Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1912-09-10
EVENING STORY.
vELATloN.
BY Joanna Single.
Copyright, 1919, by the Associated
Literary Press.)

b
feeling hot and angry enough 80
that she could leave them without
word and slip Of. to marry a man
any man--but least Of all one like
Henry Main. whom they had done
their best to keep away from her
They told her she was too young to
know. Worse. than that, they want
ed her to marry Max just because
she had been engaged to MIN before
Henry came into the neighborhood
for his summers vacation.
AT thought Of Max she rose,
snoothed down her blue serge skirt
and nut on her hat. Max had gone
too far when he ordered her abso-
lutely not to speak to the other man.
she did not like jealousy. He would
see now that he had made mistake.
II he had just asked her not to.out
no. even then she could not have
helped loving the older, more sopnls'
ticated man, with his tender, master
f,l WAYS, She did not like to go to
him in this way.
Finally she heard the little clock
on the shelf downstairs strike 10. and
though she was shivering Win iear
and the misery of leaving her own
little room, she slipped into the nail
her shoes in her hand. She waited,
heard her. fathers deep breathing
from his open room. and then slipped
down the back stairs to the Kitchen
and out into the yard.
There was no moon, and Drusllia'
child as she still was, shrank from
going alone in the dark through the
field to the bit of wood where he
would be waiting for her. Max was
always prowling about, since his
farm was neighboring and might
come upon them. Now the slender
girl stole about the barn where old
Beauty. the mare. thrust out her mead
and whinnied, softly for attention.
Drusie stopped a moment to lay ner
face against the kindly old creature,
and then passed through the orchard,
trembling at every step, wondering
whether in the morning her motner
would cry, or whether she would just
look gray and old as she had done
when she saw that her daughter was
Diminishing Max.
As she came to the bit of pasture
between orchard and wood. she sud
denly remembered Henry, and the
magnetic half-hypnotism Of him
numbed her senses and made her for
get all but him. He would take care
Of her; he loved her; they would 60
to the city and real life would begin
forher.
Then she recalled her big, bluff
bl,te-eyed lover and his angry con-
tempt for the other man, his IN
Justice, his almost violence. AS II
She couldn't tell good man from
a bad one. What right had he to
forbid her to see anyone she liked?
BY this, now fearless. she was en-
tering the wood path where q little
farther on was the big tree where
Henry was waiting, and where un-
der some bushes waited suitcase
with a few things she had taken out
there, one by one, during the last
few days. She almost laughed to
herself to think she had reached
the place without somehow meet
Ing Max-he had been almost ON
,ninresent the last few weeks. al
though she would not speak to him.
Henry had gone back to the city,
and even now no one was supposed
to know that he was driving over
for. her from q ne1ghboring town.
from which they would later take
. night train. She was glad she
had not met Max
Once safe in the trees she gave q
little low call like q quail, and
waited for an answer; but receiving
none, called again, and then listened
What she heard was crashing OF
bushes at some distance, and sud
denly the angry voices OF men. In
stantly she hid herself. Probably
Henry was waiting for these people
to pass before he showed himself.
Flat on the ground under the
brush the girl lay. her heart going
like mad with fear and suspense.
The voices were louder, and the men
came nearer-she had put her hands
over her ears, but took them away
now and deliberately listened. The
first tone she recognized was Max's
voice, and despite herself a great re-
lief and sense Of safety crept over
her. At least nothing dreadful could
happen with Max about.
"Tll be policeman, spy or anything
else when 1t comes to her safety and
happiness, you dog! She doesn't
have to marry me; don't want her
to unless she wants me more than
you out of commission. You're not
even a first-class scoundrel-just a
cheap sneak! Do you suppose 1t took
me long to get your record looked
up? What about your being fired by
Mattox 4 Co? What did 1t cost your
people to buy them of from prose-
cutting you?"
Something inside Drusie stopped.
She loved honesty The men had
come 80 close that she might almost
have touched them, and she saw that
Max held the other man by his collar
and, that suddenly he broke away and
aimed a blow. at his captor..
In moment the two were fighting
desperately, crashing into the bushes.
Henry Main cursing. She was afraid
they would tread upon her, and
slipped up and hid behind a tree
trunk. She wanted to call for help.
she wanted to stop them, but she
dared not move. They might hurt
each other -he might-hurt Max.
Then she knew where her heart was.