the bin and the tax receipt failed
to come. and in its place was an an
nouncement of his agent de- IN ano a
letter from a new agent asking 10 take
charge of the property he put the let
ter aside TO answer when there was
nothing else in the world TO nil his
tine, and soon he forgot Il, for trouble
came TO him. He Quarreled with the
only sweetheart he had ever really cared
for-Quarreled, and knew himself in the
wrong, and knew that he would be for
given If he asked, and was too stubborn
to make his peace
He went abroad and tried 10 forget
( but forgetfulness did not seem TO be his
forte except where POntOmOc tax bills
were concerned. He came back lust as
unhappy as ne went away and Just as
stubborn. once he caught a glimpse OF
the girl. and her face was sad The
memory OF Il haunted him, and. having
I tried every other means Of forgetting t.
he decided 10 go 10 POntomOc. He had
been Offering his estate there as a
refuge to all his friends, but perhaps its
distant isolation had been waiting as a
refuge for himself.
one day he stepped from the train al
a little station where the sky was sOIJly
blue and an Odor OF pine smoke filled the
air Boys with a lazy drawl offered him
hotels and carriages, but II was IoI
neither OF these that he had come lie
I took a faded letter OK directions from
his way unpilOted down the Point road
/ A darby came whistling by IN JlIhe 10
show him dense mass or young pine
| woods as the place he was LOOKING IOI,
! and he entered II BY one Of the many
The day was one Of those perfect ones
which, linked together. are caIleu spLlhs
! IN PontomOc; yet Montgomery wander
/ ed through the labyrinth with a feelng
| OF disappointed aimlessness. The silence
/ seemed to detaCh him from az coaheG-
/ fiOn with life except It's memories. III
there was a house or any thlng except
/ slim straiEht- bodied pine trees on ms
/ Dronertv il was invisible to MIN; he
made up his mind TO tn, tIrh PACK Ion ron
} b1It I'm its utter loneliness he felt Just as
/ he had felt all around the world Inen
! = light stir of footsteps told him that
/ he was not in as lonely a place as he
/ nod thought He could see nothing, but
/ his interest Weakened. n dog barked
/ sbarpIy quite close to him. He peered
/ to right and left and suddenly noticed
/ the angular outlines or roof defining
| a dark shadow which he had almost
| gone by as only denSer grouping OF
| the trees. 4 path crossed the one he
was on and led him toward the deserted
A girl sat on the crumbling gallery
! stems and the dog which had bark 60
| stood beside her She had been reading
| but now she was looking up from hei
/ book and slightly away from Montgom-
/ ery-half listening. half going forward
\ with her thoughts. She had sweet
/ dream conferred face, and Montgomery
| paused in the shadowy path, uncertain
whether Il would mean more TO him e
watch her for a while or to go forward
/ at once TO speak to her.
Having hesitated over the choice, he
/ lost it. The steps which he had heard
/ before sounded again in the direction tC
which her face was turned, ana IN q
moment another young man came from
| another path into the tiny opening
| around the house.
| The girl Jumped up and ran to him;
| the sound OF her voice and the light
/ which broke across her face passed