Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1906-09-21

THO of his ddversdrtcs had gone to grass.
ner. It congratulates its young fellow
citizen. Mr.. Duncan, upon the quality
of his citizenship and upon the results
of it's activity"
The entire talk Of the little city was
of Duncan's activity in haling the
hoodlum sons of highly respectable"
parents before a magistrate as con-
sequence of their battle with mig
ger" On that subject tongues wag-
ged busily pro and con. The friends
of the aggrieved parents who mad been
forced to give bonds for the good be-
havior of their Ill regulated offspring
Indignantly made trace issue" OF
matter which had nothing whatever TO
do with race prejudice.
They could not understand how
southerner and an Confederate SOL
der could thus have taken the part OF
"nigger' against respectable white
boys" Others who were clamorous for
the "rights OF the negro" rejoiced In
Duncan as n convert to their doctrine.
Both were wrong, Of course. Neither
in the remotest way recognized the real
impulses Of his act-namely, the i'm
pulse to protect woman and the i'm
pulse of law loving citizen to Insist
upon the equal enforcement Of the law
for the sake of good order In the COM
munity. But Duncan concerned him.
self with none of these things. He
had done his simple duty as man and
as a citizen, and he had no care what
ever for consequences.
And yet the consequences were SUCH
as vitality affected his entire career IN
more ways than one. His perform
ance brought him for one thlnE into
close acquaintance with certain
young woman whom he had scarcely
known before and whose destiny 1t
was to influence the entire future
course of his life.
1t was Duncan's habit to sit long
and smoke over his final cup OF coffee
at the evening meal. The other table
boarders were accustomed to hurry
away as soon as they had swallowed
their supper leaving him In sole pos
session of the dining room.
On the evening Of the day on which
the events already related occurred he
sat as usual smoking, slipping his cof-
fee and reading the evening newspa-
per. Presently Barbara Verne entered
and with Il manner in which extreme
shyness was mingled with a resolute
determination to do the duty that lay
before her approached young Duncan
and held out her hand. AS he arose
dcferentally to greet her, taking her
prOffered hand In his, the girl said:
"I've come to thank you, Mr.. Dun
can. 1t was very kind Of you-to pro-
tect Robert, you know-and me. I'm
Barbara Verne. Thank you ever 30
much"
AS she made her little speech the
brave but tImid girl looked him IN the
eyes with the embarrassed front OF
child set to do duty mingled with the
calm compOsure Of woman who
knows and cherishes the dignity OF her
wOmanhoOd.
Duncan protested that no thanks
were due him for doing his simple
duty, and after word or two more
the girl quilted the room, while Dun
can, calamity bowling, held the door
open for her.
The little interview lasted for less
than two minutes, and not an unneces-
sary word was spoken on either side,
yet 1t seemed to Duncan an event or
consequence, as indeed it proved to be.
Something in the girls voice or man
ner, or something In her eyes, or some
thing In her grace of movement, her
bearing, her mingled simplicity and
dignity, or something In all these COM
bined, had nightly impressed him. He
had seen little of women In any lnti-
mate way, and, while he honored wo-
manhood and deferred to 1t, as every
sound sOuled man must, he had
thought himself quite Indifferent to
women in their individual personality.
But somehow he could not feel SO with
Barbara Verne, and later In the even
ing he scOurged himself for his folly In
continuing to think of her to the inter-
ruption of the reading he had set him
self to do.
81 will call upon her and become
really acquainted with her." he said
to himself. ''That will cure me Of this
strange and utterly absurd fascination.
OF course the girl must be common.
place in the main, and when / come to
realize that, the glamour will fade
away"
CHAPTER XIII.