The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1912-09-12
WENDELL'S EXPERIENCE
weekly Short Story

starred thickly with delicate forgetme
nots and purple violets. The sun shon,
down wamly through the trees. chang
ing the bursting buds to misty greer
leaves until the whole wood was per.
meated with green light shot through
with sunshine.
Jack Wendell tramped through the
crisp leaves of successive years and
with a wistful, half defiant glance up
the winding road that led to Everglade
Hall he threw himself down beside the
murmuring brook and plucked re-
morselessly at the flowers
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES he ejacu-
lated bitterly. "All women are faith
less"
Rubbish to that" retorted a sweet
voice from the other bank and Jack
arose, startled to observe a pretty girl
engaged in plucking violets and for
getmenots and tying them into little
punches. She wore a pink frock and
with the background of green moss and
the golden green atmosphere of the
wood surrounding her she looked to
Jacks bewildered eyes like pink and
white fairy evolved from the April day
Her skin was pink and white, and her
hair was golden, like the sunshine and
her eyes were like the blue sky and
the flowers below. When she spoke
to Jack she had flashed a saucy glance
at him from under the golden brown
lashes.
why rubbish" demanded Jack ar
gumentatively.
"Oh, because!" said the girl, looking
at completed bunch of violets with
half closed eyes.
II thought l smelled May pinks,"
shifted Jack, abandoning the argument
for while.
81 have a basketful here" said the
girl.
Making May baskets"
Somebody is going to make baskets.
These are for the kindergarten chill
dren.
Jack flushed redly. Phyllis Lambert
kept the kindergarten school in Red
land. The path he had longed to take
had led directly to the door of her
woodland school. He had been in love
with Phyllis ever since he had first
taken his little sister, Blanche to the
kindergarten. Blanche was five then,
and he was fifteen and Phyllis was
twenty-five. Now Blanche was fifteen,
he was twenty five, and Phyllis was
Jack refused to consider Phyllis in
creasing age. He had been love with
her to such detrimental effect that his
father had found business for him in
distant city and hoped the boy would
forget his sweetheart.
But Jack was obstinate and would
not forget. 1t was his Wendell obsti-
macy that compelled him to haunt
Phyllis Lambert's steps until she half
laughingly promised to wait for him.
She had given him bunch of forget
menots and he had gone away happy as
king and he had stayed away, cheer
fully working to make something of
himself for Phyllis sake
There was no objection to Phyllis
Lambert except the difference in their
ages Phyllis was sweet and fair and
very 'loveable if inclined to be some
what shallow and nerveless, but Jacks
parents ever held before him the fact
that by the time he was ready to mar
ry her his bride would be thirty-five
or forty years old and look it, too"
as his mother added emphatically 1t
was perhaps unfortunate, under the
circumstances. that Jack should APP
pear young for his age and Phyllis old
for hers.
But letter from Phyllis had brought
him home flying now. She had chang
ed her mind She did not want to
marry anyone at present. She did not
love him as she should and she pre-
ferred that their engagement should
end. And she returned Jacks letters
and the ring he had insisted upon plac
ing on her plump, white finger and was
"his sincere friend, Phyllis Lambert"
So Jack came flying home, astonish
ing his parents, who evidently knew
nothing about the broken engagement
He had hurried through lunch and with
some incoherent remark about a walk
in the woods, he had plunged into the
path that led to Phyllis woodland kim
dergarten. At the brookside, where
the path diverged toward the school,
he had paused and thrown himself
down. Then it was that his bitter re-
mark had found hearer in the person
of the prettiest girl he had ever seen.
AS matter Of fact, Jack Wendell had
been practically blind sin cehe was fiji
teen-he had had no eyes for any other
girl than Phyllis. They simply did not
exist for him.
MAY baskets" repeated Jack gloom
lily, a shadow passing over his face.
Perhaps they will hang one on your
door" remarked the girl in comfort
ing tone.
81 hope not! / hate spring flowers
said Jack ungraciously.
Gwen forgetmenots?'
Jack glanced at her demure, down.