The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1909-12-19

whole and sound. Through all the girl
never lost her high spirit, and il for
a moment her brave, bright speech
} was silenced in face Of peril or un-
) certainty, it soon began again, hearten-
ing both men for continued struggle
!, IL was not till late in the afternoon
tRat they finally turned in between
gate posts hardly perceptible from
snow to an avenue of cowled pines.
Then Cecilia Welcome, gathering her
strength, uttered long whoop OF Joy
} and triumph IN which both men Joined.
Just above them on the hill which the
tlred horses must yet mount stood
large white house, sheltered by tall
pines and bare becches, amid cumps of
evergreens. They could not see its
portal. but from behind the clustered
eyeroreens came the. resounding boom
Of 4 megaphone: "Merry Chrisfmas!
came 10 them cheeringly.
THAT my brother Ned's roar!"
exclaimed she III Joyful tones. ''Oh,
what fun, what fun! There IS nothing
in all the world so good as getting
home, is there2 Now. Mr.. Fountain. I
know my people will insist on your
coming in to pass the night with us,
IL Will be rather squeeze, since my
two brothers and their wives and
that. will you2''
''Thanks, "A thousand times, but you
said the hotel is Just at the bottom of
the hill on the other side. Francois
can get me there all right, ] IN sure,
And I'd be happier, far not to intrude
on your family circle. -
rows '@she urged. "No, wen take no
denial. owe you everything for your
companionship today. It IS made this
pretty tough Job of ours an easy
one. III own TO you, now, that L, more
than once felt my pluck oozlng when
| saw we had the snow world to our
selves, not another human being in
sight the chief part of the way. But,
thanks to the horses and Francois and
you, and the footstove, ] downed my
craven fears. All this long way il has
occurred to me several times you don t
even know my name.'
So 1t has occurred to me- he said,
''but there was no one TO perform the
Office of introduction.
81 IN Cecilia Welcome. daughter Of
Mr.. John Rufus Welcome of this town
who, you will find, is a rather we'll
known rcsident-but-oh! there's Ned
there 8 Tom-there are the dogs and
the servants trying TO fight The snow
off the front porch. oh, how good!
How good! How blessed!'
In the tumult Of succeeding moments
Fountain had but time to exchange
hasty greetings and explanations with
the two men who came plunging down
mighty OTlIlS 10 tNlIdCI lHcit
sister bodily from the sleigh and carry
her and her belongings inside the house.
AS the door shut them in. and again
Francois urged his horses in their final
effort down the driveway TO the town
lying at the foot Of the hill, the stout
Canadian opened his lips to explain that
for not another lady in the land but
Mile. Cecilia would he have risked the
foolhardy business of today. Had she
not saved his life when no severed an
artery with his scythe year ago! Had
she not brought his baby through the
Group and made well woman Of his
hitherto complaining spousel
To all of this Fountain listened some
what dazed, like one who has been
stunned. From the moment he had
heard her father g name, he knew that
al was up between him and the Sean
dinaviau goddess-the brave sweet girl
of his idyl Of the SHOWS, For the bust
ness on which his firm had sent him TO
Canada was the virtual chnchlng of
their office, in which Mr.. John Rufus
Welcome. through his own mistaken
Judgment Some years before, was con.
sderably involved. AS things looked
now. if, after his consultation with Mr.
Welcomes man Of affairs certain i'm.
probable concessions were not agreed
upon, Mr.. Welcome would find himself
facing the loss of very noteworthy
sum Of money.
Certainly. no time this for his intro
duction in form to the Welcome fam
lily! Badly chagrined, wishing with all
his heart he could throw the now de-
testable business to the winds, Tony
Fountain dropped into bed that night
more genuinely vexed and sorrowful
than actual circumstances should seem
TO warrant. At an early hour next
morning he dispatched by messenger
to Mr.. Welcome s house n formal note
of regret that he was unable 10 accept
Miss Welcomes kind invitation TO "a
Christmas dinner with her family, AT
ter passing an acutcly lonely day, un-
varied save by q talk with Mr.. Wei
come 8 lawyer that offered no solace
for his woes, he forced his way back
TO Evansdale in Francois s sleigh. fol
lowing the track they had broken the
dav before Was il n dream that he
had ever breasted discomfort and dan,
ger with his pluclJy Lady Of the Shows? +?
Already, perhaps, she has found him
out through the family lawyer, and
with her family was engaged in exc.
Grating his name and business. An!
well. there was nothing for him but
to bury the disagrocable episode in the
grave of memory, and trample 1t ont
of siuht. Thank heaven, it WASH Il like
ly the two would ever meet again.
Two years following this incident An.
tony Fountain, who. through capacity
and industry, had forged well to the
front in his profession. and had passed
with credit his examinations for the
bar, was making ready TO be one of a
week end Christmas party Mt a friend s
country place near town when assailcd
with some sudden poignant malady
that compelled him TO send off n teIc
gram of apology and retire without
preliminary into the dismal shades Of
his lodging house, shared in company
with three or four other men, all Of
them absent from the premises except
during dressing and sleeping hours. An
afternoon Of intocrable tossing aud
growing agony forced him to call into
redusition the services of their land.
lady. n parsonage whom IT had hitherto
been his constant eudeavor To avoid cX-
cept for necessary financial transactions.