Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-11-05
BY LOUISE COLLIER WILCOX


beautiful and being unnecessary the loneliness and
fragrance of lfe they could be quite easily done away
with The child gentle and would not contradict
first because she fond of the acs and did want
offend them and secondly, because she hated argrl
and futile talk but in her heart she glad
to that the cattle still persisted and despite all the
lilacs could do there plenty OF fiat meadow, with
shiny dandelions and thirsty buttercups Haunting their
heads, and daisies that laughed and reflected the
light On the whole too, she liked the sleek red velvet
of the they dotted the meadow green, though
they chewed all the time and kept their eyes bent down
the grass and could not be persuaded to watch the
clouds fly or the set
The oaks tall warriors and they talked to the
child great deal about fortitude and energy "See"
said the oaks, show the north wind sweeps down from
the snow capped mountains and the ice incases
aest twigs and the lies heavy and tries to break
branches and yet they do nothing at all against
us We come back year after year and grow more and
more acorns and scatter them about over the earth
And when they to this point all the oaks sang to-
gether in chorus 1--WE going to the earth with
oak We going to climb up the mountainside
and dissolve the and the lawn and dry up the
river that all the world there shall be nothing
but the strength and the forttude of the oak tree
@And where shall be then said the child, @if
the meadows and there is place for my house
"Ah, well, said the oak trees you grow into
little oak"
out it with the river that she talked most, and
the river told her great deal 1t told how it began
to spout in dark up the mountain, and how it
trckled deep and through shady forests,
and called all the other little streams and springs to it,
until it got to be brown brook that could jump
the highest stones and round the great roots of
trees, and uproot FERNS and how it became wider and
wider and spread along the valleys, and watered
the FARMS and took of the people and the trees and
the cattle and carried all of little boats its bosom,
that men might do business together and thrive.
3And of course you know where am going, do you
not?" said the river.
mo- said the child, as she dabbled her feet in the
edge of the water and made stones skip the surface
81 do not know knew you in great hurry, and
thought that perhaps you wanted to go as far as Eden
Manor"
aEden Manor, indeed" said the river derisvey.
@Why, am going where everything goes at last; but
nothing goes swiftly as the river. | going to the
sea- and the sea- you must know is everything there IS
1t great expanse all silver, and it stretches far
the stars. When flow into it become part of the
great Whole that there is no break anywhere. Men,
said the river "are rather stupid Instead of fnging
themselves into the of the they try to ride in
boats but in the end everything goes back to the
great sea.
TT happened that in the heat and the glow of mid
summer love lit upon the valley 1t in the
bodment of stawart young farmer from over the hills
who CHANGED by that way driving his Just as he
passing the brown house the pin in the axle of his
wheel gave way and he had to stop there and mend it
before he could go any farther.
By this time the child was maid, grown tall and slim,
with heavy brads of black hair bound round her head
with eyes gray deep set, and questioning and shaded
by long black ashes that rested on the peach bloom of
her cheeks when she not looking into the distance.
She stood by the young farmer and questioned him and
steadied the wheel while he mended it, and he having
once again and again. until with the dusk of
each day she listened tor his tread and looked tor his
figure along the turn in the roadway.
At shut of day they walked along the road together
between the meadows where white poppies field full
of earth-caught moonbeams stretching to the purple
wall of the woods nodded. Through the summer even
ing the white moths like spirits, free among the dead,
lowered the fragile flowers and the musty scent
of the earth pressed out by evening dews with the
gathering darkness from the clods The two walked
hand in hand speaking low with hushed bheness since
such great happiness could i'll afford to clamor aloud
Only pain like the of the nightingale,
ing like that of the hermit thrush dare sing itself aloud
across the stiffness of the twilight, and neither of these
hiatt Shai1