Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1909-03-26

that. somehow, this man wanted help
and he would have given 1t readily
if he had only known how.
Airs. Lambert III home this aft
e~rnoon." French said one day when
he came In to lunch. Il have just seen
Lambert. He seems quite excited. !
expect he has found 1t dull alone"
Carmichael could not have said what
made him stroll down to the little sta
ton after tea to see the rail come in
by which Mrs. Lambert was expected.
In another man 1t might nave been
mere curiosity. an easy way Of getting
through an idle hour; but Carmichael
was not an ordinary a Still, he ac-
knowledged to himself that, for some
reason or other, he was very anxious
to see his friends wife.
ut Is not every woman who would
suit him. he unused. Il wonder wheth-
er she does? He's a curious mixture.
There's a good deal of fire under the
ice, unless I'm very much mistaken.
He hasn't room enough here, no scope
for his energies. He IS a man who
needs space and action. His whole nI~
ture seems repressed. banked down. IF
the crust should ever brcak"-he drew
in his lips with a whistling sound-''I
shouldn't like to answer for the conse-
quences."
Carmichael arrived at the station ten
minutes too soon. and, as it was cold
and cherries On the little w~ind-swept
platform, he opened the gate at the
end and strollod along the embank-
ment. Lambert would be here directly
to meet his wife, and he did not wish
to be seen. 1t might look strange that
he should be there. At the same time,
Carmichael was inwardly resolved to
witness the meeting between the two If
he could do so unobservcd. He had not
gone far along the embankment when
he saw the figure Of q man in front
Of him. At first it was too dark to rec
ognize- who it was, but when he got
closer he saw that it was Lambert. He
was standing quite still, looking in the
direction from which the train must
coNle.
He must be very anxious to see his
wife," Carmichael thought, but he Won
dered a little.
Lambert was apparently too lost in
thought to hear, or the grass deadened
the sound of the approaching footsteps,
for he did not turn round. Carmichael
could have got away in the half-dark-
ness probably without being recognized,
but he went on. When he was near
-z.- H. ,.I L;~ I,- ~ l -,
shoulder. with a half-joking inquiry .;
but the light words died on his lips as
Lambert flashed round in nswer to the
touch.
What q face it was. The mask had
dropped, and the real man stood re-
vealed. He glared at Carmichael for a
monlcn as though he did not know
aim.
Good God, man, what is it?' Carmi-
chael exclaimed. what is wrong?
What are you doing here?'
He slipped his hand through the 9TH
er's arm and looked him steadily in the
face.
what do you want?' came the
hoarse reply, fierce, vicious, snarling-
Il voice and manner that were totally
strange to Carmichael. What are you
doing here? Spying"
1t was evident that the man had
thrown off all restraint, that every
nerve was on edge and would no longer
be controlled. Carmichael saw that he
was on the verge of a breakdown.
Come with me " he said. quietly.
You'll get cold standing here. The
trains not due for five minutes yet.
You've been worrying about Mrs. Lam
bert, I'm afraid. Well, she'll soon be
here now but"
words.
You think that's the matter!' he ex-
claimed. You think l can't bear the
suspense of waiting for my wife after
her long absence!" He laughed again.
Il fancied, somehow, that you would
know better. I've thought once or twice
Of telling you the truth. 1 had an
idea you might help me, but 1 could
never get to the point. 1t would have
been awful if you hadn't understood"
Il wish you had Carmichael said
earnestly. ~ have had a vague idea
almost from the first that there vas
something wrong. Tell me now. Thank
God. it is not too late"
81 don't know where to begin-or
how. There's nothing definite. I've no
complaint. But it's been growing for
years, until now"-he drew a long
breath-"I-I daren't risk it any long
err. I SILVER at the thought Of touch
ing her hand. l can't answer for what
l might say or do II I were shut up
with her again. You can't imagine
Observation-Disclosures could who had
not been through the same thing. She
and l alone together in that gloomy,
silent house! No escape, locked up to-
gether, day and night, with not a
thought or an aim in common! Perfect
strangers-worse-and yet forced into
a terrible companionship.
give been fighting the thing for
years." he went OF more quietly, after a
moment but I'm at the end Of my
tether. It's gone beyond me. It's not
her fault, it isn't mine; but nothing
will alter it. That's why I came here
tonight. l thought it would be best
to end it that wayne nodded at the
line that was beginning to hum with
the approaching train-Sbefore a worse
thing happened"
Carmichael was not the man to talk