The searchlight. [volume] (Culbertson, Mont.) 1902-current, 1911-02-03

wished that he might lad his Aeart
nllsd with Joy at again being beneath
the old roof.tres. wished that this
Christmas might Be the happisst Of
all the Christmases he had ever e.
periencsd. and lastly assured hin hat
she was sending him Q mements Of
the season, which she hoped he would
cherish and love for her sake.
Parrish Morton repeated the words
sadly: For her sake! All. for her
saks!"
II she but knew what he would Do
for her sake. were It possible! But.
no. she was not for him. The violet
and the cosmos are incongruous.
Youth and late summer are not born
to trip hand in hand across the aslas
Elysian into Agapemons.
The bell rang sharply. He heard
Phipps' soft tread uDen the stairs. and
listened. Yes. II was she. There was
10 installing the rippling csdsncs Of
that sweet-throatsd bird Of passage.
Turning. he pressed Q button and the
room was sparkling with light. Al the
top OF the stair he stood hesitatlng.
striving to gain control Of himself. Al
the foot. she paused. made him . mock
Courtesy" and held out her arms:
"Oh. Par. dear old Par, I have
brought you your Christmas present
instead!"
The attitude. the look In her eyes.
the Irresistible snchantment Of her
beauty flooded him with impslling
power. What did she mean! Was II
herself she was ofYsringi Fer . brief
moment he stood swaying to the
mighty impulse within him. Standing
supplied there. he remembered. a. she
bounded toward him! He must not
be could not
And then. ~ he was about to sweep
aside ali the positiveasss Of his duty.
al the negatives and forbsarancss and
give free impulse to his heart. there
came q step behind her. She heard
and turning ~ she was about to enter
The yearring haven Of his eager arms.
cried:
oh. pardon me. Mr.. Morton. let me
Introduce Marshall Marriott. He"
Suddenly the stairs went black BE-
lore him. He realized now! She was
bringing him . Christmas surprise.
the man she loved. the
Somehow he managed to greet the
stalwart young fellow with the frank
eyes. In . mare Of conflicting pain
and surprise be did the duties of Q
host. and when Verona and her es-
cort had been shown to their rooms to
dress, he slipped into the den and
cast himself into the great arm chair
before the pulseless Goals Of the fire.
place.
Lost! LOST" kept ringing In his
ears. and with q srosn of anguish he
once more buried his face In his
hands and gave way to . mans
grief. In vain he tried to reason
with himself that Il were better SO.
He should not have expected or even
dared to think II might have been
otherwise. lie was too old for her.
She was sunshine. be was the sombsr
cloud but, oh. how he loved her, And
for the moment he had thought she
meant to give herself. The misery Of
II all! The hesrtache Of Il!
Suddenly. behind him he heard Q
rustic. the frou-frou of . woman's
gown. and over the side Of his great
chair . warm arm stole softly against
his neck.
"oh. Par. what Is II. dear! What
have I done! what"
Instinctively In the darkness hs felt
the frightened rabbit look. the appeal
Ing sa,s. Summoning all his reserve
strength. he said. with scarcely .
/. tremor In his voice:
Nothing dear. nothing to offend. I
an slad-slsd-for you. II he -
worthy. If"
"lf-if-he-ls worthy-oh, you
goose. I see II al now!" In Q fash
she threw her arms about his neck.
Her face was close to his. How soft
sd warm and soothing her flesh was!
"Hs-he is my brother. lost that day
10 the foothills Of New Mexico. IL
have just found him. Thought you
would be glad wanted to surprise
you-I-I-dont you want your
Christmas PRESENT." 4. desperation.
With . mighty heart throb he
reached about and drew her to him.
rsndsrly. tremblingiy he clasped his
srns about her and a. their lips net
In plightins kiss. . tiny aams sprins.
ias - from the heart Of IN ash-eov-
cred sapphire. famed ~ from the
crate And sent the shadows scurrying.
PhipDs coming to announce diner,
stood transaxed. nsn. . broad grin
upon his face. he slipped softly away
sAortling to his Utmost self:
-Lawd! Lawd! Ders sure Am gwins
e Be . veddin' In this yeah house
afors another Christmas eve! YasrY!.
A oviekiy-Mads Present.
Most women know what ie u - be