The Press. (Stafford Springs, Conn.) 1883-1935, 1905-07-19
Their Scarlet
Thread
Copyright, 1905, by II. G. Mcclure
By KEITH GORDON

In his heart Of hearts the handsome
Young principal of the high school
sometimes characterized the young peo-
pie under his charge In highly unpro-
fessionaI language as little beasts
Teaching was by no means his Voca-
ton, but simply compulsory grace by
which he hoped to obtain two coveted
years of study at Heidelberg.
He did so now with a vtciousneSs
that would have Mortified their parents,
for as he and Miss Comyng entered one
of the smaller recitation rooms to look
at a globe they were confronted by
their own names scrawled upon the
blackboard and bristling with the can
celed letters common to both. by
counting first the Cancelled and tnen
the remaining letters to the formula
Friendship, love. Indifference, nate
the youthful tormentors had dlscoV-
cred and duly published to the world
that Miss Comyngs feeling Tor MIN
was a compound of friendship ana IN
difference, while his own for her was
unadulterated love.
But this was not all. Lest the In
scription should by any means escape
the attention of its objects, warningly
scrawled beneath it was the admon1-
ton, Change the name and not the
letter, and you change for worse and
not for better"
Cartright glanced at his companion
swiftly. He devoutly hoped she was
not one of those mawkishly sentimen-
taI Young women who blushed and
ouivered at occurrences Of this sort,
thereby giving him an uncomfortable
feeling that possibilities lowered In her
mind.
But this time he need have had no
fear. Miss Comyng took the matter
much more coolly than her predecessor
had done under similar circumstances.
She faced the scrawl moment with
puckering brows, then transferred her
gaze openly to his face and laughed
outright at the dawning look OF relier
she surprised there, and when she
spoke it was with a great occurrences
'I don't feel bit embarrassed" she
remarked. mo one, I'm sure, need feel
ashamed of feeling friendship and In
difference for colleague. But candid
ly"-her tone changed and became
frank and matter of fact-"isn't 1t
amazing that in all those young heads
from which the pigtails are still dan
Cling, as we'll as the clipped and rum
pled ones on the other side of the room,
the romantic idea should be dominant?
You and 1, being neither very old nor
very ugly"-her lips twitched-"will
/ In nvyfn drQ m
for the next few months. One hundred
and twenty pairs Of keen eyes will be
watching us daily, awaiting some sign
of our admiration for each other. It's
it's simply appalling"
"AppallIngp' he echoed. 81 should
say 1t was-and some Of them are still
In the stage where they spell future
with a 'ch' and busy with an Il! But /
don't mind If you don't" he added mag
| unanimously.
| She was sitting on the arm of one OF
the chairs in a thoroughly girlish but
rather undignified attitude. Cartright
noticed with satisfaction that hel
teaching had not sunk in" as yet.
mind! Not l. Why, it's as good as q
play Now, If you come into my room
to speak to me during recitation, es
peclally If you should happen to smile
| at me, the air becomes electric with
meaning. Minnie telegraphs Jennie q
swift Did you see thatP and even the
hulking, overgrown boys who have
been sitting like bumps upon logs
arouse to something like life"
'I've half a mind to show you some
thing I found on the floor today" she
remarked slowly, and from the bag al
her side she took a slip of paper and
held it out to him. Its extremely fat
tering to you, anyway"
He looked at the slip. II bet she's In
love with him" was written in a wab-
bling, uniformed hand. Il don't see
how she can help 1t, he has such fear
full fires in his dark eyes. They're just
like Rochester's."
There was q moments silence, and
then the two young instructors broke
into a roar OF laughter that wiped out
| the last sense of strangeness between
them.
Now that you know that 1 know
and 1 know that you know" was Cart
1
al don't see any reason why we CAM
be friends. Nothing that those young
cubs do can possibly make us shy
Wen show them that the thread Of TO
nance doesn't run through every
friendship between a man and WON
an"
"As the scarlet thread through ever.
bit of rope used by the British navy,
she supplemented saucily, and thel
the talk reverted to school matters.
But the pupils OF the Central HiGl
school were not slow to discover tina
there was a new ease and understand
ing between the incoming teacher o
algebra and physiology and the prln
cipal whom every girl In the room sc
cretly raved over.
Once Jennie Bascom met them wall
ing in the park. and notwithStandin
the fact that on this occasion they wer
deep In the discussion Of pedagog
she described the meeting to Mimi
Brown, her chum, the next mornin
somewhat after this fashion:
"They didn't even see till was clos
to them they were 50 interested In eac
other. Her cheeks were all plnk-yo
know how lovely she looks with tn
color shining through that down on ht
face-and he was looking at her, an
his eyes were shining with great hal
pipess." Here Jennie dropped dream
Ily INTO the words Of her latest novel
"And words OF love fell from his lips.
But how do you known You didn'
hear them, did your demanded tn
practical and unimaginative Minnie.
'Hear themp' was Jennie's scornfu
retort There are some things yo
don't have TO hear to know them. II
bet you that he was proposing to hel
Just wait-and watch the third fnge
OF her left hand"
But, though they waited and watche
with a patience that deserved reward
the tapering fingers Of Ruth Comyng
| left hand remained unadOrned Ha