The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-09-07
Copyright, 1o11, by the Bobbs-
 Merrill Go. :.

Merrill Co.
 his hands to his aching breast, that he would have fought for Kazan-giv- en up his life for him-as he would have done for a brother. Hot tears blinded Jams eyes, and he covered his face with his hands, and sobbed as he had sobbed years before, when in the southern wilderness word came to him that Melisse was dying.
 'MeIisse-M elisse"- He moaned her name aloud, and stared through the hot film in his eyes away into the north. sobbing to her, calling to her in his grief, and looking through that thou sand miles of starlit space as though from out of it her sweet face would come to hiTn once more. And as he called there seemed to come to him from out of that space a sound, so sweet and low and tender that his heart stood still, and he stood up straight and stretched his arms up to heaven, for Jan Thoreau knew that it was the sound of a violin that came to him from out of the north-that Me 1sse, an infnity away, had heard his call, his prayer. and was playing for him and Kazan!
 And suddenly as he listened his arms fell to his sides. and there shot into his eyes all of the concentrated light of the stars, for the music came nearer and nearer and still nearer to him. un- til he caught Kazan in his arms and ran with him down the side of the mountain. It died now in the forest. then rose again, softer and more dis tant it seemed to him. turing him on into the forest gloom. For few mo- ments consciousness of all else but that sound remained with him only in dazed. half real way, and as John Cum mins had called upon the angels at Lac Bain many years ago when he. too. had gone out into the night to meet this wonderful music, so Jan Thoreau's soul cried to them now as he clutched his dead dog, Kazan, to him and stumbled on Then suddenly he came upon the cabin, and in the cabin there was a ighti
 Gently he laid Kazan down upon the snow, and for a full minute he stood and listened and heard, lower and sweeter still, the gentle music of the violin. Some one was in his cabin-liv- ing hands were playing! After all. it was not the spirit of Melisse that had come to him in the hour of his deepest grief, and a sob rose in his throat. He went on, step by step, and at the door he stopped again, wondering if he was mad, if the spirits of the forest were taunting him still, Tiff
 One step more
 The great God, he heard it now-the low, sweet music of the old Gree love song. played in the olds old way, with all of ifS old i4c O joy, it's weeping song of life, of death, of loYel With great cry he flung open the door and leaped in, with his arms reaching out. his eyes blinded for moment by the sudden Highland with cry as piercing as his own some thing ran through that light to meet him-Melisse, the old, glorious Melisse, crushing her arms about his neck, sob- ping his name, pleading with him in her old, sweet voice to kiss her, kiss her, kiss her-while Jan Thoreau for the first time in his life felt sweeping over him resistless weakness, and in this vision he knew that Jean de Ora vols came to him, too, and held him in his arms and that as the light faded away from about him he still heard Melisse calling to him, felt her arms about him, her face crushed to his own. Anu dS tu0 OSSQ SIOO" 0nV0lOpeQ u1In more denseIy and he felt himself slip ping down through it he whispered to the faces which he could no longer see:
 'Kazan-died-tonig
 For long time Jan fought to throw off the darkness, and when he sue ceeded and opened his eyes again, he knew that it was Melisse who was sit ting beside him, and that it was Me lisse who flung her arms about him when he awoke from his strange sleep and held his wild head pressed against her Melisse, with her glorious hair flowing about her as he had loved it in their old days, and with the old love shining in her eyes, only more glorious now, as he heard her voice.
 "Jan-Jan-we have been hunting for you-so long," she cried softly. we have been searching-ever since you left Lac Bain. Jan. dear Jan, I loved you so. and you almost broke my heart Dear, dear Jan," she sobbed, stroking his face now, "I know why you ran away-I know, and I love you so that that I will die if-you go away again.
 "You knowr' breathed Jan. He was in his cot and raised himself, clasping her beautiful face between his two hands, staring at her with the old hor- TOT in his eyes. ''You how-aud you