The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1905-05-31
CHAPTER XXXII.

CHAPTER MIMI.
mY0N n letter which Frank wrote
b@k il to Alice soon after his re-
ES1SSSN turn to Boston he said: "My
" mother and, in fact, all my
people seem to think so much more Of
me since l have set about fitting my
self for n profession. Father says he
is growing proud of me, and that
pleascs me best of all, for he is and
always has been my best friend. or
ours l think the world of Blanch,
and she seems to think nm the best
fellow In the world. Little do any of
them know that it IL you for whom 1
am working, and always with the hope
that you Will deem me worthy of the
prize. How many times l recall every
moment of that one short hour on the
old mill pond nnd all that made 1t
sacred to mo no one can tell. l go out
little except to escort mother and the
girls to the theater once in awhile, and
so anxious am 1 to be able to pass an
examination L often go to the Office
and read law till midnight"
When this effusion reached Alice the
mountains around Sandgnte were Just
putting on their autumn glory Of col
or, and that night when she sat on the
porch arl heard the katydids in the
fust thinning foliage of tho Gins she
had what she called an old fashioned
ct of the blues. And how lonely 1t
was there too!
Aunt Susan, never n laxative per-
son sat close, nut as dumb as n craven
image; no house near and only the
twinkling lights of several on the other
side of the valley were visible. On a
knoll just below them she knew were a
fcw score Of white hcadstones. among
them her mothers, and when there
was Il moon she could sec them plain
ly. 1t is during the lonely hours Of IL
lives that we see ourselves best, and
this quiet c~vcning-no more quiet than
many others perhaps, but seemingly so
to Alice-Shc SAW herself and her pos
siblc future as 1t seemed to be. Every
word of her lovers letter had been an
cmiSsary of both JOY II sorrow-Joy
that he was so devoted to her md sor-
row because she felt that an impussa-
bic barrier separated them. lie will
forget me in IL few months,' she said
to herself, "and by the time he has
won his coveted law degree his schem-
ing mother will have some eligible girl
I'LL ready for him to fall In love with.
AS for mo. she will never have the
chance TO frown ut me, for even lf
Blanch bcgs, | would never set foot I'm
her house" When her feelings had
carried her up to this point she arose
and, going into the parlor, began play
Ing. Her piano was the best and about
the only companion she had and quick
y responded to her moods. And now
what did it tell? She played, but every
chord was Il minor one full of the
patilos Of tears and sorrow. She sang,
but every song that came to her lips
cAiIicd the same refrain and told only
of hungry hearts and unanswered lGsn.
And last, and worst of all. almost in
Scnsibly her fingers straycd to the
chords OF one well remembered song.
One verse only h sang, and when the
last pathetic l!nc was ended she arose
and, going to hcr aunt and knccling,
bowed her head in that gool old SOULS
lap and burst into tears. ItSid not last
lonS, however, and when the storm
was over she arose and said:
"ThCrc, auntic; I've been spelling for
II good cry all day, and now I've had it
md feel better"
She thought of licr brother, toward
whom her heart had always turned
when in trouble, and not i'm win. OF
Ill" Jest that Frank had made regard.
ing TN" island girl Albert had fallen In
love with she thought but little. She
fell TO thinking whit n void 1t would
make in her life il his thoughts and
| nIprtinn \Nm.n rpntplpl nlSnXyllnrn
Then she began wondering why he had
failed to write as often M usual dur
Ing the past six weeks. She had known
his plans for the yachting trip, and i'm
agincd his letter announcing It's failure
and his return to work an expression
Of disappointment. Since then he had
written but once, telling her that he
was overwhelmed with business and
inclosing q check, but falling to incloso
any but the briefest expression of love.
Life with Alice was at best n lone
some one, and Sunday, with Its simple
services in tho village church, the sing
Ing I'm the choir and pleasant nods from
nll she met, was the only break in It's
m%Onotony. Now, during summer va
cation time, 1t was worse than ever,
and she began counting the days until
school opened again. Once, with Aunt
Susan for company, she had visited the
old mill pond and, rowing the boat her
self, had gathered nm ample supply OF
lilies, only to come home so depressed
she did not speak once during the four
mile drive. She had written Frank an
account of the trip, but failed to men
ton that she had landed Mt n certain
point and sat on the bank and shed a
few tears willie Aunt Susan waited In
the boat and sorted the lilies. She had
inclosed n wee little lily bud I'm this
letter, but not n word by which he
could infer that her heart was very
hungry for-somc one.
But all things and all series of days,
be they filed with Joy or sorrow, come
to an end, and SO did the lonely vaca-
ton days OF Alice. When the school
gathered one more and the daily round
Of simple Rotations began, she realized
as never before how blessed a thing 1t
Is IN this world that we can have occu-
patton.
CHApTER XXXIH