The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1909-07-01
Copyright, 1909, by Albert Payson Terhune
By ALBERT PAYsoN TER

him. His senses intinctively strained for the roar of traffic, the stark hurry Of men, the smell of cities. Through out the day the universal stiffness of the wildS was broken only by the oc- casional "tck-tck-tck" of launches. By night, even this was absent; and as Desfree said, God seemed very near But the hush. the eternal calm of it all wore upon the Fighters nerves. As well have expected the south wind to draw whispering melodies from a bar rel-organ as for the spell of the forest to lay it's blessed and blessing hand on the brain of this Man of Cities. At times he caught himself counting the days that remained, and there was an impatient eagerness in the count. Then. ever, would come the thought that each passing day brought him twenty-four hours nearer to his part would give way to sharp, if .unde- fined pain.
 Another thing wore on him. To pre- vent Desfree from guessing at his bore dom he was forced to be always on guard. She had at first been half afraid he might not be sufficiently alive to the beauty of 1t all: and had exhibited to him her adored woodland treasures with the wistful pride of a child that shows an interested stranger it's most cherished toys.
 To drive the latent wistfu1ness from her eyes. Conover had soon entered effusively into the spirit of everything. And Desiree, usually so mercilessly deception. was too happy nowadays to observe his enthusiasmss mechanical tenor Hence. believing she had made convert, she ;redoubled her efforts in educating him up to the loveliness of the place. And, with the heroism of a Regulus, he suffered himself to be educated.
 At times of course he struck the wrong note. Once, for instance, at sunset they padded through the keel wide shallow channel from Raquette into Eldon Lake and found themselves in san unrippled basin of black water set in a, circle of forest and "clearing.'' The silence hung heavy as velvet It world. The mystic wonder of it all. beneath the setting sun. caught Desiree by the throat and held her trembling, -speechless. Caleb. splash;ng time with bis oar. began to sing.
 "Oh. dont!" she breathed: as though protesting against sacri1ege.
 ~GeeI Was I off the blamed key. again ?'' he asked.
 No. no;" she answered, the wonder light dying from sher face as the spell dissolved. "It's all right she went on. seeing his cha grin. Its all right. I'm sorry I was cross. You were so busy with the boat.you didn't get a chance to notice what a magic lake this is
 
 broken the charm. Look! Cart you see Siegfrie1 running through the hem- locks on his way to Mines cave? And that band of dead gray tamaracks down there with the single flaming maple in the foreground! Isn't it like an army Of tree-ghosts with the red standard in its van ?''
 So she prattled on. seeking to keep him from seeing how he had Jared upon her mood. But he. knewI none the less. And he realized that there were times. even on vacation. when one must be silent. But what those times might be he could not guess. Nor did he dare ask.
 When next day they climbed the Crags and looked down on the gleam- ing lake with the scattered green of its islands, she looked at him in eager expectation of his delight He sur veyed the lake in stony silence. Then let his gaze run expressionless over the lines of mountain ramparts far to southward that rose in ever higher swells until the farthest was half lost in haze. No word did he speak. He felt he was rising to the occasion. If one must not speak on Eldon Lake at sunset it followed that one should be equally reticent on the Crags by the brighter light of morning.
 "Say something!" she commanded, keenly disappointed at his apathy. Gro be Coutiuued.y