The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1913-01-15
:AmongtheLiIaCS
Romance of the Girl Who
Was Tired Out.
BY VIRGINIA LEILA WENTZ.

i + y 'Ft++F1't
1t was q warm spring evening, so
warm that they had ventured to sit
put on the little wooden veranda.
There was a suggestion of approach
Ing summer in the breeze, and the air
was redolent with lilacs. By glancing
toward the right it was not difficult to
see where the fragrance came from.
On the other side of the hedge in the
deepening twilight was a purple forest
of plumes, and beyond that, white in
the gray light, rose the old Howard
house. the oldest in the tiny village as
we'll as the largest. Selden Howard
was the only living representative of
the family.
Presently the group on Mrs. Jones
veranda began to speak of Selden,
leading up to the subject from the fra
GRANGE of the bushes
"Them lilocks is sickishly sweet"
observed Mrs. Jones herself.
"Really nauseating," acquiesced the
boarder who had been spending the
winter here in this little cottage among
the Berkshire hills. by the way, l
saw a strange man at the postoffice
this morning, and 1 overheard some one
say he was Mr.. Howard. Very good
looking man he was and seemed to
know a thing or two"
"That's him." confirmed Mrs. Jones.
''But why shouldn't he know thing or
two? He don't do nothin' but travel
and trapse round the country. Hardly
ever home and won't have a thing to
do with the people in the village"
The moon was beginning to show
red and low in the warm dusk, and the
lilacs made superb black shadow eff
fects on the lawn. The little tired out
city girl who sat on the lowest step of
the veranda and who had just arrived
that day had nothing to say. She was
filling her whole soul with the beauty
Of the coming night.
Pretty soon, carrying her lamp, she
went upstairs to her bedroom. She
looked at the high mound of feather
bed and at the small window at the
foot into which was already flooding
the spring moonlight For a moment
she stood irresolute; then she lowered
the shade, slipped on a cheesecloth XII
mono, drew the pins from her hair, let
ting it fall about her shoulders, blew
out the lamp and followed her whim to
lean from the easement.
1t had been a very long while since
Katherine Hope had looked from a
window over a garden when the moon
was shining True, from the window
of their stodgy city lodgings on Elev-
enth street. her mothers and hers, she
had leaned out at times when her head
was hot and aching with too much
work and had caught breath of out
side air. But that was so different.
From that window she could look out
only on clotheslineS, sheds and back
windows of the boarding houses on the
next street, and there whatever restful
thoughts might come to her were made
havoc of by an accordion, cheap coon
songs or the caterwauling of feline
creatures on the fences below.
And now-oh, the feathery, pale for
escence of the lilacs over yonder!
Katherine drew her breath in with de-
light as their dominant scent came up
to her. If only her dear mother could
be with her to enjoy the beauty of ii
all! But that had not been possible
When the physician had shaken his
head gravely over his young patients
wornout condition and commanded an
immediate change in the country il
had been all that mother and daughter
could do to scrape together the meageI
savings for Katherine's rest of a fort
night. And Katherine was not one tC
NEW and whimper over impossibilities
She was here now, and she would
make the best of every moment to grow
strong and we'll again that she might
go back with new life to her Office
work and the companionship of her sac
rificing little mother.
The mild country air and the thou
sand odors of the spring played upor
her face and lifted her loosened hair
gilded by the moonshine into the like
ness of an aureole. Her white kimonC
fell softly around her; from the posi-
tion in which she held her arms hel
soft elbows were plainly visible, anG
her exquisite face, leaning back a bi
against the dark painted frame of the
window stood out like a cameo.
The girl was little conscious of any
thing except the wonder of the night
nor was she aware of one who watched
her moment from the shadow of the
lilacs in the garden beyond the hedge
Selden Howard was returning from hi!
dog kennels, whence he had gone t.
look after sick collie, when his eye
had CHANGED to fall upon the figure IL
the easement and in sheer artistic ap
probation had rested there.
"She's like some young princess" hC
thought to himself, pursuing his way
toward the big house, "or goddess
Her hairs like the silvery floss arounC
corn Her name ought to be Perdita