Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1907-11-29

atored heavily at her, but shook MS
head as her meaning came nome 10
him.
"Indeed an It was" persisted Peggy.
"Only for me you niver would have
struck IN ut all. An to think IT was
meseIf that warned ye In the beginning
an went an drove ye to 1t IN the 'ha'
II only you had let IN strike me dead
ut his feet! 1t d have been bettner
than that-an' this"
Still he looked at her without word'
and still there was no light, no life' no
feeling In the look. but only DUMP anu
dead despair.
"You thought l liked imp exclaimed
Peggy wildly. They've been teiln
We their black lies in the huts. It's
little they know how it's been between
us from the sthart. I'll tell ye tnls'
Tom. bother a hundred times be the
man he's a spite agin than the girl
he's his wicked eye upon. That's MI.
Nat for We, an l hate 1m-l loatne
limits Gods truth I'm telling ye.
Tom. dear, he cot me out there last
night niver whit out wild Inn. he
cot Inc prowlin' about, as he said, an
that's the truth, too, though he tould II.
I couldn't sleep for thinkin' O the TWO
O. yez. It's well knew he was up 10
some divils work at last. I'd seen I'm
talkin'-an' what do you suppose he's
I'D to now?" asked Peggy, going on at
q tangent. what 90 you suppose
he's DOM ut this moment? Lynn
dhrunk on his bed-lyin' de'd dhrunk
for the shame Of it! You knocked m
down. You knocked IN down. He
won't get over t till his dyin' day. No
body ilse liver so much as lifted
ham agin i'm on the farm. But glory
be to God, you knocked i'm down"
There was more than unthinking ex-
ultaticn in her tone; there was very
singular sort Of pride also, and this as
unthinking as the other. it was so In
genuous and plain. But Tom saw moth
ing with those dreadful eyes and
heard but little beyond her soothing
brogue. And then she did think and
saw a mark on the blanket In rod OF
moonlight (for she had shut the door,
and cried out to God to forgive the
most selfish woman in all the world.
She had thought Of herself and not
of Tom. She had talked about herself
and not about Tom. In her selfishness
she had forgotten what she had brought
him. and a medicine bottle Of pilfered
milk and rum was at his parched lips
In an instant. She made him drink OF
1t, and drink deep, and mutton sand
witches. deliciously cut and salted, she
put between his teeth with her own
fingers, bite after bite, as though he
had been her infant And all the time
she was railing at herself for forget
ting this and being the most selfish
woman in the world, while he ate ana
drank from her tender hand and never
said a word.
But when this was over he took that
hand in his, and so they sat as II
seemed for hours in thin rain OF nj
tered moonshine. Still his eyes were
steadily dOwncast the whole time
Thus they missed the happy tears In
hers.
At last he spoke, and 1t was terrible
for she could not understand a WORD
Then he coughed and tried again and
said, "God bless you. Peggy-only there
isn't one in New South Wales!' And
that left them both silent and the CIR
grieving openly for almost as long
again.
Then he said quite quietly:
"You know I've been in the con
demned cell, Peggy. But it was moth
ing to this. My God. 1t was nothing to
thisw
Peggy pressed his hand.
1.-THE condemned cell at Newgate,'
he went on. II was there up to the
very last night and heard the people
taking their places to see me swing
Well. that night was nothing to this
And If they had hanged me In the
morning 1t would have been nothing
nothing-it would have been nothing
The hoarse voice broke sob after sol
shook the tortured body, and the CIR
glowed with shame to find herself thu
useless witness Of an agony 80 su
preme. But his tears dried hers ant
bound their fount. 1t froze her hear
to hear and see him. She was afraid
to speak to him, to touch his hand
She withdrew q little, and her barr
foot pressed a cold oasis on the warn
ground. She stopped and picked up
coin.
"HaW cried Tom.
His voice was very bitter now, blu
under control In a moment.
"Where did 1t come fromw aske'
Peggy, with the coin to a shining
crevice.
II am ashamed to tell you," and b.
ground his teeth. "But you will neve
guess. From a greater brute than el
Their Of the Sullivans. He came to lool
at me just afterward. was steamin
like a horse in this blanket, and b.
came and gloated over me and fun!
me q farthing-a fartnlng-tne yer.
beast who ordered me the lashes INT
pretended to be SO kind"
"A farth'n'W
eyes. God help him If ever I get III
yellow throat between these ten IN
gersp' And they were clutching mul
derously in the air, and there wa
murder in every vibration Of the husk
voice.
"Sure, an 1t isn't farth'n' 1t Is
ALL"
"What is II. then%
"A sov'rinr'
And the soft Irish brogue was rfc
90, I ..ttsfo ofjon She Shove