Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1910-06-17

! half heartedly in allegiance There
| would be no more dallying with temp
| tation, no more rebellion, no more ir-
| reverent standings in the dark valley
| Of doubtful questions More especially,
| he would be vigilant to guard against
! those backslidings that came so swiftly
on the heels of each spiritual quicken
| ing. His heart was fixed. so irrevoca-
bly,, so surely, that he could almost
wish that Satan would try him there
and then. But the enemy of souls was
nowhere to be seen In the leafy arches
Of the wood, and Tom bent again to
take a second draft at the spouting
rock lip.
He was bending over the sunken bar
rel A shadow, not his own, blurred the
| water mirror. He looked up quickly.
Mani" he cried.
She was standing on the opposite
side of the barrel basin, looking down
on him with good-natured mockery in
| the dark eyes.
Il lowed maybe you wouldn't have
| such back load Of religion after you'd
| been off to the school a SPELL" she said,
potntedly. And then: Does it always
make you right dry an thirsty to say
| your prayers, Tommy Jeffy."
Tom sat back on his heels and re-
garded her thoughtfully. His first i'm
pulse was out Of the natural heart,
rageful, wounded vanity squirting 1t on.
| It was like her heathenism impert1-
hence to look on at such a time, and
| then to taunt him about it afterward.
| But slowly as he looked a curious
| change came over him. She was the
| same Nan Bryerson, bareheaded, bare
legged, with the same tousled mat OF
| dark hair, and the same childish in
difference to whole frock. And yet
| she was not the same. The subtle diff
! ference, whatever it was, made him get
up and offer to shake hands with her
and he thought it was the newly made
VOWS constraining him, and took cred
it therefor
you can revile me as much as you
like now, Man," he said, with pridefnl
humility. You can't make me mad
any more, like you used to. I'm older
now, and-and better. hope. I shall
never forget that you have a precious
! soul to save"
Her response to this was a scof11ng
laugh, shrill and challenging. Yet he
| could not help thinking that it made
her look prettier than before.
'You can laugh as much as you want
! to; but I mean it." he insisted. And,
| besides, Nan-of all the things that
I've been wanting to come back to,
you're the only one that isn't changed"
| And again he thought it was righteous
| guile that was making him kind to her.
| Dye reckon you shorely mean that,
Tom Gordon?" she said; and the lips
| which lent themselves so easily to
scorn were tremulous. She was just
his age, and womanhood was only a
step across the threshold for her.
'Of course do. Let me carry your
bucket for you
| She had hung the little wooden pig
gin under the drip of the spring and
it was full and running over. But
when he had lifted it out for her, she
| rinsed and emptied 1t.
Il just set it there to cool some" she
explained. I'm goin' up to Sunday
Rock afte' huckleberries. Come and
| go long with me, Tom"
He assented with a willingness as
eager as it was unaccountable. If she
| had asked him to do much less rea-
sonable thing, he was not sure that he
| could have refused.
And as they went together through
grances, questions like those Of the
boyhood time thronged on him, and he
| welcomed them as a return of at least
one Of the vanished thrills-and was
| grateful to her.
| When they were fairly under tho
overhanging cliff face of Sunday Rock
| she darted away, laughing at him over
her shoulder, and daring him to follow
| her along dizzy shelf halfway up
| the crag; a marrow ledge, perilous for
a mountain goat
This, as he remembered later, was
| the turning point in her mood. In i'm
agination he saw her try it and fail;
saw her 1.-THE, shapely beauty lying
broken and mangled at the cliffs foot;
| and in three bounds he had her fast
| locked in his restraining arms. She
strove with him at first, like a wres-
| thing boy, laughing and haunting him
with being afraid for himself. Then
| Tom Gordon, clean hearted as yet
| did not know precisely what happened
| Suddenly she stopped struggling and
lay painting in his arms, and quite as
suddenly he released her.
| Mani" he said, In swiftly sub
merging wave of tenderness, 'I didn't
| go to hurt you'll"
| She sank down on a stone at his
feet and covered her face with her
| hands. But she was up again and
| turning from him with eyes downcast
| before he could comfort her.
| (To be continued.)
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