The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1911-05-29
THE EVENING STORY
The Hill of Hope.
(By Martha Mcculloch-willia,

l S~OS~S Va OdQL1lS VI 1dIulldLQ, anu
down miles of turnpike. That way,
said her heart the fairy prince would
come riding, some day, to take her out
OF the gray stagnation of things.
Alaster was fanciful. A girl is apt
to be when she has never known aught
save the fussy cherishing of an elderly
household. Her mother had died when
sne was born. OF her father the two
great aunts, spinsters both. would
never speak. They had raoney enough
Ia spare competence. Some day it
would all come to the child. She would
nave no need to mix in the world-as
70 marriage. that was to be Stunned as
deadly Had 1t brought anything but
neartoreak to her mother, the first
Alaster? She had been wild and will
ful, beauty, fiercely courageous, also
nercely loving, and hating She had
CHOSEN, and welded whether or no
TO come back in a year, alone, and
Icrushed, to welcome death. even
heart.
Her heart must be saved from such
tsnipwreck. Thus agreed tie aunts. They
Kept her close. She never had a play-
fellow, and was not sent to school.
Aunt Susan taught her the three RS
Aunt Debby music and embroidery
Tor the rest, there were books, a whole
roomful, old but good leather bound
| AAAO5eAys anu OIL C6QaF SnGlV-
ing. Alaster browsing happily among
them, learned Of life as though she saw
| 1t inverted in mirror. She had a
sense of not belonging in the house
mold The auntS were fair, dumpy,
Iplacfd-even their small tempers had
not brought wrinkles, though they
were past sixty
Alaster was tall, and thin, rangy in
motion, full OF delight in freedom
wildly alive throughout. She pinned for
action, for stir and change.
When the pining had grown so wild
it was pain, Mallows came. Not ro-
mantically. If she did spy him first
from the hill of hope. Mallows by his
very look put romance cut of court
He was stoutish, red of hair, freckled
as to face. with swapping blue eyes,
Shrewdly set. Notwithstanding, he
was neither common nor commonplace
There was too patent an air of eff
cheney for that.
He was hopping mad. and very busy
when he met Alaster's gaze There
was need of rush work, in running q
transit line-and the men he was de-
pending on to help him had not shown
up. Worse still, he could not go hunt
ing them-he had promised to meet a
high parsonage exactly at 10 o'clock
there at the foot of the hill. Spying
Alaster's straw hat upon top of the
rise, he mistook her for a curious
country lad, and shouted:
Say, there! Want to earn a quar-
ter? You can-if your legs are long
and light"
Make it a half and I'll talk to you."
Alaster called back. She sensed in
stantly his mistake and spoke as gruf-
fly as she could.
In answer Mallows swore at her for
a greedy clodhopper, but ended by
promising the half, if she would but
run to the village, a mile off, and hurry
up those men idling there.
With a delicious thrill of adventure,
Alaster came out of hiding, ran past
him, nodding gayly as she did so, and
sped on to the goal. And thus she
came plump under the eyes OF the high
personage-the financier who was back
of the rev railway enterprise. He
stared at hcr-he had seen nothing
anywhere to match the deer-lift of her
throat. the pantherine grace of her
easy stride. She would not have check
ed for him, but that he refined in, al
most in front of her, asking:
els this the nearest way to Drew
ett's-the spring there, I mean?"
Keep on! You can't miss it unless
you shut both eyes, Alsster said, the
last word over her shoulder as she |
shot past.
The high parsonage whispered soft |
ly. When he came upon Mallows he
had an edd smile lowering in his eyes
Mallows also was a bit off key. After a |
second or two, they were most excel |
lent chums. understood. and both |
laughed.
"Hit you. too. square between the
eyes" Mallows said. !
The other nodded. After breath, |
he said irre1evantly: Its not so much |
her good looks-I can find a dozen |
prettier girls in a days ride-but some
thing catches you in the breath, when |
you see her. What is it 2"
Remember the Dryads? We read |
about in our Greek days." Mallows /
said, lifting his eyes to the skyline. |
Then suddenly: could you possibly |
imagine her fashionable-with a cor
set on body or soul ?"
lowering, the financier, shook his |
head. Mallows turned from him-men |
were coming, almost on the run, urged |
by some invisible monitor. He smiled. |
She need not hope thus tc escape him |
.he would see that she got her pay,
also the best apology he could frame |
for his laundering. Then he was sud- |
denly aware that she passed by-that |
she smiled at him. that she moved with /
the foot of Atalanta- As she climbed |
the hill, one of the village fellows said,
shaking his head:
"Be dinged if it didn't plum skeer
me ter see Lassy Drewett stompin' her
foot at the bunch o. US, and fairly driv- !
in us to work. Why, I don't hardly /
believe she was ever off the place be-
fore-not by her lone SELF"
lowering smiled as he listened. NAL |
lows looked glum. Here was no dryad,
rather an enchanted princess. guarded |
by ancient dragons-he was already |
aware of the aunts. Trey might, if |
they chose, make a lot of trouble for
the new road-itS right of way must |
cross a corner of their land, not very |
big, but strategically most important. |
The countryside had hidden the road |
builders beware of the sisters. They |
were prone to suspicion-of strangers
hPoaISa they didn't know them nf l
friends because they did. lowering |
might handle them-Mallows rested |
his hope upon the payment of his debt. |
He overheard further gossip that pos |