The midland journal., 1912-06-14

/ gown, ne had always dreaded the adj
vent Of D neighbor. and now he was
reaping the harvest Of his forebod-
| ings Duane was distinctly irritated,
but over his personal grievance there
stole the memory Of kind neighbor,
who had once sent him a cup Of hot
coffee and some homemade bread
when he arrived to occupy the house
next to her own. He recalled dis
tinctly his feeling of gratitude for
the timely and much needed refresh
ment.
Duane lay for a moment thinking,
when he drew himself half reluctantly
from the hammock. A few moments
later his deaf and dumb servant was
crossing the garden to the shanty next
door with tray upon which a pot Of
tea, plate Of sandwiches and a
cluster of fresh roses were daintily
arranged.
"All women prefer tea, suppose" !"
muttered the author as he once more
sank into his hammock. He looked
up at Tanner, who had brought back
a note from the little neighbor.
Thank you, very much" it read.
7 was longing for a cup Of tea and
my fire is not lighted as yet
Duane returned then to thoughts
Of his book, feeling that he had per-
formed his part.
Later in the afternoon his reveries
of wonderful music and ethereal wom-
en- were rudely broken. His little,
drab-colored neighbor had burst into
song. Duane shivered. The tones,
spontaneous and joyous, were half
tone fat. After his first involuntary
shrinking from discordant sound, Dur
| ane fell to wondering how any one
could sing in shanty which had
neither beauty nor comfort to adorn
| it.
"She must be happy" he muttered,
and was not conscious that half
sigh accompanied his thought.
| Later in the week, when he saw
her working with broken trowel in
the meager soil beside the porch and
humming discordantly over her eff
forts to produce at least the SEM
blance of a garden, Duane sensed a
feeling akin to awe that happiness
existed where beauty and luxury
played no part. He glanced from his
little neighbor's piteous attempt at
home making to his own completed
haven, with its wealth of beauty, lux.
ury and comfort. Something within
him snapped.
He was half irritated, wholly dis
concerted, by sudden lack of con-
tentment. He brooded darkly over
the mere fact that stray alley cat
had deserted his own back door for
that of his neighbor; he felt arrrieved
that her canary in the broken cage
on the porch sang more joyously than
his own golden songster, Snd when
one day bevy Of little waits came
| to her house and sent peals Of child
ish laughter floating over the high
privet hedge Duane's state Of mind
bordered on jealousy.
The crowning grievance came when
he discovered his great collie Rob
sinking guiltily back home after a
stolen visit with the little neighbor.
He. secretly suspected Tanner Of hay-
ing taken many of his choice slips
over to the scanty garden next door,
but Duane could find no place for con-
demnation.
His new book progressed beyond
his expectations. There seemed to be
more warmth and vital life in its
pages than In his former works. Con,
trary to his dark forebodings, neigh
Dor had not disturbed his train OF
thought. He had never spoken to the
little drab colored woman, nor had he
1 attempted to fathom the spirit of hap
piness that seemed to hover over her
i every hour.
During the heat of the summer,
Duane was compelled to move his
hammock from the veranda to the
summer house at the foot of the gar
den. Enjoying physical movement aft
er his hours of writing he carried
the stepladder down to the vine-hung
arbor in order to put the hammock
screw into the high post.
i In the garden next door, close be-
side the priVet hedge, the little neigh
Dor started back suddenly. A loud
crash smote her ears. She looked
quickly in the direction whence the
sound had come, then sped like fawn
up along the priyet hedge to the spot
where an opening permitted her body
to squeeze through She went swift
ly toward the summer house and look
ed In.
When Duane regained conscious
ness there was steady pounding be-
meath something infinitely soft upon
which his head rested. He did not
open his eyes Immediately lest he
lose the contentment that was his.
Had he entered another land? Was
an angel visitant stroking his eyes
with rose petals? These were the
questions that waited over Duane's