The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-08-21

OF the reasons never exercised II. But.
Jeanne, II you elect 10 take that away.
| shall take IL with you.
She struggled away from him. turned
and faced him with horror stricken eyes.
you must not say that. You've no right
TO threaten me with that, No right.
Then clutchng at his hands again You
must promise.
Again she pulled her hands away and
covered her face with them. She was
trembling uncontrollably.
1T was not threat. he snid steadily
1T was n promise. "A promise | have
right TO make. ! make II again, now
Jeanne-a solemn promise before God
Whether IT'S living or dying. l shall go
beside you.
mot right, she repeated in a whis
per. What possible right could you have
10 make a promise like that-a threat
that calls itself promlse?'
IL have the only right there Is. Listen.
Las, night. when you were lying there
asleep, | sat thinking. thinking about
you, about the love | had for you: about
the change which that love had made In
me and would go on making after ! had
lost you. For ! faced losing YOU.
knew that when they sent boat ashore
for you, l should have to let you go with
out a word II | could have heard a
prophecy then. that today I should be
telling you l loved you. telling 1t with a
clear heart and conscience, should have
gone half-mad for Joy. 1t seemed as II
the thing could never happen l am a
man with a stain upon me. and yester-
day that stain made 1t impossible TO
say anything 10 you but good bye ]
meant to say it, and take my way
through the air again and live out the
rest OF my life on what. from your boun-
", you had already given me.
But the coming OF new day has
right TO tell YOU what I have told you.
and It gives me the right to make that
promise: Isn't that quite plain2 Dont
you understand"
ha tIrt he
! talked to her. Now for the space OF two
deep limitations she was silent "It
can't be true" she said family, mot all
that. Not so soon. 1t was only yester-
you know truer than that" he in,
| terrupted. You know that hours and
days have nothing TO do with the thing
I'm talking about. Try to remember
| the air upon that ice-floe. a man who.
for five years. had been 'druggng his
soul to death. trying to cast all the hu.
manty out of It. Think what you did
| yourself. / don't tell you that love you
! better than my soul, because-because
my soul is yours-your warmth. ,youi
what my feeling has been this morning
the feeling l have tried to fight back out
OF my heart? Joy. Jeanne! Joy that / was
| TO suffer what you suffered. and live
what you lived. whether IT was to be fol
an hour or day or month! Whatever
| II was TO bring us, you and I were II
share the world together. Do you un-
derstand now, Jeanne, my right to make
that promise? Do you see now that II
was a promise and not a threat2"
She could not at first make him any
answer. The thing his words had re-
upon the heels of that other revelation
left her mind half dazed. She was no
without an answer but 1t lay not in hel
mind nor was 1t translatable into words
! There was d chord there. vibrating ir
response TO the music 1t had heard. bu
II could find no expression through he
lips.
III must think, she gasped. "Yo'
No" he said ~ have not asked To-
an answer. There Is nothing that yol
have to tell me, Nothing that I'm wait
ing to hear. No decision that you mus
make. You understand what l said anc
! you know It's true. The supreme fac
in my universe is Just you. That give
me the right 10 follow you wherever yo'
go. But you are still free. You cal
stay here, where fate has put you. an'
let me stay here. too. being sure that al
! the happiness In the world there is 70
me Is TO be found here at your side, fl
helping you. And then If the torture o
| privation. loneliness and despair becom
/ She turned to him then and interrupt
ed. Her words came quietly, unaccom
panied by any gesture Of her expressive
hands. She spoke with the utmost sim
plicIty.
"They won't be too hard. I think
neither the privation nor the loneliness
There won't be any despalr-not witt
you. my friend. And-and we VIII follow
my fathers gospel
She saw the blood go ebbing out o
his face. and then come back with
" surge, He drew In two or three erea
breaths OF the keen, winelike air. Then
in strangely matter of-fact fashion, h.
seated himself beside her.
THAT gospel begins With breakfast
) he said.