Imperial Valley press., 1912-05-22
REVENGE
Is SWEET
BY ELMER WINSTON
Copyright by American Press Asso-
citation, 1911.

/ She was an incorrigble tiirt. AT last.
having declined a number of suitors.
she became engaged to a multimilion-
aire. and her mother determined that
she should not have Il chance To throw
over the opportunity. The girl was
sent into the country on a plea of i'll
health in the dead of winter to remain
there till a week before The wedding
day.
An aunt agreed to take her to her
summer residence. open ii and live
there with her during the season of
| her captivity. There We're plenty of
| young men about in summer. but now
there was not one within fifty miles
J except a few cOuntrymen. The jan
uary winds were blowing cold. and he
sat all day reading novels or doing
fancy work. occasionally turning to
look through the window at the bleak
view.
There was little lake few hun
dred yards distant. just outside the
walls Of her prison grounds. One cold
night it was frozen over, and the next
morning the sun shone bright. and the
air was still and full of ozone
A man was skating on the lake.
She arose, dressed herself in a be-
coming skating costume, took up a
pair Of skates and went to the lake
Putting on her skates, she went on the
ice. at first timOrously; then, gathering
confidence, she sailed off. graceful as q
swan.
The man. evidently a farm hand, cut
figure eights. did the Dutch roll and
all manner Of fiubdubs. The girl sway
ed her skirts gracefully to one side,
then to the other, rs she skated. 1t
was case of country boy showing off
before city girl and city girl before
country boy. Then she purposely fell
on the ice and lay there till he came
and picked her up.
Are you hurt. miss?"
Where had she heard a voice like
that? She looked up into the young
mans face, and behind a stubble beard
Of five or six days growth she saw
something that reminded her of some
one she had seen before.
"NOt much." she said.
He was turning away when she
struggled or pretended to struggle with
a lame ankle. Il fear | must ask you
to help me off the ice" she said.
She rested heavily on his strong arm
as she shambled to the shore, and
when she got there he took from about
his neck an enormous wooen comfort
er and. folding il. put it on the ground
for her TO sit on Then he asked what
else he could do for her. Her ankle
continued TO pain her-so she said-and
she would neither Try to get home nor
try To skate. The consequence was
that he stood on the verge of the ice
cutting fiubdubs and talking to her.
After awhile she took off her skates
and limped home-that Is. she limped
till he WAS hidden by the trees in the
grounds of her prison. then she walked
as well as ever
1t was the beginning of the ice sea-
son. and for several weeks there was
good skating. There is nothing attrac-
tive to city girl in raw country
man. though this one was raw only in
appearance, and. having an original
mind and pleasant way with him,
he gradually threw singular spell
over her. Perhaps it was because he
was the only man about The lake
was crescent shaped, the far horn Of
the crescent being hidden by a hill.
Fearing her aunt would interfere, she
met the cOnntryman at the farther
horn. The first thing she knew she
was experiencing a singular sensation
she had never felt before
Then came sleighing, and the cOun-
tryman met her by appointment where
no one in the prison would see with
a sleigh and pair of horses-he said
be had obtained leave to exercise them
for their good-and the two rode side
by side to the jingle of bells. So the
winter passed. and one day she awOke
to the fact that the sleighbells would
soon he replaced by wedding bells and
she would be given over to a man she
didn't want
BY and by she got to talking spooney
with the cOuntryman and told him her
story. He heaved a sigh which sound
ed like Il bIacksmith's bellows. That
made her feel more spOoney STILL
They were Sleighing at the time, and
somehow her hand cOllided with one
Of his under the robes. Touch-a good
conductor of love-broke her up. He
begged her to run away with him and
get married. She hesitated, then said
she didn't see exactly how she could.
He urged her. and she told him if he
would be at the usual rendezvous the
next day with the sleigh she would
meet him and come to decision. He
persuaded her to leave her decision in
note placed i'm their ''postoff1ce'' in
a thjcket.
She cried all that night. All the
butterfly had gone out Of her under q
case of real love. In the morning she
yielded to temptation. She resolved
to elope with the countryman. She
wrote him to that effect. conveying
the note to their exchange letter box
herself. In the evening just before
dark she went to the rendezvous. The
sleigh was not there. She waited
awhile. then went home.
The next day she received letter
from the countryman telling her that
he was her first rejected suitor-one
whom she had well nigh forgotten and
had not recognized in his humble ap-
parel.
He bad his revenge. and she was
very mad. She returned to the city
and. like sensible girl, married the