Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1907-02-21

yTu WHIT aHyvEiuS, rHner, rfES
your bell-it's right there at hand-.and
Sally will come in. You'd better ring
1t every little while, else she'll go to
sleep. l hate going, but there is no
other way-not unless you
She stopped tentatively, her eyes
wistful. The squire glared at her, his
eyes full OF fury. So This is your no
ton of duty" he said thickly Very
well. Go your gait! Pm old and help
less, but there are few things I can
do"
'Yes. you can ring for Sally ana
scare her ont of her wits" Edith said,
trying to laugh as she walked away.
At the doorstep she was tempted to
go back. but the thought Of Orestes
waiting 81 patiently at the roadside
was too much for her.
The squire lay for ten minutes tense
~ brOoding. his face drawn and lined
Then be sal MP and began reclilessly to
hitch himself ont of bed. Within reach
were the crutches which he was to es-
say tomorrow Once he put out his
hand to the bell, bet drew it back, NUT
tcriug: NO. BY the Lord, I'll do it all
myself. I'll show them they can't run
over me-not quite" Then, still NUT
tering and mumbling, he wrapped him
self in his dressing gown, reached for
the Crutches and swayed and staggered
across to the door.
The squire sat down heavily upon the
second step of the broad stairway and
becdl craftily going up backward. He
lifted himself from tread to tread then
drew the crutches after him By some
WhiIn he had kept his desk and all his
papers in the big south chamber that
had been his wife's. He was going there
nov. If he lived to come back from it,
he would leave behind new will, one
that would come near TO diSinheriting
his rebellious child. 1t would do more
than that. 1t would set forth her re-
belliOn, her neglect of him, in such
fashion as to shame her, here where
honor to parents was so vital part Of
decency.
Painfully, with set teeth and agoniz
ed twinges, he won to his goal and sat
in front Of the opened desk. He found
the will readily and tore it through an
grily, then wrote upon the biggest frag
ment, This is the work of a neglected
father"
But all this had taken time, and dusk
was falling rapidly.
He snatched up fresh sheet and
began to write. but the racing dark
ness was too quick for him. Before he
was half through he stopped and look.
ed about him, full of thwarted, impo-
tent rage. He flung out his hand and
struck it against a taper which had
lain there so long he had forgotten 1t.
BY it's feeble light he finished the new
will and signed his name with heavy,
scrawling flourish
Slowly, heavily, he got up and tried
to steady himself while he put the
crutches in place, but a sharp twinge
made him stagger He lost balance
and fell prone, overturning the lighted
taper and bringing 1t in contact with
the contents of an open drawer. They
blaZed up merrily. In wink the
whole room was ablaze As he lay
helpless he saw the flames lick at the
carvings on top of the desk. Then in
deed the squire groaned aloud and
dragged himself to the open window.
\ wall of fire was behind him, be.
fore him 4 fall of almost twenty feet!
To swing ont and lrOD down below
meant certain death even If he had
strength for 1t. He shouted, but moth
ing came of It, Sally was really fast
asleep in the cool back yard. He shut
his eyes and thought of Edith's moth
er. In the great extremity there came
flash Of comfort-when he was dead
both wills would be burned, and Edith,
his only child, would have everything.
He ought 10 have been angry, but
somehow he could not be- The mount
ing flames made his own wrath look
poor and tame He had given up and
was waiting for the end when straight
through the wall of fire there burst
slim figure, sheeted and blackened, but
moving like the light itself. In a wink
1t had torn off the wet blankets pro-
tecting ii, sWathed the squire In them
and was bearing him out to safety re-
gardleSs of the flames that leaped at
its own head. Once through the door
other arms laid hold on him and helped
to bear him down tie stairs. When he
came = himself fully ha was Stratchad