Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1908-01-02
TIE OLD AND NEW.
Ru Paul 2. Harris.

He WAS a young iaan. sail and ~ell
made; that much Was noticeable to the
pedestrians Who thlonged the brilliant-
IL lighted street on New Years oNe.
Aiany smiled in a cynical way rs they
stepped aside TO avoid his res.ing form.
others looked the disgust they felt, and
fca. indeed. were they who by word or
look cNinccd Il spirit of charity.
The young man needed not. he could
summon TO his whirline brain but one
picture. He saw.thc CHASTITY lace of the
corpse he had lett but a few moments
before ut the molgue. The body was
that OF 4 companion in the Gays de-
!bauch. 4 Stranger III the city. n OF the
thousands OF unknown. He had lost his
life III AN altarcation cVlT cards, says
the Radford Review.
He drove his way through me thick
est of the crowd as though tine exercise
relieved HIM. anG occasionally no
pressed his palms to his lhrohoins tenn
pies on brushed the damp hair from his
hot forehead. He STROBE on across tho
bridge and far into Il residence portion
of the city beyond. Twice he stumbled
and fell, but vas quickly UP and on
again. He uYne into Il sidc street and
approached a Well lighted church. The
services were about To begin and tho
'ycung man concealed himself in an OBJ
Scure niche n waited. He WaS BREATH
ing heavily. The organ prelude came
,tremblingiY to his ear. He knew whose
fingers touched tn. responsive keys and
he groaned aloud: The barriers oh,
We're it not for The balriers." The mu-
sic rose to e~cstatic bursts. thea soft
encd again in plaintive dininuendc. 1t
Preached his heart and a food OF tears
at last moistened his fevcred checks
and assuagcd his agony. His ho2,t ~.ss
bowed down us he listened To -.N
prayer in song.
Eater. he staggered on to n business
'~thorouahfare and into a private room
AT a favorite haunt. There, throwing
himself into a chair. he buried his face
lin his hands. His thoughts reverted to
the CLASSY eyes. and wishing to dispel
the image. he ordered a whisky straight
and filling the glass to the brinl. WAS
about to turn the contents down his
song prayer came back to him. He
placed the whisky glass upon the table
and drained the seller glass instead.
He heard Il number of his maudlin
comrades enter the bar and he arose
and bclted the door to his private
room.
When his friends We're gone. he
thought again of the organist and the
last words she had spoken TO him:
"When YOU have satisfied yourself that
true happiness lies only in the paths
of righteousness and are prepared TO
pay 90 'HSoit'-'l iioiii SUM- .ii'ti sun
then and then only. may you come to
me. l shall be Waltllg, Fred; and he
recalied 10 nilhd now the cam, deep
loNe-iiSht 'ha' snohe thfouSn ihe mist
OF tears in the blue eyes had reminded
him of pictures he had seen of the Ma
uoiiila. ana ne fecailed now often since
ne MAD hefVed hlmself TO DO better
ihihss' ana 'heh he Thought OF the
barriers.
lie thought OF her as he had first
known her. Il girl of 10. and how he
used to sit in the family pew in the old
church down near the river and gaze
at her wealth OF dark brown hair and
ions to twlne ms myers IN 1t.
Dying WIN me WHISKY glass, he
saiu' IN 'i,ls IS .ne power TO carry me
~ 10 ',e TOSS OF seIi-respecl loss of
n.dliooa' ana ioss ol NerStnlng mat
,lle nous ell aiiu. pefnaps. Ultimately
~ .hI hiois"e' were my SldSsy eyes
Viii ~ nv saui y s,nr, oo,a dea'n STARE.