Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1912-09-26
cHAprER XIV. Continued.

49,
Having little else to do, she studied
the man., and she studied him with a
warm desire and an enthusiastic pre-
disposition to find the best in him.
She would not have been a human
girl il she had not been thrilled to
the verJ heart Of her by what the:
mar had done for her. She recognized
that whether he asserted it or not, he
had established an everlasting and
~indisputabAe claim upon her.
The circumstances of their first
meeting, which as the days passed
did not seem quite SO horrible to her,
and yet a thought of which would
bring the blood to her cheek still on
the instant, had In some way turned
her over to him. His consideration
of her, his gracious tenderness to-
ward her, his absolute a%bnegation, his
evident overwhelming desire to please
her, to make the anomalous situation
In which they stood to each other
bearable In spite Of their lonely and
unobseryed intimacy, by an absolute
AdCh III p4GDuulpLlOA I'll LIS Pult
those things touched her profoundly.
Although she did not recognize the
fact then perhaps, she loved him from
the moment her eyes had opened in
the mist and rain after that awful
battle in the torrent to see him bend.
ing over her. stgt
No sight that had ever met Enid
Maitland's eyes was SO glorious, SO
awe inspiring, so uplifting and mag
nifcent as the view from the verge
of the cliff in the sunlight Of some
bright winter morning. Few women
had ever enjoyed such privileges as
hers. She did not know whether she
liked the winter crowned range best
that way, or whether she preferred
the snowy world, glittering cold in the
moonlight; or even whether 1t was
more attractive when it was dark and
the peaks and drifts were only light
ed by the stars which shone never SO
brightly as Just above her head.
When he allowed her she loved to
stand sometimes In the full fury Of
the gale with the wind lshrieking and
sobbing like lost souls in some icy
Inferno through the hills and oyer the
pines, the snow beating upon her, the
sleet cutting her face II she dared to
turn toward the storm, Generally he
left her alone in the quieter moments,
but in the tempest he stood watchful,
on guard by her side, buttressing her,
protecting her, s~heltering her. Indeed
his presence then was necessary,
without him she could scarce have
maintained a footing. The force of
the wind might have hurled her down
the mountain but for his strong. arm.
When the cold grew too great he led
her back carefully to the hut and the
warm fire.
All, yes, life and the world were
both beautiful to her then, In night,
IN day. by sunlight by moonlight, in
salm and storm. Yet it made no diff
ference what was spread before the
weman's eyes, what glorious picture
was exhibited to her gaze, she could
not look at 1t more than a moment
without thinking Of the man. With
the most fascinating panorama that
the earth's surface could spread be-
fore human vision to engage her at
t~ention, she looked into her own
neart and saw there this man!
Oh, she had fought against 1t at
frst, but lately she had luxuriated
In 1t. She loved him, she loved him!
And why not? What is 1t that wom-,
ex. love in men! Strength OF body?
She could remember yet how he had
carried her over the mountains In the
midst IT the storm, how she had been
so bravely upborne by his arms to his
heart. She realized later what a task
that had been, what a feat of strength.
The uprooting Of that saplipg and the
cv~erturning Of that huge Grizzly were
cnild'a play to the long portage up
the almost impossible canon and
mountain side which had brought her
to this dear haven.
Was it strength Of character she
sought, resolution, detcrmination7
This man had deliberately withdrawal
~