Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1910-12-14

it in her hand The cloud of events
had east no film over its Iuster. but
she looked at it now without pleasure.
For all its beauty II wasn't worth
what they were doing for it Well.
to-day they were both of them to see
the last of it. To-day she was going
to take it to Mr. Purdie. to deliver IL
into his hands, to tell him how IL had
fallen into hers in the goldsmith's shop
all of the story that was possible for
her to tell.
She had made IL out al clear in her
mind that this was the right thing to
do II hadn't occurred to her she
had made il out only on the hypothe-
lis of Kerr's certainly going. IL had
not occurred to her that she might
have TO make her great moral move
in the dark; or, what was worse, in
the face of his most gallant resistance.
In this discouraging light she saw her
intention dwindle to the vanishing
point. but the great move was just as
good as it had been hefore-just as SOL
id, just as advisable. Being so very sol
id, wouldn't it wait until che had time to
show him that she really lleant ana.
she said. supposing she eve had a
chance to see him again? The pos.
sibility that at this moment he might
actually have gone had almost es.
capped her. She recalled it with a dis
agreeable shock. but. after all, that
was the best she could hope, never to
see him again. She ought to be crate
full to be sure Of tina and yet if she
were. oh. never could size deprive him
of so much beauty and light by her
keeping of the sapphire as he would
then have taken away from her,
She would come down then, indeed,
level with plainest. palest, hardest
things-people and facts. Her ro-
mance.she had seen Ii. sne had had
it in her hands. and 1t had somehow
eluded her. 1t had vanished. evapo-
rated.
She leaned and looked through the
thin veil of her curtains at the SPLEEN
did day. 1t was one of February's
freaks. 1t was hot. The white ghost
of noon lay over shore and sea. Be
meath her the city seemed to sleep
gray and glistening, The tops of hills
that rose above the up-creeping
houses were misted green. Across the
bay. along the northern shore. there
was a pale green coast of hills divid-
ing blue and blue. Ships in the bay
hung out white canvas dry,rg, and the
sky showed whittier cloud slow.mov-
ing, like sails upon langui6 sea.
She looked down upon all, as lone
and lonely as a deserted lady in a
tower, lifted above these happy, peace
full things by her strange responsible
ty Her thoughts could not stay with
them; her eyes Travelled seward She
parted the curtains and. leaning a lit
tie out, looked westward at the white
sea gate.
A whistle, as of some child calling
his mate, came sweetly in the silence.
II was near. and the questing. expec.
tant note caught her ear. Again It
came, sharper, imperative, directly be.
meath her. She looked down; she
was speeches.. There was a sudden
wild current of blood in her veins.
There he stood, the whistler, neither
child nor bird. but the man himself
Kerr. looking up at her from the gay
oval of her garden She hung over
the window-sill. She looked directly
down upon him, foreshortened toaface.
and even with the distance and the
broad glare of noon between them
she recognized his aspect-his gayest.
Of diabolic glee. There lurked about
him the impish quality Of the whistle
that had summoned her.
Come down." he called.
All sorts of wonders and terrors
We're beating around her He had
transcribed her widest wish; he had
come to her more openly, more dar-
ingly. more Economically than she
could have dreamed All the amaze.
ment of why and how he had braved
the battery of the windows Of her
house was swallowed up In the greater
joy of seeing him there. standing in
his 'grays," with stiff black hat
pushed off his hot forehead. hands be
hind him, looking up at her from the
middle of anemones and daffodils.
Come down." he called again. and
waved at her with his slim. glittering
stick. How far he had come since
their last encounter. to wave at and
command her, as If she were verify
his own! She left the window. left