Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-01-24
HANILIN GARLAND

the west to town repulsive to her, a
place Of emptiness and WEAKNESS, So
| cial desert, where no one lived but her
| cousins, the Barnetts, to whose hos
| pitable door they were bound as voy-
| ayers on wide sea to Il snug harbor.
| Without that home as point of ar
| rival Ann Rupert would have been in
such uncertainty of mind as besets Il
| sailor on Il chartleSs sea.
She was making this abhorrent trip
in order that her brother might thrive
in his physical we'll being as we'll as in
| his art. He had recently determined
on being an illustrator of wild animal
| books. I'm going to study them at
first hand" he repeated often, "the
way Melborn Foster has done And,
| besides, | want to illustrate fathers
| journal" This journal. the record of a
| trip into the west made by Philip Ru-
| pert before his marriage. had come to
| be the most powerful influence in the
| lads life. 1t was a worn little red
| book in which the father had written
| the daily happenings and impressions
| of his trip. and it's discovery by Louis
| in box of old papers had quite trans
formed his life. 1t had made him an
| American, filling him with longing
| for the 'HesDerian mountains" as
| the father called the romantic land he
| had seen but once. but whose splendor
lived with him throughout the remain
| der of his short life.
AS they sat at the table in the dining
car Ann again listened indulgently to
her brothers plans, and permitted him
| to order the dinner and assume all the
manners Of grown man, honestly try
| ing to conceal her own WEAKNESS of
| spirit. sincerely regretful of her bitter
words on the ferry.
| Louis was not weary. He eyed every
man who came in, avid to discover
some western trait, some outward sign
| of inward difference between himself
and his companions, but could not.
| They were all quite commonplace bust
ness men, well dressed, close clipped
and urbane of manner. Some Of them
were evidently statesmen going over to
Philadelphia or out to Chicago, ant
they all ate long and with every eyi
dence of enjoyment. Some of the VIC
men We're young aAi retty-students
returning to the west 10 their summer
vacations.
Once more in the privacy of her state
room and looking ont at tie landscape
reeling past, Ann sank back in her seat
i,.,t IN l,o
can I do out taere?" she asked herself
most poignantly. "Of course they don't
play golf or tennis. and / can't ride.
and, besides. whom could play with:
Jeanette is not a bit athletic" And
again the small round Of her interests
she had TO gayeties-was borne in
upon her. 81 shall die of inactivity"
Louis excused himself quite formally
and went back into the smoking COM
partment to sit with the men, while
Ann, left alone. gave herself up to
close. half ironic study of tile absurdity
of her position With dozen most de-
sirable invitations to DISTINGUISHED Lon
don homes, with everything before her
that a girl of her age and tastes could
desire, she had turned away to face the
crude conditions of western state In
warm glow of sisteriy affection.
She took up the little red book, In
which she had taken only languid in
terest before, and turning the leaves
at random, fell upon bits OF description
that stirred her unaccountably. Now
that she was about to enter this land
of her fathers delight, the words took
on passion and power.
They arrived in Chicago behind their
schedule time and had but few mill
utes in which to make their transfer.
and SO they saw little of the great cen
trail metropolis. To them 1t was only
a gloomy, dangerous shed fitted with
long strings of railway coaches all
marked with strange names-names
which meant little to her, but which ex-
cited Louis almost to tears. "See," he
cried, there is car from Oregon and