Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1910-11-18
.eYon see. he camer, she saId.

~You see, he Gamer she said
The old man saw the agony that
blanched her cheeks and answered
gently:
Eyes, daughter He struggled with
himself. "And If you wish it he may
come again"
But he won't come again That is
what makes it so hard; he will never
come back
She turned away, but not quickly
enough to keep him from seeing that
her eyes were wet Wayne Wayland
beheld what he would have given half
his mighty fortune to prevent. He
cried out angrily, but she anticipated
his thought.
mo. no, you must never injure him
again. for he was right and we were
wrong. You see I-couldn't under
stand
He left her staring into the night
and walked heavily below.
Emerson felt a great sense of relief
and deliverance as he leaned against
his oars. His heart sang to the muir
muir of the waters oversize. For the
drst time In many months he felt
young and free. How blind he had
been and how narrow had been his
escape from a life that could lead to
but one result! The girl was sweet
and good and wonderful in many
ways, but three years had altered him
more than he had realized. He had
begun to understand himself that
very afternoon, when Cherry had told
har hu 10
shock Of her disclosure had reused him
from his dream, and once he began to
see himself as he really was the rest
had come quickly. He had been
doubtful even when he went out to
the yacht, but what happened there
had destroyed the last trace of I'M
certainty. He knew that for him
there was but one woman in all the
world. 1t was no easy battle he had
fought with himself. He had been
reared to respect the conventions. and
he knew that Cherry's life had not
been all he could wish. But he front
ed the issue gquarely and tried to
throttle his inbred prejudice. AL
though he bad felt the truth of Fra
ser's arguments and of Cherry's own
words, he had still refused to yield
until his love for the girl swept over
him in all its power; then he made his
choice.
The one thing he found most diff
cult TO accept was her conduct with
Hilliard. Those other charges against
the girl were vague and shadowy. but
this was concrete, and he was familiar
with every miserable detail of it, It
took all his courage to face it, but he
swore savagely that if the conditions
had been reversed Cherry would not
have faltered for an instant More
over. what she had done had been
done for love of him. 1t was worse
than vile 10 hesitate. Her past was
her own. and all he could rightfully
claim Was her future He shut his
teeth and laid his course resolutely for
her landing. striving to leave behind
this one hideouS memory. cente1uG his
mind upon the girl herself and shut
ting out her past. It was the bitter
est fight he had ever wagod. But
whcu he reached the shore and tied
his skffs he was exalted by the Enowl-
edge that he had triumphed: that this
painful episode was locked away with
all the others.
Now that he had conquered he was
filed with Il consuming caCerness. AS
he stole up through the shadows he
heard her playing, and when he drew
nearer he recognized the notes of that
song that had banished his own black
desolatiOn on the night Of their first
meeting. He paused outside the open
window and saw by the shaded lamp
Light that she was playing from mem
DRY. her fingers wandering over the
keyboard without conscious effort.
Then she took up the words with all
the throbbng tenderness that lives in
n deep contralto voice:
Last night I was dreaming of thee, love
was drea ming;
I dreamed thou didst promise
Cherry paused as If entranced, for
she thought she heard another voice
join with hers. Then she bowed her
head and sobbed in utter wretched-
ness. knowing it for nothing more than