The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1911-06-08

But Mr., Rutton?"
rs a party I've never card of, if
you'll excuse my sayin' so, no more'n
ave of yourself sir"
We'll" began Amber; but paused,
his face hardening as he looked the
man up and down, nodding slowly.
'Per'aps.' continued Mr.. Doggott,
unabashed, you mistyke me for my
brother, Emery Doggott e was ONE,
in England larst I card of i'm We
look a deal alike, I've been told"
You would be-" admitted Amber
drily; and, shutting his teeth uron his
inherent contempt for liar. he
swung away, acknowledging with a
curt ned the civil Good AFTERNOON,
! sir" that followed him.
The nan had disappeared by the
( time Amber reg&ined his kit-bag and
/ gun-ca5e; standing over which he
/ surveyed his surroundings with some
/ annoyance, discovering that he now
shared the station with none but the
! ticket agent. A stumbling and dis
/ consulate youth, clad in a three-days'
/ growth Of beard. a checked jumper
! and khaki trousers, this person
/ lounged negligently in the doorway of
the waiting room and, caressing his
rusty chin with nicotine-dyed fingers.
/ regarded the stranger in Nokomis
with an air Of subtle yet vaguely mel
ancholy superiority.
IF ye're lookin' for tn hotel" he
volunteered Unexpectedly, there amt
none" and effected mastery retreat
into the ticket booth
Amused. the despised outlander
! picked up his luggage and followed
ainiably. Pm not looking for the
hotel that amt" he said, planting
himself in front of the grating; but
expected to be met by some one
/ from Tanglewood-"
"Thet's the Quain place, daown by
tn ba-ay," interpolated the youth from
unplumbed depths of mourntul alb
! straction
1T is. I wired yesterday"
"YeOur names Amber, amt it?"
Yes, I"
We'll, Quain didn't get yeour mes
sage till this mornin'. I sent a kid
daown with it baout ten O'Clock"
But why the-but I wired yester-
day afternoon"
Il knaow We did" assented the
/ youth YEARLY. 1t come through
raound closin time and they want
nobody baound that way, so held it
| over"
This craze for being characteris-
| tic" observed Mr. Amber obscurely
lis the only thing that really stands
in the way of Nokomis becoming a
thriving metropolis. Do you agree
with ne? No matter" He smiled en-
| gagingly; a seasoned traveller this,
who could recognize the futility of
| pickering over the irreparable More
/ over. he had to remind himself in all
fairness, the blame was, in part at
| least, his own; for he had thought
! lessly worded his telegram win be
with you tomorrow afternoon" and it
was wholly like Quain that he should
have accepted the statement at its
! face value, regardless of the date line
y can leave my things here for a
little while, l presume?" Amber sug
/ gested after a pause.
The ticket agent stared stubbornly
/ into the infinite, making no sign till
coin rang on the window-ledge; when
he started, eyed the offering with fugi-
tive mistrust. and gloomily possessed
/ himself OF it. TN look after them"
/ he said. BE We thinkin' of walkin'?"
Yes" said Amber over his shout
der. He was already moving toward
the door
"Knaow yeour wa-ay?"
I've been here before, thank you"
Crossing the tracks, he addressed
himself to the southwark stretching
highway Walking briskly at first, he
soon left behind the railway station
with its few parasitic cottages, dip
in the land hid them, and he had
I hereafter for all company his
thoughts. the desultory road, a vast
and looming sky. and bare fields
hedged with impoverished forest.
Amber had professed acquaintance
with his way; It seemed rather to be
intimacy, Tor when he chose to for
sake the main Travelled road he did so
boldly, striking off upon a wagon
track which, leading across the fields,
delved presently into the heart of the
forest
The hush of the forest world bore
heavily upon his senses; the slight
and stealthy rustlings in the brush,
the clear dense ringing of some re-
mote ak, an attenuated clamor Of
cawing from some far crows con-
gress, but served to accentuate its in
fiuence.
Then into the silence crept sound
| to rouse him from his fOrmless rev
erie At first a mere pulsing in the
| stiffness barely to be distinguished
from the song of the surf; but pres
emily pounding. ever louder and
more insisteQt. He paused, attentive;
and while he waited the drumming,
minute by minute gaining in volume,
swept swiftly toward him-the rhyth-
mic hoofbeats of single horse madly
ridden. When it was close upon him
| h, g+auroI hack into tho Tangled nm