Amador ledger., 1904-11-25
TANGLED
THREADS
BY F. B. WRIGHT
Copyright, 1904, by t. C. Mcclure

NO" he replied; at seems-thirty.'
"Thanks! Have 1 really aged sc
much since thenF'
81 mean until 1 saw you it seemed
thirty" he explained.
"Three years-it goes very quickly
You haven't changed much"
81? l haven't changed at ALL
She regarded him critically. "No
you haven't-in looks"
81 haven't in any way" he replied
earnestly and with an undertone OF
intention in his voice. "And you
you are all 1 imagined"
II imagined? Then l was not a
reality three years ago. l was a mere
figment of your brain. What do you
meanw
81 mean-why-that in all these
years I have been imagining you-ir
all sorts of ways, you know"
ooh! Sometimes as fair haired, ]
suppose, and sometimes as dark hair.
ed, sometimes with hump and some
times cross eyed"
"Nonsensep'
'Well, it's what you said, 'all sorts
Of ways and yet-do you remember
the silly speech you made me when
you went away?"
"Of course-only it wasn't silly. II
was the frozen truth"
1T didn't seem very frozen then
but perhaps it does now, however, al
this distance. You haven't answered
my question yet, though. What was
it you said?"
"Why-that-what's the use of my
telling you over again if your memory
is so goodT'
Its your memory that's in ques
ton, not mine. Confess you don't re-
member"
''But 1 do, of course. 1t was that
wouldn't forget" he said triumphantly
Miss Travers dropped her eyes, raised
them again for a brief fluttering mo-
ment and again dropped them with a
pensive little smile.
"And you remember what it was ]
said to you then?' he asked impressive
ly, leaning nearer and looking down al
the bent head.
"You said-of course, you We're just
saying it-but you said you would re,
member every word l had said to you
every look of my eyes, every tone of
my voice. You were quite sentimental
that night"
at was meant, every word of it. Nc
man could forget. l know it now
''Now? Didn't you know it them
What do you mean? You talk as
though you were not the same man you
were. Aren't you?"
''Well, every man changes, you know
every seven years. Scientific fact,
believe"
But it hasn't been seven-only
three"
"Oh, of course, not really change
was joking. What | meant was that
knowing you, having your image be
fore me these years, has made a chang
ed man Of unchanged the whole
course of my life" he said earnestly.
"Ah, and you have that photograph
of me YETI"
"Of course. AS if l wouldn't! II
has never been out of my keeping since
1 stole it from
81 thought l gave it to you myself2'
she said, with some surprise in hel
voice Have you forgotten how you
begged it from me that night?'
"Of course | haven't forgotten" ht
replied heartily. II know you gave Il
to me-" But she was not listening
Her eyes were looking off into the dis
tance beyond the dark glass Of the con
servatory.
"How beautiful the moonlight was OF
the water that night, and far off some
boating party was singing! 1t was per
fectr'
Eyes, perfect, at least to me-"
do you remember when we glideG
into that stretch of lily pads and
lifted them dripping from the water
each drop like a diamond, and yol
said"-
"And said wished they were rea
so that l could give them to you," h,
said boldly.
did you2 l thought it was that thu
drops would spoil my gown-the gowl
you admired so much"
II did admire it. 1 have always see1
you in that gown-and your face lumi
nous in half shadow, the CLINT of you
hair and your arms cleaning in tn,
moonlight as you trailed your fingers
in the water and made silvery fipple
over the polished black mirror of the
er-riYer'
He drew long breath when he fiji
ished, as one who felt relieved.
"And it was as we neared home
wasn't it, that you told me that yo,
wanted my pictureT
"Yes."
The corners Of her mouth twitcheC
a little. "What splendid memory yol
have" she said, "a marvellous memor,
l call 1t. l wish 1 had one like ii
| though it's not what 1 would call &C
| curate-if that's a sample-because, yol
see, you didn't ask me for my photo
graph that night. 1t was fall whel
| you left, and it rained hard that after
noon, and we could not go out, but in
stead sat. in the drawing room by tn
fire. Except for these little details
your recollection of what happened i
wonderfully clear"
''But you said YOURSELF
Eyes; 1 did. 1 just wanted to tes
yeu. Now 1 commence to doubt tha
yGu really still have NV picture"
II can show it to you"
care you certain it's not some othe
girl that you've mistaken for me? On