Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1908-11-11
CHAPTER XXI.
The So the of Time.

d..
purst lnto her fathers room. i want
you much TO do something for me. Mr..
Jasper so Kind. He has promised to
have a game of bowls with me this
evening on the lawn and the grass IS
not mown
Well, dear, get it mown,' SAID Mr..
Jordan dreamily.
But there is no man about, and olo
Davy is in bed. What am | to do?'
Wait till tomorrow
l cannot; | shall die of impatience.
have set my heart on a game of
10 Is Do you not see, papa, that the
weather may change in the night and
spoil play for tomorrow
Then what do you wish?'
%. my dear papa, Eve nestled into
his arms, I don't want much, only that
You would cut the grass for me- 1t
really VIII not take you ten minutes
| will promise to sweep up what is
cut
am engaged Eve, on a very DELI
cate test
So am /. papa
Mr. Ignatius Jordan looked up at her
with dull surprise in his eyes.
/ mean, papa, that if you really love
me you will jump up and NOW the
grass. If you don't love me you will
go On muddling with those minerals
and chemicals
The gaunt old man stood up Eve
knew her power over him. she could
make him obey her slightest caprice.
She ran before him to the gardener 5
Toulouse and brought him the scythe.
In the quadrangle was a grass plat,
and on this Eve had decided to play
her game.
All the balls are here except the
Jack said She i shall have to rum
mage everywhere for the black-a moor
I can't think where he can be- Then
she ran into the house in quest of the
missing ball.
The grass had been left to grow ali
spring and had not been cut at all, so
that it was rank. Mr.. Jordan d not
well know how to WELD a scythe. He
tried and met with so little success
that he suspected the blade was blunt
According he went to the Toulouse
for the hoe, and, standing the scythe
up with the handle on the swath
tried to sharpen the blade
The grass was of the worst possible
qSality. The quadrangle was much
in shadow The plots were so ex-
hausted that little grew except daisy
and buttercup. Jasper had already
told Barbara to have the wood-ashes
thrown on the plots, and had prom
ised to see that they were lined in
winter Whilst Mr. Jordan was hon
ing the scythe slowly and clumsily
Barbara came to him. She was sur
prised TO see him thus engaged.
Lean, haggard, with deep-sunken eyes,
and hollow cheeks, he lacked but the
hour-glass to make him stand as the
personification of Time. He was in
an ill-humor at having been disturbed
and set to an uncongenial task,
though his ill-humor was not directed
towards Eve. Barbara was always
puzzled by her father. That he sui
fered she saw, but she could not
make out of what and where he suf-
fered, and he resented inquiry There
were times when his usually dazed
look was exchanged for one of keen
ness. when his eyes glittered with
feverish anxiety. and he seemed to
be watching and expecting with eye
and ear something or some person
that never came. At table he was
without conversation: he sat morose
lost in his own thoughts till reused
bv an observation addressed TO him.
His temper was uncertain. Often, as
he observed nothing, he took oHence
at nothing; but occasionally small
matters reused and unreasonably ir-
ritated him. An uneasy apprehen-
sion in Barbara's mind would not be
set at rest. She feared that her
fathers brain was disturbed, and that
AT any time, without warning, ne
misk break out into some wild, I'M
reasonable, possibly dreadful act, pro-
claiming to everyone that what she
dreaded in secret had come to pass
total arrangement OF late his hui
NOR had been especially cudhSeiui'
but his eldest daughter sought to con-
.3ince herself that this could not De
accounted for by distress at the loss
of Ewes dowry.
barbara asked her father why ne
was moving the grass plot, and when
he told her that Eve had asked MIN
70 do so that she might play bowls
that evening on it, she demonstrated
Whom is she to play WITH
Jaspar Babb has promised ner
game. | suppose you and | VIII pc
dragged out to make up party
O papa, there is no necessity TOT
vonr moving, You do not understand
a scythe. Now you are honing the
wrong way, bunting. not sharpening
the blade
of course 1 am wrong. | never 90
r;obf in YOUR eyes