Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1904-03-24
CHAPTER Ii.-continued.
By
Tom Gallon

mighty wings of healing thou dost
gather the lowest and the weakest of
thy creatures in their hour of need
stretch forth thine arm to saw her
SO young, so fair-something better
than this. Through the darkness of a
long night | have striven for her; let
Ii not be that | have striven In vain!'
There was silence in the place for
a moment while Flame still knelt;
then the silence was broken by a
frightful cry from behind him. He
sprang to his feet and faced David
Yarwood, who, still as it seemed in a
dream, had raised himself upon his
feet and, with his clenched hands held
above his head, was shrieking out hor-
ribly.
mo, no; don't bring her back to
life!" he shrieked. II can't meet her,
] can't look into her face again. I've
robbed her-taken from her all that
was hers. Come away, let her alone;
there Is no life for her now, nothing to
come back to! Come away"
Enoch Flame sprang at him and
III 0OWh iuio nIS otdt. DC
Q%uiet!" he exclaimed, sternly. who
are you, to blaspheme like this? She
shall live, il Il please God to let her.
Wake up, man; what are you dream
ing about?"
"You don't understand" whined
Yarwood, sinking on his knees and
elasping the hand Of the other man.
"You mustn't call her back-you dare
not! Let her die; let her believe, in
dying, that the rest was all a dream.
II she comes back now she must know
what I've done; she must understand
how I've robbed her-stolen her birth.
right"
You don't understand what you're
talking about" said Enoch, jerking
the shrunken figure to his feet. "The
poison you've taken has got into your
mind till you're no longer "a man.
Leave the child alone. l say she shall
live"
And she lived. There came a day
when she opened her eyes weakly
enough on a world she had thought to
have left behind; a day when she
called to her father and the coward
was not there to hear her. 1t was only
quite late at night when she was
thought to be sleeping that David Var
wood crept back under the cover OF
the darkness; and, perhaps-who
knows?-with some dreadful hope in
his mind. Coming in and blinking at
the light, he whispered a question to
the stern figure of the old mar stand
ing in the room looking at him.
"Is she-alive!"
Yes, father, dear-and getting
strong" came the voice of the girl.
"Oh, the strange places that I have
wandered in-the strange dreams l
have had"
"Dreams-yes-it's all dreams!" he
muttered, looking about him uneasily.
"Come and talk to me father" she
said. only a little while-because
I'm not strong yet; but it will do me
good to have you near me. And there's
something we must talk about"
mot for long, my child" said Enoch
Flame, gently. "You have come out of
great depths; you must not sink back
again."
He strobe away to the door and
went out under the stars. leaving the
father and daughter together. For a
long time she said nothing; she was
content to hold his hands and to know
that he was there; while he, for his
part, tremblingly waited for the blow
that was to fall.
II never knew that life could be so
splendid before" she whispered. "Peri
haps because I've known what--the
other thing-is like: but it's like wax
ing on a summer morning. without a
care In the world. Father, We shall
see England now, at last"
"You-you won't like It," he assured.
her. think. my dear Grace-England
was never kind to your poor old faith
or; It treated him very badly. Even
your mother was glad to leave It,"
'Yes-with you." she replied. ten
derby. Think how different it will
all be: we shall go back-you and T.
and take our places properly in the
world. It's just as II some fairy god
mother had come into this poor place
and waved a wand and changed every
thing. I've come back to life, father,
and to splendid life at that. You
sha'n't wander about any lore. trying
to earn money for me: all that I.have
IN the world is yours. and you shall
never want for anything again. I've
been lying here. thinking about 1t,
dreaming about II. It would have been
hard to die and never to have known
what life really was-never sven to
have guessed what Il meant without
struggled"
She stopped: he was weeping hys-
terical tear. and was down on the
hoor beside her. At the CRY she gave
Enoch Flame came striding In again,
took the man strongly BY the shoul-
deru, and, with : reassuring. laughing
word to the girl, marched him to the
door, Outside. IN the light or the
starr. the strong and the weak faced
each other.
~Are you trying to kill her!- asked
Flame. n = savage whisper. ~Have 1
Wrestled with death only for thisY /
wonder aometimes that God makes
much creatures a. you; I suppose there
must be some purpose in Il. what