The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1905-06-30

me at the same time q look so full Of
gratitude that it was enough 10 make
any decent man feel ashamed of him.
self.
The rest OF the passengers began to
go below, card tables were put away.
the principal electric lights were put
| out, but still Mrs. Jefferson sat in the
deck chair, looking small and weab
among the pillows, and took it into
my head suddenly that she wanted tc
say something to me. but that speech
was difficult to her, and in q fash {
knew intuitively that she t:d learned
| the silence which SO many women
have to learn
II want to thank you," she said at
last. "for all your goodness to me 90
this VOYAGE Her voice was so low
and gentle that 1 had to lean forward
to catch exactly what she said, and as
did so she laid her hand in mine
Perhaps you don't know" she said.
slowly, 'Quite what your friendship
has been to me-
l stumbled and said something bald
fersOn went on:
For seven years l have lived for
nothing but this visit home to Eng
land. When anything in my life was
little disappointing. always said
to myself: 1 have the children to 60
back to- And every week had their
precious, foolish little letters, which
told me so little and kept me hunger
ing TO see them"
1T must have been awful to leave
them again. l said, and in the dark
took again the little hand which had
lain in mine.
They were 50 fond of me-" said
Mrs. Jefferson, still in the same halt
ing fashion, like one who speaks an
unfamiliar language. Il mean when
they were little things. do not think
quite tiny children could ever have
been more fond Of their mother. And"
she hesitated for a moment, and
said, with so much difficulty that it
seemed almost like cruelty to allow
her to proceed-"I always thought
they would remember me, although
they were so little" She paused
again, and went on: you mustn't
think that was silly about them. or
that | expected too much. I
always thought at first they might be
little bit shy of me. But
they didn't even knew me, and they
were certainly disappointed in me-
|. One of them was five years old
when said good-by to her. Now she
is schoolgirl of -. Her only
photograph of me was taken long
ago, SO it is no wonder that she didn't
know me-
did not fill In the pause by any
banal remark.
They have been brought up in a
very prim household" went on the
gentle voice, lin which love, I fear, is
not a thing that is reckoned with or
encouraged. They rather despised me
for laughing and crying over them
when we met. and-it is only natural,
Of cOurse-all their little condolences
were for the people who brought them
up, and all their ways Of thinking are
their ways, and not mine. One of my
little girls, l found, is not a very
truthful child, and the other, when
asked her what she would like best
to do seemed more content at home"
But you made friends and got over
all that before you left?' l said, en-
couragingly.
If only I had had a little more
coi1 IoNf
1t would have been so much better
for her if she could have wept She
locked her thin hands together, and
said with sort of wall in her voice:
IF only l had had little more time!"
After awhile she went on quite
quietly, and told me that her husband
had sent for her to return to him, and
she had been obliged to leave the
children.
"Of course man wants his wife In
solitary life like ours,' she went on,
excusingly. And 80 l said good-by
to them. l don't think any,
one was very sorry when l came
away"
The decks were quite deserted now,
Tomorrow they would be alive with
passengers preparing to leave the ship,
and friends meeting friends from Bonn
bay, and ships officials, and hurrying
agents and perspiring stewards. To-
night they were quite deserted save
for Mrs. Jefferson and me-
I'VE live quite an isolated life at
the tea garden she said, presently,
"but left little dog there of which
| am very fond. I am afraid
you will think me very morbid and
imaginative she added in her depreca-
tory little way, "but l think |
have based all my possibilities Of
bearing things upon the question of
whether or not my dog knows me
again and is glad to see me-
l still held Mrs. Jefferson's hand In
mine, and now raised it to my lips
and kissed it. you will let me know
l said, huskily, and found to my sur
prise that could not say more.
Eyes, will let you know" said Mrs.
Jefferson
And ono dov oct a 1i++lo ,o+o s.-