The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1908-08-29

taken care of babies, that MARCEL
had been one of them. So Bob whis
pered it all round, just to spite Maj
celia.
"And you believe the storyl" sal
Mr.. Lord.
'Yes, and Marcella believes it, too
because, when she asked you ant
Mrs. Lord, you did not do anything
but hug her and give her candy
That's just the same as saying it wa.
true. Then, lately, you are Away.
excusing her when she is naughty
Iguess she is most of the time-anc
saying she can't help it and once
she overheard you say you were afraid
of heredity."
"How do you know this?" de-
manded the man.
Because Marcella told me herself :
because sir-promise me you won't
tell, never" (Mr. Lord nodded
I (the boy stood on tiptoe and Whis-
peeed iutU nfr. EUru 5cadrJ, because
I'm one of those babies, too, and /
know how 1t feels. Only" and he
spoke louder, the folks that took
me always told me what I am, and
that it depended on me what got to
be. because heredity needn't count.
Most folks don't know it, and, if they
do, they can't surprise me. You see
Marcella didn't know, and she didn't
like being surprised"
Mr.. Lord looked searching1y at the
lad, and then out of the window.
Turning, he laid his arm on the boys
shoulder, saying Don't speak of
this. I trust you. Come here to-
morrow"
II beg your pardon, sir. 1 was
hot-headed." And, taking mp his
cap, he left the Office. In vain did
Mr.. Lord try to balance his accounts.
Across them ran the great mistake ne
and his wife had made. Hal was
right. Marcella ought to know, hard
as it would be now to tell her.
Years ago he and his wife, in their
childless loneliness, had adopted the
child. His logic had wanted her
early to know the truth; but his
wife's selfish craving for childish af-
lection had kept them silent, lest
Marcella might not love them as
much, if she knew she were not their
own daughter. Now the Nemesis
had come through the girls suffering,
and Mr.. Lord insisted that she should
be told.
"Tell her then yourself" yielded
his wife, at last. ''It will be the sad
dest Gay of her life.''
cit will be the beginning of the
best years of her life. One can't go
on living lie," he replied.
He went upstairs to find the child
curled up in the broad window-seat
looking at the moon. He drew her
towards him for he loved her more,
if possible, than did his wife and un-
derstood her far better. Papa
she asked before he spoke. "am I an
He held her close with kisses on
forehead, eyes and lips as he an
swered, eyes" The silence seemed
long and cruel to them both. She
shrank in his embrace as if she were
in pain, but he would not ler her go.
When quieted by his tenderness, he
told her how her own parents had
died, and how he and his wife had
taken her from the hospital to be their
own blessed little girl, and that there
had never been day since she came
to them that they had not rejoiced
she was theirs.
care you sure you don't want to
get rid of me, when they poke fun at
me at SCHOOL," she questioned.
Never" he answered "but why
didu't you tell me they did so?"
Because, first, I thought they did
it just to tease me; and, when did
try to ask, you and mamma gave me
candy. threw it away, though, just
as soon as got upstairs. Then I
heard mamma call me poor child"
Mr.. Lord shuddered as she spoke
-"and you said you were afraid
heredity counted. l looked up the
word in the dictionary; but, when
the teacher talked to me about inheri-
tances, 1 just pretended she meant
money. I wouldn't let her know I
saw through her. o papa, I'm the
miserablest little girl ever was adop-
ted. 1 don't belong nowhere. I
don't see why 1 got born" And the
child sobbed as if her heart would
break.
Very tenderly and slowly, so she
could understand each word, her
father explained to her that she was
truly their child, and that heredity
needn't count. if it held aught else
than final good for her.
The girl listened, at first stupidity,
then comprehendingly. Papa, if l
can begin tomorrow and not go to
that horrid school any more, per-
haps heredity needn't count that's
what you said. Perhaps I needn't
get mad so often. Please don't give
me any more candy, not for whole
year; and I'll try to get ahead on
heredity, if I've got it bad"
"You haven't. We three, you,
mamma and I, will try together for
a year, so that trying will make
a nice little inheritance to hand over
to next year"
"That will be fun, she exclaimed,
clapping her hands, forgetful of her
sorrow for the next hour. But it re-
turned to her as she woke in the
night, until she made up her mind
to begin at once, on the inheritance,
and so fell sleep.
The next afternoon Hal went tc
Mr.. Lords Office. What the two
said to each other was never known
till years after, when Hal asked Mar
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