Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-04-26

the summit of the Ambejejus
horseback the party divided and
the Rev. DR.. Ransom Wallace
went away by himself. Dr.
Wallace enjoyed solitude on his
hunting trips To be sure. the 10 MARY
section was new in his experience Out
he had informed rather skeptical gulue
that there no losing him.
81 have sort of innate sense OF To-
cality" boosted he blandly. yet with
smooth obstinacy. to his friends. on
keep the guide and l will steal away by
myself. Don't mind me. I'll show up al
the camp for tea.
DR.. Wallace called his solitary tramps
..revels with nature" The hunting COM
panions who knew him we'll limited that
he liked to shake the crowd because lie
was a skillful hunter and abominated the
tagging along of twig-cracking bungiers
IT was certainly worthy OF remark that
DIR Wallace always shot his quota OF
game promptly and privately. as FAVOR
tie members of his fashionable congrega-
ton could annually testify.
When the last murmurings of voices
had died away behind him in the forest
aisIes Dr. Wallace gleefully brandished
his rifle like a. d1lmbbell snuffed the crisp
mellowness of the autumn woods and CUR
gled.
"Ah. it's good to be alive-and alone.
Ten hours later it wasn't as good to be
alone. 1t was dark. The wind Volleyed
down the rocky valley and the spruces
'boo-ed'' lonesomely. DIR. Wallace arose
from his knees. but not from devotlons.
He had been trying to blow into life the
little blaze his last match had ignlted
in the painfully collected pile of dry-kye.
But the wind had pulled against i, m VIC
toriously. 1t had blackened his face.
scorched his eyebrows and singed his
neat puffs of sidewhiskers. and finally.
aided by a wet drizzle. had douseo the
last flicker of blaze. DR.. Wallace looked
away into the mystic gloom harked to
the weird voices of the woods and sat
down and grOaned between his Sh1Verlngs.
He was lost-lost.
AS he sat and discontentedly pried
apart his fingers. pitchy from his clam
bering of sentinel trees. he pondered re-
morse fully that all his misfortune had
come from leaving the straight and mar
row path of the horseback. A broad and
easy way leading to the valley had tempt
ed him astray. He reflected with mourn
full usefulness that his experience would
make admirable illustration for a sermon.
But would he ever stand again before his
urban congregation? Solemn thought.
Lost men were like lost needles in tnat
wilderness. He. tattered and scratched
and unkempt and aching after his mad
scamperings in his lost mans panic. had
lie ever Daen Weli-SdrDeQ ana Calm ana
eloquent in a pulpit? This covering
wretch. shivering under the great trees.
seemed to be some one else.
-
Then. growing philosophic. he reflected
more bitterly that he had not always in
this life kept on through difficulties Of
the high and narrow path. Away back
there in the old days he had gone down
irfo he IL ho1 els ID hiv
self believe sometimes that he was back
on the heights again. but now, face to
face with himself. and with elemental
and naked nature talking its truths about
him, he realized the futility of his self
deception.
A loon on some far mount ain-locked
pond halleloo-ed it's almost 'human cry
like wall of regret And nearer still a
black bear barked in threatening staccato.
The trees voiced melancholy rebuke that
his soul in its new sensitiveness trans
lated for him. Natures loneliness IN the
sunshine had always been a welcome re-
lease from the life In which he moved
with almost the artificiality OF an actor.
Not that the Rev. DIR. Ransome Wallace
was corrupt man. His daily life-since-
had been clean. But he himself anew
that his manners, his comings and goings
at home. with the gaze Of the world ON
him. even the bland unctuous intona-
tons of his voice. were part of the as
sumption that city pastor must carry to
his role.
In his canvas coat bob tailed to a lux
uriOus degree; in his knickerbockers with
his rifle slung into the hollow of his arm
and the glory of sunlit outdoors about
him. he was again himself the actor be-
hind the scenes, relaxing the spiritual
and physical muscles that ached-alow-
ing himself the rare delight of hating the
squirmng mob of city schemers for a
day-unpastoral indulgence. but none the
less comforting. But now. with the sun
gone. the night brooding. the cold numb
ing his body and fear chilling his soul.
he met himself-and hated himself. And
he put aside all specious excuses. and
knew why,
When at last the dawn came-he watch
ing toward what his somewhat obstinate
judgment declared to be east-the sun. as
though in malicious jest, rose through
watery clouds in the southwest.
For half an hour DIR. Wallace sat
Righteousness tried to browbeat the sun
into egregiOus error. When the doctor
had reluctantly admitted to himself that
thu luminary, probably knew it's business.
east or west or south meant nothing help
full for him. Points of compass suggested
nothing. All the world seemed ske-
vowed
He got up and staggered away into the
woods. impelled to keep on his wander
ings. firing his rife occasionally. harken-
ing breathlessly for a reply. sustained
only by the dim hope that somewhere i'm
those vast tracts were other human beings
TO whom chance might lead him.
Late that afternoon. spent and tortured
by hunger, he came across small stream
roaring in zgzag course through deep
gully. He numbly realized that the brook
might lead to lake, and there might be
camp on the lake.
Just the dusk deepened he dragged
his feet out upon the moist and messy
level of ponds shore. A prayer of
thanksgiving-the most honest prayer that
ever burst from the lips of the Rev. DIR.
Wallace-greeted the sight of d small log
cabin across the cove.
A trail of smoke from the funnel tossed
across the little clearing on the breeze.
and the glimmer of outdoors cook fire
winked cheerily through the trees. When
a voice answered his shout and a canoe
came bobbing across the cove. the clergy
man sat down on a convenient tussOck
and wept weakly. the tears trailing
through the SCOT his face. The man
in the canoe was roughly CARRIED and UNI
shaver. and the man on the shore
miserable spectacle, but each. with the
masonry of the huntsman. recognized the
other city bred.
Ten minutes later DR.. Wallace was
telling his story in the camp to two SYM
pathiZing New Workers. Outside the
guide was STOPPING his grizzled head over