Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-05-19
CHAPTER XII.
The Snow.

Summer waned; the evenings became
chill, although the sun pretended at noon
that its power was undiminished. Back to
town from mountain and seashore filtered
the warm-weather idlers. but no more let
tiers came from st. Petersburg to the hill
by the Hudson. SO far our girls were
concerned a curtain OF silence had berailer
between Europe and America.
The fiat was now furnished, and the be-
ginning of autumn saw it occupied by the
two friends Realization in this instance
lacked the delight of anticipation. At last
Katherine0was the bachelor girl she had
longed to be, but the pleasures of freedom
were as Dead sea fruit to the lips. AT last
Dorothy was effectually cut off from all
thoughts of slavery, with unlimited money
to do what she pleased with, yet after all, of
what advantage was it in solving the prob
lem that haunted her by day and filled her
dreams by night. She faced the world with
seeming unconcern, for she had not the
right to mourn, even IL she knew he were
dead. He had made no claim; had asked
for no affection; had written no word to
her but what all the world might read.
Once week she made a little journey up
the Hudson to see how her church was COM
ing on. and at first katherine accompanied
her, but now she went alone katherine
was too honest a girl to pretend an inter-
est where she felt none. She could not
talk Of architecture when she was thinking
OF q man and his fate. At first she had
been ENORMOUSLY impatient when no sec
ond communication came. Her own letters.
abe said, must have reached him, other
wise they would have been returned. Later,
dumb fear took possession of her, and she
grew silent, plunged with renewed energy
Into her books, Joined a technical school,
took lessons, and grew paler and paler I'M
I'll her teachers warned her she was over
doing IL. Inwardly she resented the serene
inlpassiveness of her friend, who consulted
calmly with the architect upon occasion
about the decoration of the church, when
mems liberty was gone. and perhaps their
lives She built UP within her mind q ro-
nance Of devotion, by which her lover,
warning In vain the stolid Englishman. had
at last been involved in the ruin that Drum
n1ond's stubbornness had brought upon
them both, and unjustly implicated the
quiet woman by her side in the RESPONSE
bility OF this sacrifice. Once or twice she
spoke with angry impotence OF Drummond
and his stupidity, but Dorothy neither de-
tended nor excused, and so no open rup-
ture occurred between the two friends. for
quarrel cannot be one-sided.
but With woman Of Katherine's tenn
permanent the final outburst had to come
and 1T came on the day that the first furry
or snow fell through the still air caperfn2
In large flakes past the windows Of the fiat
down TO the muddy street far below Kath-
crime was standing by the window with her
torehead leaning against the plate glass
IN exactly the attitude that had been her
habit in the sewing room at Bar Harbor
but now the staccato of her fingers on the
e5N seemed to drum dead march OF
despair. The falling snow had darkened
the room. and one electric light was agiow
over the dainty Chippendale desk at which
Dorothy sat writing letter. The smooth
regular flow Of the pen over the paper
reused Katherine 10 q frenzy OF exaspera-
ton. Suddenly she brought her clenched
fist down on the sill where her fingers had
been drumming
My God" she cried, how can you 81,
there like an automaton with the snow
falhng7"
Dorothy put down her pan.
The snow falling?' she echoed. II don't
understands
"Of course you don't You don't think oil
the drifts in Siberia. and the two men you
have known, whose hands YOU have c!asped
fnanacled, driven through Ii with the lash
of Cossack's whip
Dorothy rose quietly, and put her hands
on the shoulders of the girl. feeling hef
frame tremble underneath her touch.
Katherine she said. quietly, but Kath-
crime. with q nervous twltch OF her shout.
ders. flung or the friendly grasp.
Don't touch me- she cried. Go back
to your letter-writing. You and the Eng
iishman are exactly alike; unfeellng. heart
less. He with his selfish stubbornness has
involved an innocent man in the calamity
hts own stupidity has brought about
katherine. sit down. I want to talk
calmly with you"
Calmly, CALMLY Yes. that is the word.
1t is easy for you to, DE calm when you
don't care. But l care, and / cannot be
calm.
what do you wish to do Katherine?"
What can do? l am pauper and a
dependant, but one thing / am determined
to do. and that is TO go and live in my
fathers house"
IF you were In my place. what would
you do. Katherine?"
Il would go TO Russia"
What would you do when you arrived
there?'
IF had wealth I would use Ii In such a
campaign OF bribery and corruption in that
country OF tyyants that / should RELEASE
two innocent men. I'd first find out where
they were. then I'd use all the influence
possessed with the American ambassador
to get them set free"
The American ambassador. Kate. cam
not move to release either Englishman
or Russian"
'Td do It somehow. 1 wouldn't sit here
like stick or stone. writing letters to
my architect"
"Would you go to Russia aioneT'
mo. ! should take my father with me-"
s'That y an excellent idea. Kate. ad-