The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1910-07-07

loathed the man who was coming to
aid her. Her Christianity trembled in
the balance.
She moved farther away from her
companion under the constraint of
these thoughts, and when he would
have approached her nearer, she
tamed upon him in sudden anger that
left him appalled,. But under the in
fuence of it he kept his distance. She
saw the way of the yacht checked. She
saw the boat dropped from the davits
and manned by the men. She saw
| figure, too far off to recognize, but
which she OWNED must be his, de-
scend the battens from the gangway.
She saw the little boat headed toward
| the shore. Then she turned to the
man. He was standing with folded
arms, his brow black as midnight,
staring out to sea. He knew nothing,
understood nothing, comprehended
nothing, suspected nothing. His only
realization was that she, his gentle
| goddess, whom he had loved, was
angry with him, so far as he was con-
cerned, without rhyme or reason or
| cause.
The stoppage of the ship, the lower
ing Of the boat, its approach to the
island were now matters of indiffer-
ence to him. She was angry. He
! could think of nothing else and there
was bewilderment in his dismay
Nothing had given him power to solve
the enigma of her conduct. Where she
gazed with serious intentness, he
| looked listlessly. Her heart smote
her again. The sense of justice upon
which she prided herself came to her
rescue. She stepped close to him and
laid her hand upon his arm.
Forgive me-" she murmured and
her heart leaped within her bosom to
meet the great flush of pleasure in his
face as he responded instantly to her
caress and her appeal.
"You said you knew men," the man
asked as they threaded their way
through the trees and won the hill
along the familiar path, do you know
anyone on that ship, do you Think"
The question was an absurd one I'M
der almost any other circumstances
than that. Yet chance had shown him
the one point in her armor and his
innocent and casual question had
driven into her soul a stab. Evasion
should have been easy. Indeed, his
trust in her was so great that deceit
would have been simple. But she had
always told him the truth and she
could not begin now.
eyes she said, 81 think I do"
He stopped abruptly, illumination
and anguish, the light of pain in his
soul.
WAS 1t because you know that man
that you suffered so on the hill?"
yes" she said, again forcing her
self to speak
"Ie he one Of those who loved you"
"He said so, but"
"And you, did you love him?"
81 hate him."
"Why?" asked the man sternly.
"Had he injured you in some way?"
"In the greatest way" she answered
with deepening gravity. And here her
sense of justice pricked her. But it
was partly my fault"
And have you forgiven him?" he
asked with little softening of his
voice.
To him forgiveness was as natural
and inevitable as breathing. In his
ethics there was no other course. He
had never had anything to forgive, be
it remembered. She was not so true
to her standards as the man she had
taught. The pupil was more devoted
than the master.
There are some things" she re-
piled bitterly, that woman cannot
forgive, never forgives."
what things?" he persisted, won
dering ignorantly as to her meaning.
Don't ask me-" she answered, i'm
patiently. Il told you l would tell you
the story to-day and you will have to
wait until then"
But that comment of the world?"
"You will hear it from that mans
lips, if l mistake not" said the wom-
an, YEARLY, but you must press me
no further. See, they are close to the
reef. We must hasten"
She drew her hand away from his
and ran rapidly to the beach. Nat
urally he followed, overtaking her in
few swift steps and running as was
his wont by her side. If he had
stopped to indulge in the luxury of
determination, he would have found
his feelings in such turmoil of such
strange emotions as would have defed
classification and description. Of but
two things was he very clear; that he
loved this woman, and that in some
way, for causes unfathomable and not
present to him, he hated the man or
the men in the boat off shore.
By the woman's directions just be-
fore they reached the shore, the man
| picked up two fallen branches of palm.
They ran to the beach opposite the
entrance and waved the palm branches
above their heads. 1t was too far for
the voice to carry and there was too
much noise from the breakers on the
reef if the distance had been shorter.
But the men in the boat evidently
caught sight of the signals and under
stood them, for she was presently
about and in a few moments they saw
her prov cut the blue waters CT the
lagoon through the one entrance to the
barrier. The man and woman stood
silently, little apart, watching the
swift approach. Unerringly steered,
the boat struck the gently shelving
beach bows on, and last sturdy
pull drove her fairly out of the water.