The daily tribune., 1909-04-17
The Secret Of
the Oak

tue iuieIS VI lue village, WHO we're
watching the woodmen work their
havoc In the small patch of woods,
stood John Matthews. To all save
one or two he was stranger, yet less
than half score Of years before he
had been known by almost every one
| in this little village.
But during the years of his absence
most of the older folks had gone to
their last home, the companions of his
youth had married and moved to
larger cities, while the children had
| grown to manhood and womanhood.
and to the present inhabitants John
Matthews, owner of the big house on
the hill, was somewhat of myth.
| He had returned from Africa the
| day before, returned upon the urgent
request Of his solicitors, who needed
| his assistance in settling the estate.
He had come from the city on an early
morning train, anxious to close up his
| affairs at once and get away from the
village as soon as possible. for he
had no desire to remain there.
| He had expected to find strange
| faces and many changes, but was
| hardly prepared for the scene before
him, the destruction Of this woodland
the Black Forest of his boyhood
days, in which he had slain imaginary
giants and dragons, and where in his
gentler moods he had hunted for fair
les with Mary, his little playmate his
later sweetheart, and the cause OF his
| desertion of home and country.
AS he stood looking on. the chop
| pers paused to select another tree,
and cry almost escaped him when
he saw that their next victim was to
be great oak. 1t seemed to the man
that an old friend was about to be
sacrificed
Under this great oak tree, centuries
| old, perhaps, he had spent the hap
| piest hours of his life. There was
hollow in It that they had discovered
one day. Mary had trained wild vines
to grow over 1t, and they had called
1t the treasure keep of their castle.
Then when they had gone away to
| school and college. it had been their
| post office.
| Returning for the holidays, II Mary
| was absent he was sure to ind let
ter waiting for him in the hollow. and
he would leave one for her when he
went away. At last, when school days
were over, and they were home once
more, the oak had been their 'rysting
| place, until the summer that his rival
| had come to the village.
| strong will, new scenes and
| friends, had helped him to forget. but
| now the memories came rushing back.
| Once more he could see Mary as she
| paused at the entrance OF the woods
| when he had pleaded with her to give
her answer to the question he had
asked so many times that summer
"You will find your answer In the
| oak at sunset" she had said
He had come back at sunset only
to find the hollow empty. and then he
knew her answer knew that the other
man Mad won. and that she had let
their old friend, the oak, tell him what
| her lips could not. That had been the
end, for he left the village that night,
and now after ten years one would
scarcely recognize the b. in this
stern, gray-haired man.
The blow of an ak brought John
back to the present AS he was about
to turn from the scene of destruction.
he saw something small and white
balance a moment on the edge of the
hollow and fall to the ground. The
woodmen picked 1t up, consulted a
moment, and then one OF them came
toward him.
"The boss thinks this belongs To
you." he said, handing John small
envelope, stained and yellow.
John nodded to the foreman, one OF
the few that had recognized him, and
with quickbeating heart, hurried
away from the curious throng. Ar
rlying at the house he went quickly
to the study that the care-takers had
made ready for him. Hastily he tore
open the little yellow envelope. The
note 1t contained was dated ten years
before Don't you know the answer
is yes, Jack?" was all 1t said.
Then the truth came upon him like
fash. A wind had carried the note
upwards as she tossed 1t into the hol
low which she was not quite tai
enough to reach, and 1t had lodged In
crevice above instead of dropping tc
the bottom.
The woodman's ax had Jared /,
from It's resting place OF years. In his
haste that day long ago he had over
looked It and had misunderstood. II
had been he that she cared for aftel
all and not the other man. But whai
must she have thought OF his sudder
departure, what had she thought dur
ing those years Of silence? He woult
find her.
There was a CLEAN OF the fire O
youth In his eye and the sternnes.
had vanished from his face AZ he has
tiiy glanced over some mail which hi
lawyers had forwarded.
THAT can wait" he said, but on'
postmark seemed to catch his atten
l a A.