Bluefield evening leader. [volume] (Bluefield, W. Va.) 1906-1911, 1910-10-06
DAILY SHORT STORIES

white violet I'm sight and. with some
thing akin to instinct, laid them loose
ly together In box with some maid-
In the inevitably depressing form OF u
masculine bouquet. Then he sat In
his study for full hour. pen in hand
| and sheet OF paper before him. bit.
| Ing his left thumb and staring at the
parcel he had made. Finally he wrote
seven words-"wnl you wear these ut
| lecture tomorrow
| Another half hour OF meditation fol-
lowed, at he end OF which time he
| signed "An Admirer' to his note. slip.
| ped II into the box. suatchcd up his
hat and sailed forth. The clocks were
striking 0 as he marched rcsolutely
| up the steps OF the Ayres residence.
| looked the servant who came 10 the
door sternly I'm the eye. said with n
steadiness he had not expected For
Miss Natalie" and abruptly departed
| Three hours later he was In bed. with
| the covers In astonishing confusion.
staring at the ceiling and applying to
| the person OF one Matthew Bacon an
| Infinite variety OF the most unlatter-
| ing epithets imaginable.
He might have known It, The fol
| lowing morning I'm lecture. when In.
| stinct rather than actual perception
told him that Miss Ayres had taken
her place across the aisle. he sum
moned all his resolution and looked ut
her, full and fair She was bending
over her notebook with an appearance
| OF complete unconcern. and there was
not 30 much as the petal OF violet
visible about her from top 10 toe.
That day was celebrated I'm the an
nails OF his class as that OF "Bacon's
Great Crouch" He wns, rs his near
est friends conceded. positively unit
for publication. For. half the after.
noon, seated on one OF the campus
benches, he replied with accrbty that
too frequently merged into profanity
TO all remarks addressed 10 him. lie
became In short order an object OF
derision. Groups gathered about him
and from a safe distance bombarded
him with sarcasm. as small boys throw
peanuts at n Gagged lion--to make him
| roar. The climax was reached when
the most irreverent OF his tormentors
exclaimed. "Who Is she, MnttY' and
all the others echoed the inquiry with
extreme relish. Then Matthew gath.
cred his books and himself together
and took his way gloomily to the IL
brary 10 the supplementary reading
which the professor OF English VIII
had prescribed. 1t was precisely seven
minutes later that he opened his eyes
to their fullest capacity, drew deep
breath and then said Cad"
Intuition told Matthew the story in
a word-she had kept at least one OF
his flowers! Her supplementary read
Ing was naturally the same rs hls.
She had been In the library that day
reading that book and TO keep her
place had left the violet between the
leaves. The spirit OF Matthew Bacon
scared instantane0isly into the sew
enth heaven OF" delight But she had
| not worn the violets ms he had asked.
| She had rebuked him for the imperti-
hence OF his anonymous letter. He
was cad. And the spirit OF Matthew
Bacon plunged promptly into the meth
ermost abyss OF despair.
| For fifteen minutes. which seemed
like as many years, he sat. with his
temples in his hands, gazing with I'M
| seeing eyes Mt the lines before him and
telling himself that there was nothing
left 10 make life worth the living.
! Through his preoccupation he heard
the voice OF one Of the library pages
speaking to Il reader opposite TO him
at the table.
The librarian says he's sorry. miss,
| but purradize Lost is out. Here's the
other book you wanted"
In lightning fash OF thought Mat
| thew knew what voice 1t was that he
! would hear I'm reply.
"Oh, dear" said Natalie Ayres.
"Well, never mind. This will do"
A phrase from something he had
| read was pounding I'm Matthew's ears.
In fragments Mt first. finally in one
connected whole. There is tide-in
In the 0ffairs-in the affairs Of men
| which-tnken-taken Mt the food
leads On-lcads on--Iends on go FOR
| tune"
Hastily no tore n leaf from lis note
book and scrubbed n message which
would have been n credit TO boy OF
| ten:
VIII YOU forgive my rudencss I'm send
| ing fon that ananermouR letter ] ola II
| without thinking. md I'm terribly repent
| mt. But I'm really oil right indeed am
| md my mother knows yours ] was IN
| Ter a Kind Of spell.
MATTHEW BACON.
Slipping this epistle between the
leaves where lay the White violet. he
returned the book TO the loan desk
and then went bnck 10 his seat and
spent an apparent eternity upon n rack
! OF mental torture. At the last moment
the voice OF the page, informing Miss
Ayres that she could now have "Tur-
radise Lost" threw him into panic.
When he looked up II was 10 meet
her eyes. For n moment they stared
at each other. Matthew turning from
pink 10 crimson and from crimson 10
white and tho girl with nm culgnnt.