Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1907-04-30

lieliiofy OF a kiss. and the image of
Alsome took shape again before his
lnd,-A1some, as she had stood that
night on the wharf at Hakodate. bidd-
ing MIN good-by, dainty as a moon
flower, exquisite as Queen of Fairy.
! land
Yokohama, August 16, 1908.
GU Will perhaps be surprised at
nearing from me. but you will not ac-
cuse me of forwardness, | am sure,
when you learn my reason for address
ing you in this manner. Some time
ago the estfmable Mr.. Sano did me the
honor of desiring to marry me- Soon
after your departure for Hakodate he
again offered me his hand. and when
made 1t plain to him that should
never consent, he became very angry
and accused me- how shall express
myself of having become infatuated
with the American, meaning you. In
his Jealous rage ne revealed the fact
that he had given secret orders to the
captain of the Shikoku Maru to have
/ you disposed of you will never"
he exclaimed, crashing his teeth like
wolf, behold your beloved Amerf-
can again You can imagine that this
confession did not advance Mr. Sano
to any great extent in my esteem
Though did not betray myself to
MIN, | was nearly frantic concerning
you. | went to the higher, authorities,
told them frankly of Sano's proposal to
me, and of his plot against your life.
| disclaimed any interest in you, fur
Their than the fact that you were inno-
Ecent, and that it would not be wise at
this time to excite American hostility,
or to involve Japan in complications
with that coutry. Sane, being sum
moned, denied the plot, denied that
he had ever sought my hand, or that
he had any feeling for me except ad-
miration for my talents. The author
tiles were rather amused over. the
affair and seemed to think that I
bore Sano some private grudge, which
/ was trying to pay off was redue-
ed to despair, hardly knowing what
course to pursue next, when the news
arrived that Shikoku Maru had been
wrecked and that you were taken off
and carried to Vladivostok by Rus
sian merchant steamer I take for
| granted that you are safely in Strye-
tensk ere this and are deeply i'm
mersed In your new duties. Sano, by
the way, is SO bitter against me now
and SO intent on my ruin. that have
applied for service in Manchuria, a
task for which l am fitted by my
thorough knowledge of the Chinese
language. So you see into wat trou.
BILE you have got me by calling me-
your Queen Of Fairy-land" and your
Little Lilac Blossom" Are not WON.
en- silly?
/ am firmly convinced that this
susceptibility to flattery renders them
untitled for all serious work In the
| world
Butt could not rest without letting
you know that I did not deceive you
and that am not the treacherous
creature you must have thought me, If
you gained any ink ng of the designs
upon you. | suppose you have en-
tirely forgotten your Japanese friends
ere this, and that you have become
an enthusiastic admirer Of the beauty
/ of the Russian ladies' Still, il you
should ever think of me again,
| should hate to have any unpleasant
impression associated with the mem
orr Of one whom you once thought
of as Lilac Blossom" and a
Queen of Fairy-land." Am not silly?
Your friend,
AlSOu1es sMOSurO
/ Hardy was grateful to Aisome for
writing him this letter, and he saw
4 in the impulse which dicated it only
a delicate perception of the right
/ thing, friendly desire to preserve
one of his most charming impressions,
and to protect her own memory, as
treasured in the heart Of stranger,
now in a distant land. Deciding that
1 <,G L III
letters he had ever received in his
life, and regretting that as Aisome
had not given her address he could
away in his desk. to treasure it as
| thought of whom would always give
him pleasure
He gained from the letter that Ais
4 ONE was most feminine woman, de.
lite her calling. but the idea never
occurred to him that she was in love
with him
CHAPTER XVII
One morning, as Hardy was busy at
his desk in the rear of the principal
| room Of the store Vasili came and
stood beside him, smiling supercili-
! ously.
Are there many Jews in America p"
he asked.
Hardy, believing that this was sim
| ply another attempt on the part of
his clerk to take an English lesson,
4 replied sharply:
81 don't know. Don't talk to me
now, please, I'm busy"
But Vasili, contrary to his custom,
when he was cody received, per-
sisted:
THE Jews are very numerous in
Russia. They are much hated by the
Christians. They crucified our Saw
our and they sacrifice young children
to their heather rites
This was rather an extended effort
for Yasili, and, though it had a de-
cided Ollendorfian ring, there was
something in his manner that indi-
Gated a deeper purpose than the mere
desire to profit by his superior's Eng
lish
"Nonsense!" exclaimed Hardy with
4 irritation. II have no patience with
any such folly. That is all an idls