Middletown transcript., 1907-04-27

That all was not as IL Sn0ulu De,
she never limited it, either to him
or to others. She never even
asked if he had beard from Mrs.
Mason, and he was greteful, for
everyone else continued to in.
quire. His answer noh was that
he was to have a vacation soon,
and when he returned from that
he would be able to give them
fuller particulars.
The vacation came AID was
spent on a walking tour. Lyman
despised bicycles and lauded
pedestrianism.
On the way home, in the latter
part Of August, he cane through
the town where he had courted
his wife, and where size was now
staying with her mother. 1t was
a very hot day, and he spent the
most of it in the shade of a grove,
leaving it little after dark to go
to where his wife was. He want
ed to see her, but he had no in
tention of letting her see him.
His heart beat fast in spite Of
himself, as he neared his mother
in-law's house, and at some risk
of discovery crossed the lawn
and stood in the shadow Of a bit
of shrubbery. He was not far
from a window, which was open,
and soon he distinguished the
voice of his wife. She was talk
ing cheerfully to her mother, and
after a little while he heard her
say they would have a light. His
heart thrilled as she brought it
ilf aud set it on the table, for he
could see her plainly. Involun-
tarIly he took step toward her,
then with stifed exclamation
Of self-contempt drew back.
How the sight Of her brought
all the past before him. She
had borne the separation far bet
ter than he had. He knew that
he had grown thin and haggard,
but she looked as straight and
slender and young and tranquil
as when he had first met and
fallen in love with her. TO his
longing eyes she looked even
prettier than then. She wore a
white dress of some soft fabric,
trimmed with delicate lace, a
pink ribbon about her throat, her
brown hair drawn styIishly up
and showing shiny ripples in the
light. She was as daintily nice
in her dress as ever, and for some
occult reason the fact drew
sigh from him. Her mother,
sitting in willow rocker in the
bay window, said something to
her and she laughed the old
musical laugh, that used to make
him think Of a mountain brook.
Then she took a book from the
table, and went with it out of his
range Of vision, probably to read,
for silence followed.
After waiting for some time,
Lyman crept softly away and re
sumed his tramp.
The next day but one. Lyman
told his nearest neighbor that he
had just come from his wife, that
she was looking well, but that
her mother seemed no better,
and he didn't know when Mrs.
Mason would feel that she ought
to leave her.
Since this sight Of Laura, Ly-
mans feelings had undergone
change He still felt very bitter
toward her because of her deser-
ton, but he longed unspeakably
for her presence in. his home.
He dreaded getting up in the
morning and going down to his
lonely breakfast, and he dreaded
coming home at night to the
lonely evening, 1t seemed as if
he would give anything in the
world-except the asking-to
have her back.
The summer glided into fall,
the days grew shorter, and an
occasional crisp coolness as even
ing approached, foretold the com
ing of frost.
And now Lyman's longing for
his wife became SO strong that
he began to think of the posi-.
bility Of his making the first
overtures toward RECONCILIATION.
He would have to assume that he
had not been wholly blameless,
and his soul rebelled against the
necessity but of two evils one
must choose the least Perhaps
he had been a trifle too insistent
on his own way sometimes. In
that last quarrel, now, her plan
had seemed to him foolish, and
he had required her to give il up,
even though it would not have
interfered materially with the