The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1905-10-06
CHAPTER XXI.

Mr.. Harlan left the house and did
not return until long after midnight
When Leslie came downstairs fhe next
morning he had already breaFfasted
and gone to the Office without bidding
her good-by. Such thing had never
happened before. 1t measured the
magnitude of her offense in his eyes.
The troublesome proxy lay on her
iesk where she had tossed 1t the night
before. She sat down and read II
through once more. Was she right in
hesitating to sign it? Had she not
virtually told her own father that she
lid not trust him? Was she rot about
to proclaim this publicly? What did
she propose to do! Was she to attend
This meeting in person and vote
against her father. or, at best, vote in
ais stead? In the one case there would
De scandal; in the other ridicule and
notoriety. What a story that would
make for the newspapers, with pic
,ures Of the warning father and daugh-
er, and all the possible and impossible
nferences which would be drawn from
the facts. He would be joke down
own if she did any such thing as that
But was there any alternative? II
she authorized anybody else to repre-
sent her, she would only add to the
insult and increase the scandal. II she
refused to vote at all, her action would
embarrass her father, without, per-
haps, serving the cause she desired to
favor. Chance had placed in her
hands technical right which she
feared to exercise practically.
How much did she know of the is
sues involved? On the one side was
a man she had learned toto believe
In To believe in very earnestly. But
there must be no issue between her
father and this manor any man. Ii
that were the situation, she would in
Stantly decide for tie father whose
wonderful love had been hers all her
life and whom her mother had loved
No, the men, women and c...Gren
whose health and comfort Were at
stake formed the real issues. If she
voted against them even indirectly
would not the thought Of it outlast
true state of affairs. She had told him
nothing Of what she knew Possibly,
if she reported frankly everything she
had heard and suspected. he might in
vestigate and learn why she could not
vote against John Kennard-againSt
what she believed to be right She
would go straight to the office and ex-
plain the whole matter fully and fair
ly. Anything was better than this
hideous chance of misunderstanding.
Miss Harlan's car moved slowly
along Park Row, the motorman beat
ing furiously on his metal gong, and
gradually dividing the ever-present
group of people which gazes morning,
noon and night at the big bulletin
board of the Guardian. AS the car
stopped at the Nassau street corner.
Leslie stepped out and stood for mo-
ment in the knot Of idlers staring at
the empty blackboard
A man mounted on a wooden plat
form leisurely washed the bulletin
board with big sponge, leaving wide,
damp streaks of gray across it's face.
He seemed aware CT his importance to
the watchers below, and took delight
in playing with their hungry curiosity.
The board cleaned, he hitched up his
trousers with great deliberation, and
retired into one of the Office windows
with the tantalizing air of one who
nows the public must await his pleas
IRE. Presently he returned, chalk !