Evening star., 1908-01-12

which her beauty and her voice were produc-
ing, she sang as she had never sung before,
reaching a magnificent climax IN the aria,
Come unto Him
Even the old and hackneyed hymns tugged
at Clara heartstrings. She led, with Luce, the
congregational singing. He stood beside her,
and his voice. deep barytone, r1valed her
own in richness and power. No other voice
with which she had joined hers had blended
quite so sympathetically and to the exaltatlon
of religious emotion was added the thrill which
the musician feels in perfect ensemble.
And when it was all over and Elisha Luce,
taking her hands, thanked her for her part in
the nights great work, she could find no words
submerged. When he asked whether he might
walk with her to the hotel, she could only smile
assent, moist eyed.
Dedley is not city of distances, so the way
to the hotel was short. TO Clara it was path
of enchantment, moonlight and shadows in
quiet street bordered with old elm trees; the
October night warm and odorous.
An exchange of commonplaces developed
that they possessed friends in common; but
communion subtler than spoken words ap-
prised Clara that theirs was a spiritual
quaintance, whose beginnings were obscure.
And so it did not seem sudden strange,
natural that Elisha Luce should suggest that
she remain with him instead of going on to
Beaire; that she dedicate her glorious voice
to the service of God, instead of to the service
of art. She listened one in trance, asserting
subconsciously to his deep toned utterances.
His voice grew lower. more intense. Gradu-
ally the import of his speech took shape
in her mind. He was asking her to be his
wifei
There was no impulse to answer no; on his
part nothing more than hope for considera-
ton of his proposal. When he asked her
if she was offended by the abruptness of it,
she returned gentle negative.
They had reached the hotel.
Your friends will be going forward to-
morrow he said. In the meantime will you
think over what have said?'
Yes"
She gave him her hand. and he pressed it in
brief Silence that spoke to both the word TO
morrow" Then they parted quickly.
That night, sleepless in the moonlight, Clara
reviewed the past and traversed the future.
A life hitherto undreamed Of rose wildly before
her minds eye, and she saw herself the wife of
Elisha Luce, going about with him from city to
city, bearing the message of hope and the
promise of rest for all that labor that are
heavy laden. What peaceful existence COM
pared with the career of an artist! And the
two men, what a contrast Waiter Butler,
moody and petulant, the sport of impulse;
Elisha Luce, calm as the hills, serene as still
waters at sundown She was fond of Walter
despite his moods and pettinesses They had
never plighted troth in words,-Walter had
somehow taken her consent for granted but
she always had the feeling that should she
withhold consent his vanity rather than his
So after all it was not Walter who was being
considered now, but the startling possibility
of abandoning career for which she seemed
inevitably fitted. She artist should
she not live the life of artist restless, tenn
pestuous. as it might be? Could she be happy
in any other sphere!
The answer was not long delayed. Her
thoughts returning to the other sphere, she fell
suddenly asleep as one that IS wakeful in
duces sleep by fixing the mind upon some
well remembered woodland valley, or windless
uplands in fading afterglow.
When she awoke she found that all her
doubts and misgivings had been left behind in
Poppyland. The one thing that stood clear,
in the flooding sunlight of golden October
morning was that she loved Elisha Luce-the
man, not the evangelist. Peaceful or stormy
as the future might be, it was her wish to meet
it as his wife.
Her heart beat rapidly as she descended to
breakfast. Elisha Luce sat alone at the table
set apart for transients. He greeted her
gravely, and she took seat beside him.
Il have been thinking over last night" he
said and feel that my sudden declaration
must have seemed to you extremely incon-
sderate. | have no right to hope that you
care for me, no reason to expect answer
now. Then, there your friends to be taken
into account the engagement at Bellaire-"
But don't want to go to Bellaire,'' said
Clara softly.
% ICHTER was dazed when Miss Mannering
~ told him the news: but he accepted the