The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1910-11-10
How She
Answered Him
By F. A. Mitchell
Copyright. 1910. bt American Press
Association.

| years DeIOre luis story DeSlnS Ae wac
homely. Joel was, and his face and
neck which at his age should have
been comparatively smooth. were full
of burrows 1t was a weather beaten
face speaking of days exposed to the
heat and the cold. and when Joel
walked be seemed to be following the
pillow.
Joel had never married. People said
that he was 50 uncouth that no wom-
an would have him Whether or no
this was the reason. certain it is that
be had never asked any woman TO be
! his wife There was only one person
| in the world he wanted. and she was
! during most of the time be wanted
| her a child 1t can't be said that he
was waiting for her TO grow up, be-
cause there wasn't the slightest hope
that she would marry him when she
did. At any rate. that's the way he
looked at it,
But now she had reached the age of
nineteen. she was Of manageable age.
and Joel resolved to do the one bold
thing of his life-ask her. He had
heard about courtships and wondered
how they were worked. Even if they
had been explained to him he would
not have understood them. much less
been able to take part in one of them.
He was aware that without court
ship a man had not one chance in a
hundred to win a woman. and as to
winning girl twenty-three years his
junior with or without one would be
next to impossible. There was but
one thing in the world he wanted. one
thing to make his life worth living,
and that was Hester Blake. So one
evening. dressed in his store clothes.
he went to see her and. happily find
ing her alone. said to her:
What I'm going to say don't really
amount to anything. but I'm going to
say it all the same When you were
child left your father and mother
one day after they had said something
to me. and just as l was going out of
| the house you were standing by the
door You were four years old and as
pretty as little picture. You put up
your arms to me. l took you up in
mine. and you kissed me. Since that
| time I've been waiting for the day to
| come when you would be old enough
to marry. and now that you are I'm
going to ask you to marry me-"
Hester looked up at him. There
was something so pathetic in his utter
inability to plead his cause that she
| pitied him. Then. too. she felt that
| there was something incongruous in
this furrowed man proposing to marry
her. round checked girl 1t was on
her lips to explain this to him. but
somehow she hadn't the heart to do it.
She wished to make some reply. but
didn't know what to say. For make
shift she asked him:
what was it, Mr. Constable, that
my father and mother said to you the
day you left them and kissed you?"
The question seemed to make Joel
feel very ill at ease. He recrossed his
legs. pulled at little tuft of beard on
his cheek. thereby drawing out the
loose skin. hemmed a few times, then
said:
1T wouldn't do for me to tell you
that"
why not?"
"Well." Jared went on. getting hot
in the face. lit might make you feel
as if you'd ort to marry me-"
Il promise not to feel that way
Come tell ME all about it,"
There's another reason why I'd bet
ter not tell" he replied. There's
blood on my hands,"
Then put it in the form of con-
fession"
We'll. I'm dead against telling you.
but II l must | must. About that
time when you kissed me. you know
there was murder committed. and
your father run away at the same
time. The reason he did that was be-
cause be was liable to be charged
with the murder He was hunted
down in the woods and brought to Jail
in town. That night the mob was
coming to lynch him. found out
about it. went to the Jail with horse
and buggy. told the jailer and agreed
to drive your father to a safe place
He agreed. We were followed by
some men on the watch for us. | shot
one of 'em. l got your father off.
though"
There was so much labor in getting
out this simple story that when Joel
reached the end of it he took out
bandanna handkerchief and mopped
his brow. Then he tried to go on and
explain what Testers father and
mother had said to him on the day
she kissed him. Hester permitted him
to stumble on until he had got mex
tricably tangled up. when she stopped
him.
I've heard father tell all about that.
and he said he was saved to us by
one OF the noblest. bravest men that
ever lived. but he would never tell his
name"
THAT was because I'd shot the man.
and your father was the only person
living that knew it. If it had got out
l should have had to suffer for it."
And you We're my fathers savior"
Most any one would have done it."
There was silence between them.
at the end Of which Hester said: