The daily Alaskan., 1909-10-18
0N THE R00E
He Didn't Want to Seize the 0p-
 portunity, but She Did.
By HARRIET LuMMIs SMITH.

l By HARRIET LOmMlS Sml H' ! CCopyrlght. ls9 by Associated Literary Prcssl
 "We've time enough yet to take a | look at the city from the top of the Sc curites building. IEs worth seeing, you know"
 Prudence should have vetoed the sug- gcstlou. For the longer half of the bllssful aftcruoouVioIa had been aware that Raymonds eyes were saying more than they should and that their mute |eloQucucc was siugularly sweet and satisfying. Considering the fact that she was as good as engaged to another man, discretion couusclcd flight, A
 voice within, an authoritative voice, cried out that at the best the day would soon be over and urged her to make the most of it
 Viola compromised. MT Raymond suggests our getting a view of the city from the top of one of the skyscrap- CTS" she said, turning to her out of town guests. "lf you are not too l tircd'- And her heart leaped at the 1 Ipromptucss of their protests. She walked beside Raymond silently, glad that he. too, seemed to have noth- ! ing to say. She was frightened to find herself cIingiug so ferccly to the joy of that afternoon together He had come upon them quite by accident, but Viola knew that but for her he would have lifted bis hat and gone his way. l The gIaducss that lc0ped to her eyes at the sight of him, the tremor in her
 voice as she spoke his name, had ! been his undoing-and hers. They had | lunchcd aud taken a drive along the bouleyards. Viola's country cousins had had the time of their lives. And now the western sky was red, and the time for saying goodby was near.
 They stood looking down upon the
 city. Raymond, as in duty bound,
 pointed out the objects of interest
 The country cousins hung upon his
 words and declared that they would not have missed the sight for any thing. AS for Viola. she had no eyes for the crawling streets between the steep cliffs of brick and stone nor for l the crawling creatures far below. Bra zenly she feasted her eyes upon him. He turned suddenly and looked into her eyes, and his own caught fire. A
 moment later they were standing to- gethcr In an angle of the roof, shel-
 tered from the view of their cOmpan- ions. The noise of the city below them . seemed far away.
 Raymond broke the spell by a down. ward gesture. "T wish 1t were all mine"
 You mean the whole town? What ! greediuCss" she laughed
 "So that I could give 1t all to you"
 "Thaul5 you, but I'm not ambitious
 to be a pIutocrat Of course one must
 have the things one is used to. Pow
 erty is the worst of all."
 "Is it? Ills eyes challenged hers.
 "Oh. don't! You make 1t so hard for
 me.'
 "You make 1t hard for yourself when you fight against your heart"
 "Oh, you don't understand, Phil. It isn't as if I had only myself to think of"
 "Do you ever give a thought to me| She put her hands over her ears In sudden trcmor. If she listened longer she was lost. "I must go," she said
 hurricdly. "Tvc stayed longer than I
 should. but 1t was so pleasant" Sbe
 turned in a panic and fled across the
 roof and he followed slowly. When he
 overlook her her eyes were dilated.
 They're goncw she gasped. "Who?"
 "Why. Leonard and Bessie. What
 could have induced them to go without usT
 q don't know, I'm sure. But they
 will be waiting for us below without
 doubt"
 He tried the door, rattled the knob sharply and met questioning her gaze
 with a blank stare. We're locked up
 here" Gc exclaimed. Then as Viola laughed hysterically he added in haste: Don't be frightened. It will be very easy to attract some cne's attention" Half an hour ,a,er, flushed and drip ping with precipitation as a result of his fruiIcss cNcrtion, he aCknOwledg- cd his mistake. Your cousins must have thought we had gone down be- . fore them But after they get home and We fail Co make our appearance 1t will of course occur to somebody that we're still up here. And the only thing to do is to resign ourselves to wait with what patience we can mus ter"
 ! She looked at him responsibility, but he did not meet her eyes. He sat some distance from her, staring mOOdi- l Iy at the roof Furtively Viola put back her veil and smOothed her hair. Apparently her appearance was to him
 a matter of complete indifference. He never turned his eyes.
 Her sense gf resentment found voice at last ".-re you going to sit here in absolute silence? Haven't you any