The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1906-12-25

III Her lHNhllu cndlr ana signed. ATT
er all, she was sorry. Doubtless II
would mean a cessation of her law
yer's frequent and periodic visits.
And-well, he had been something new
under her sun.
Il leave for Bar Harbor tomorrow,
to be gone week. On my return I'll
send you a telegram and arrange for
our final interview" Howell Or
chard's crisp, staccata sentences pune
tured her reverie. He was picking up
his gloves. A high cart had just driv-
en- under the porte-cochere, and Miss
Morton's liveried groom was busy
quleting the antics of a pair of brown
cobs.
Miss Morton CROPPED for pretext to
spin out the call of her lawyer only
for five minutes 1t was stupid of Pc
ter to have driven up SO early-and SO
bourgeois! Her eye fell ON the near
est object-a bowl of orchids.
Exquisite, are they mott" she said,
with slight indicating motion of her
patrician, blue veined hand Orchards
keen glance noted them, at the same
time ranging the extravagant refine
ment Of the room.
"In keeping with their surroundings,
Miss Morton" he rejoined, pulling on
rect"
She made no further pretext 1t was
fatuous, but it answered her purpose.
What is your favorite dowerT' she
asked.
1t was an inane question, and she bit
her lip. But to her relieved surprise,
Orchard gave her inquiry his consider
alton.
1.-The closed gentian," he said after
slight pause
Wynchell, Miss Morton's country
home, with its ancestral acres, was
about far enough from Jersey City to
leave time on the suburban train for
comfortable perusal of the paper and
yawn or two besides.
Orchard spread out his sheet mechan-
ically. But even the stock market news
didn't seem to interest him, and he
looked far beyond his paper. That was
only natural. He was looking back
through several seasons of blossoms
and snow, this man, who, young as he
was, had already begun to be called
a woman hater. The whizzing tele
graph wires and poles passed unseen.
The noise of the engine, the rumble of
the wheels, dwindled into silence. In
their stead came the low, exquisite
voice Of girl:
ITS such beautiful little flower In
side, Howell
The day had been full of late Sep
TENDER elixir, then as now The tread
of loneliness had been on the fields of
grass and fodder ripened by August
suns and tanned by early frosts to an
autumnal bronze Somewhere from
among the hedges of sumac had come
the call of a quail. Then presently the
girl had stopped near silvery stream
and plucked a plain enough looking
dark blue flower and pinned it on his
coat
''It's a closed gentian, you know,
DEAR" she had explained, while the
soft tendrils of her hair had uncon-
sciously brushed his strong chin. you
see," she went on. STOPPING to pluck an
other, they're not so very handsome
outside, but inside-lookr Delicately
as 9rsprilI - had pricked the
ports atsS the flaming
golda Staring purple
daisies IT, 10 slansN, doesn't it?" She
lifted her face to him-the face of
girl not particularly beautiful, but glo-
rified by a dazzling smile.
He had left her at the gate of her
little western home and, leaning over
the rustic fence in the privacy of the
broad oak, had bid her goodby, for he
was going to the big eastern metropo-
fortune for them both He went away
with the sweetness of her kiss upon his
lips, her tear upon his cheek, her flow
er in his coat
Later there had come a misunder-
standing, of the slight, insignificant
sort that most young lovers have; but,
alas, in this case before the gentle,
healing wind of the real truth had
blown tragedy had visited the girls
home, and when the man sought her
she was not to be found. Out in her
little western village people told a
tale of her fathers long illness and
death-how she had nursed him night
and day with untirlng tenderness; how,
their slight income being exhausted,
she had taken up water color work
and filled orders for dinner cards and
little pictures; how finally, upon his
death, she had gone to New York city
to earn her living in such fashion as
she could.
That was all Orchard had been able
20 learn and that had been two years
color work on dinner cards in New
York city is not an easy matter. By
the time his train had reached the
smoke of the tunnel the man with the
unread paper was thoroughly out of
concelt with one Emily; by the time
LAC DOQl Ad0 OunlDC0 lAtO ZIG
slip on the New York side he was
thoroughly out of conceit with him
self
Miss Morton brought her lorgnon to
bear upon the flowers Miss Gray had
1ust brought In.
$50 thew are what YOU call closed
gentians?' questioned she half incred-
ulously. Are you sure"
''I-Tm very sure, Miss Morton"
The girls voice was exquisitely low
and musical.
But they're SO homely, so unfinished
looking, and l thought-well, never
mind. Arrange them there In that
vase. II you will. My lawyer, young
fellow in whom I've taken a great In
terest, Is coming up to Wynchell to-
day, and they are his favorite flower"
Miss Gray lost the last of the sem
tence From the silver faucet in Miss
Morton's marble bathtub she was
drawing water for the cut glass she
held Besides, Miss Morton had spo-
ken more than half to herself.
1t had been only three days now that
Miss Gray had been with her in the
capacity of companion, and already
Miss Morton found herself exchanging
that young persons status from com
panion to confdante. She had always
had liking for her, this girl with the
tired pale face and the sweet, sudden
smile, ever since the day when she
had come personally to explain that
there had been some little mistake in
the ordered dinner cards and to make
her apologies. 1t appears she had Civ
en- the dinner ladies powdered silver
hatr t,,Staad ~ doz1Ifnu cold That