The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1909-03-24
A SOLDIER STORY.

By ROSEMARY HOAR.

The Gee of the girl with sunny
brown haid peeking out at him from
the oval gilt frame had brought back
many scenes Of the misty long ago, and
tonight he would live them all through
again. No wonder Dick Heaton loved
her! Any man well might, and Rich
ard was good man, too, good and gen.
erous; he proved 1t afterward. But
Martha never loved Dick; she never
loved anyone but him, common, ordin-
airy John Reynolds, with only pair
of stalwart shoulders and good heart
and soul to recommend him. Nothing
OF cleverness was there in his make
up; why had Martha Hadley loved him
so? Impossible to tell; 1t might have
been because her people did not wish
her to; they were determined that she
should marry Richard Heaton. Dick
was good fellow, but Martha did not
love him. So much was sure. But she
was a child of strong and righteous
people, inheriting traits Of self-denial
and forbearance, reared in the spirit
of setting aside desire for duty. She
had all her life yielded unquestioning
obedience to stern parents, and when
| they had persisted a sufficiently long
time in their opposition to John Rey-
holds, she succumbed, and, locking her
rose Of joy tightly within her heart,
consented to marry Richard Heaton.
And she did so. But to do justice
| 70 hn nt II
She, poor child, thought it possible to
keep her secret forever, and smile
and be dutiful to her chosen husband.
Keep such a secret lifetime! What
task! Of course, he guessed it, but she
did not know that. After she blushed
at the hypocrite he must have thought
her when she smiled upon him daily
and suffered his caresses, how should
she know that he had discerned the
truth when his manner remained un-
changed? Poor artless girl!
The unwonted discrimination was be-
ginning to tell upon her; John Rey-
rolds knew it, for he saw her from time
to time as she went here and there
to the village gatherings with her
husband. And his honest face burned
and his good heart ached that she
should suffer the most of all. He
hushed his own cry of pain, and even
hoped that she might forget him, for
her own sake, and stamp out his men,
ory from her heart.
He pitied Richard Heaton, too, for
something told him, that the man
must one day awaken to the truth. He
would far rather be in his own posi-
ton, beloved as he knew himself to
be. than in Dicks although Heaton
was her husband Some blessings are
twofold in value when doubled in guam
tity, but such is not true of all good
things That woman Is indeed rich
who possesses the love Of an honest
man; Martha, with the love of two,
might as well, or better, suffer dearth
of affection, and the pretty timid face
faded, too, as both John Reynolds and
Dick Heaton observed, but neither re-
marked it except to his own heart.
The gilt-framed picture of the brown
haired girl had brought it all back to-
night.
The log on the fire was crumbling
away. He went to get another and as
he did so staggered little. 1t might
have been from the rigldity Of his long
position he thought; it could not be
from weakness, for he was strong
man. He had never been i'll in his life,
save after the wound at Gettysburg,
and once again few months ago, when
he had suffered sort Of shock. 1t was
that last sickness of his that had made
Msrtha's heart palpitate so badly. He
had not been just exactly as spry as
usual since. But he was a strong man
and not seventy yet.
The fresh log cracked and sent out
sparks. He set the screen in front of
It, for the sparks might set fire to
Martha's dress. Martha! Where was
she? He leaned forward and placed
his hand upon the vacant chair. Then
he remembered that she was not there,
but in the oval gilt frame, wearing a
lilac dimity and sunny brown curls just
as in the days before she was Richard
Heaton's wife. And good wife she
was too,' and meant to be always
always.
Dick was the best of husbands, but
when the war broke out, of course, he
had to go; Heatons had fought for CEN
turies back and their blood flowed
through his veins He was made cap
tain of the village company in which
John Reynolds was a private. And at
least one woman's prayerful benedic-
ton followed both into battle; Rey-
nolds saw her on the street in the
midst of others, watching as they
tramped away. She saw him, too, at
tho same moment; that was all. Both
were full sure that they should never
meet again on this side of the shadowy
border; each sent up spontaneous
prayer to God for the keeping of the
other What were the feelings of the
other onlookers and soldiers we know
not, but these three hearts seemed to