The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1910-04-20
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THE DAILY STORY
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The Stolen Hour
tEthel Barrlngton)

ts-tN4cA NAA' AtApAf
I0nly the task of handing the. .missiYe
Ito the servant, who would deliver II
TO Lord Windmere From that mo-
rnent, she would become tht hf2anc-
led wife of the English nobleman
Hearing steps, Millicent, without turn
ling, held out the letter
See that it goes at onee!"
'ls II SO very important?p
4 AT the voice, so entirely different
from the one she expected. the gill
sprang up "Oh, Adam, I'm glad--bnt
first | must dispatch my note"
About. to restore the letter so odd
| ~ thrust upon him, Rowe's eye fell
upon the address LET us talk first"
he suggested, coolly; there's plenty plenty
OF time. ssIs1AEU
n Barely sufficient: it's already 3.
/ Ills lordship remains at his club till
&. when, should there be no mes
sage, he starts on his deferred trip
lac California. Why doesn't James
Gomez
J, ALLOW me, Rowe leisurely crossed
10 the mantelpiece. his gaze lingering
ten the girl. tidying papers in her
I desk Suddenly bending above the
clock, his broad shoulders masking it
from view, he remarked Five, you
tssld? Your clock says A.
II can't be mistaken" In the act
of consulting her watch she was ar
rested by an exclamation from her
kanest. whose sleeve had brushed
froughIys against statuette, prompt
intss alone Oh his paft sayingsi it from
fdestructiop Miilipent shuddered in
lmock srelief. ~ ~
| To-day Is my lucky Day he hss
Isured%her. Il feel capable, of mira
/ iGesM,even Of convincing you toingI
f'wAyA1f thinking Comef Half io,
crlaffy he pushed chais beEtne the
hearth, then set anothen for himself
Hands thrust deep in his pockets he
rodded toward the clock For one
hour we will talk
| "And the subiect?'
Everything that concerns you-or
me-
She studied him from the corner Of
\ her eyes, contrasting the fine proper
ltinns of his muscular frame with that
10. Lord Windmere, to the latter's
{ disadvantage 81 am head taller"
she thought, experiencing quick.
sense of repulsion.
Rowe smiled quizzically "You ap-
prove of me physically? Good 2
u was not thinking fyou."
$50? was--about you. Who
would have dreamed that such a
scrawny kid could develop into the
beauty you are now. No offense--i
looks heing your second biggest as
set in theygame you're playing
''You are coarse; won't be talked
lto so'
"After today, maybe, ] sban't care
| TO talk TO you at all.
The girls face softened "Oh. yes,
YOU will. The spice of things has
been in our discussion of them after
ward. Your point Of view is direct
| It's the reward OF keeping at suffi-
eient distance to permit of a perspec-
tive. with me. relative values often
grow confused"
| ''You remember the creek where
We fisbed as Youngsters" the man
demanded, irrelevantly. "And the
day you insisted on crossing the slip
perry log alone. aud tumbled in?"
Millicent laughed softly. Il can see
you know, with your torn cap. your
tllckers rolled up and your home
Emade rod thought you awfully
brave when you pulled me. out--two
fleet of water. wasn't IT."
But think of the reward you prom
ised.'r
"Children make pie-crust promises!
| "Just so you remember, that's all.
Adam stretched his long legs to the
blaze and his companion, conscious
OF his slightest movement, felt hali-
frightened resentment at the power
| of her old playmate to crowd ont all
other personalities from her thoughts.
Tin thn6ing of the night you told
me OF your fathers first big success
ful speculation. II was raining; we
were in the best room. abominably
stuffy because rarely opened. Your
life was changed by that deal Just as
Itne mountain stream Is changed when
| It falls into the river. 1t became
merely a question of time before you
wculd reach the city to be engulfed. 4
"You thought il would make diff
ference in our friendship, but'-al-
most wistfully she touched the arm
of Rowe's chair-a'it HASN'T" dl Z
1T has" The mans tone struck
back harshly. Had we stayed out
there in The foothills you would nev-
er have known about society. or the
magic of title dangling like a scalp
az the belt OF your wealth. Nfe
might have meant work. but 1t would
have meant freedom. Think of ga. I
loping over the rolling plains, the soft
grass flying from the horses heels,
The wind in our nostrils-the width I
Of the sky above--just we two
"Stop, Sometimes the longing
makes me mad--it seems as If must
run away back to it all It's the
plainsmans heritage" The words
tumbled over each other as If the
sreaker had no choice but to give
them utterance "All day I've been
fighting It has been that craving
against my ambition and-and had
strangled II. or thought so, till YOU
came with your talk of freedom
Her voice broke, but she held her
head proudly. Later she must yield
10 the flood of emotion now held IN
check; II was the bitter price that
she must pay for victory, tangible in
Der letter TO Windmefe. but not un-
I'll she was alone.
Suppose the man YOU marry can't
,