The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1906-08-08
ON THE


eTy evidence of distress On a bed ny
4 voung girl. She was either nneons
GGious or sleeping, for she vas very
low. and Il WAS Impossible 70 tell.
whether It was sleep or coma
SsFThey are lighting st the front the
old man unused. and II anything
| should happen tO-Bert It would III
the scale. But II anything does hap
pen she must not be told SIN, would
It not be better for her 70 know it and
die Instead Of living on the iire tof'
desoIauon in store for nerf
'.The doctors opinion that she VIII
weather tie storm and get well 1 have
little confidence In. is II his opinion,
or does he say It TO Keep me upg
The nurse came In and begged tht
cid man to 60 to bed. He refused, toll
ing her to so into a % across The
bail, lie down and leave him to watch
alone. II anything important occured5
he would call her. She went over to
! Ehe bed, laid her hand OF the sick giuYa
forehead and Ieoked ut her long and
nnxfousIy. Then she turned and told
him that it was not best b should
leave. But he firmly refused to 80
himself, and she took n book md wet
into the room be had Indicated
Ever since her mother died" he
mused on, "sbe has been all 1 have had
to live for. Sometimes 1t seems to me
that all the love she has had for ma
has been merged In her love for Bert
That's natural. All the love ] a for
my parent was nothing compared with
the love / bore her mother. And when
her mother died l gave It all to my
little girl.
At wonder what's going OF down
there. Last nights dispatches were
kat a fight couldn't be put on twenty
four hours. VIC know what they do
almost as soon rs they do it Bort
must take his chnnces-one out OF
three OF four or i've. / suppose-wh:le
here lies the girl be loves and who
loves him, having not one chance In q
dozen. II be dies she Will e. smile
PEcin. II she dies 1 win never SMILE
again. but he-he Is younG- BE can
forget or replace the Old with the new"
Curious thoughts run through b
mind OF one in suspense. The IL maj
fell to conjuring up all sorts Of pesst
BILE happenings. He fanciod his girl
again in health, e lover safely re
turned. their meeting. In thsir haPPi.
ness he forgot that he would be left
aIone or remembering It was mitigated
that they were happy. BE pictured
Bert a physical wrcck coming to 1nd
the girl he loved gone; the young mans
agony, followed by a settled gloom.
This came the nearer home to him, for
I was wha he would have to suneE
himself.
Then he went tack to the period
when she whose life hung by a thread
was jumping her rope. rolling her
hoop. He saw her grow from child TO
maiden, from maiden to woman How
quickly It had all come about And
now II she died, what had all his eff
forts to raise her, her studies, her ac-
compllshments, avaIled? - swept
away at the ceaSIng Of a L to beat
And her longer life, what of It2 Every
effort he had made or should make
would be neutralized.
The patient stirred. The watcher waa
about to go Into the other room and
call the nurse when the girl suddenly.
with a strength hat GstOnished him..
sat up and fixed her eyes on vacancy
or, as 1t seemed, some one in the center
of the Don
Bert! oh, Berti Have you conner"
She stretched forth her arms, and
the focus of her vision seemed to draw
nearer to herself. He arms folded
she raised her face as though for a
kiss. then fell back on the pillow.
The old man sprang to the bedside
and was Joined a moment later by the
nurse, who quickly slippeG her arms
under the Invalid and raised her. See
Ing no slEn OF life. she placed her hand
on the girls heart Then h looked up
and saidt
She's gone"
The old man went to a table, sat
down and, placing his arms on 1t, rest
ed his head on them. The nurse laid
the dead girls arms beside her, turn
ed, looked at the old mar pityingly and
left the room. The case was closed for
her. and In Il day or two she would be
ready for the next one.
The old MAJ remained where he was,
The clock struck the hours successive
Iy-1, 2, 8, 4. 3 Then there was the
sound OF boys running IN the street
below and shouting:
.nxtral Great battle at Santiago!"
The old man started up. Going into
the hail. lie rang for n servant. One of
them had been up all night to summon
a doctor ir needed. lie responded a
once. and his master ordered him TO
bring bin n paper. In Il was a tslo-
gram announcing b last battle OF the
Spnnish.American 4 With a partial
list of the killed and wounded Among
the former WAS b name Lieutenant
Albert HIbbard.
As the old man read It something Ike
a smile lifted across his face.
THANK Cod" he said, 'they ave
gone togctherr Providence, who re-
iensaa Fhe vaunR md leaves the old to