The Springdale news., 1914-09-18
BENEATH THE STARS
By DOROTHY DOUGLAS,

The Armament seemed ablaze with million twinkling stars. A slim pale quarter of the moon cast faint path of light over the vast expanse o1 water.
 To the man, leaning over the ships railing the night was perfect: to the girl sim and pale as the moon itself the night held a feeling of unrest that was both definite and vague.
 T do not see how you can feast your soul-on a night like this," the girl said softly, and still refuse to believe in him who created it."
 Felix Valdez looked down at the girl and shrugged his shoulders.
 Il believe in some great force with which we are powerless to cope" he said. but l do not call that force God"
 ITO whom do you pray when you are in trouble or when you want some thing?" asked the girl
 T do not pray" Valdez said
 The girl shivered in spite of the warmth of the night.
 Are you cold?" inquired the man.
 "No-only shocked l have never before met an unbeliever."
 You would meet plenty in my coun- try who believe as 1 do,' Valdez told her quietly we are even now fighting l a religious faction in Chile They are so strong that they are holding our country back from any kind of prog ress. They oppose everything that means growth and betterment for the people"
 You will never win out though you have ten million men beside you" Ma dine Vance said softly. You have no power upon which to call in moments of weakness
 T am strangely weak-at this mo ment,' he said only half aloud
 "Comei" cried Nadine Tell me some more about the stars was in- terested-until you shocked me with your lack of faith"
 Gan you not teach me-faith?" Val dez realized that he had spoken more because he wanted to hear the girls soft voice than from any desire to swerve from his own philosophy of the creation.
 T can scarcely do so great thing in so short time" Nadine replied. Tomorrow night you will have ar rived in Plymouth, while 1 will go on to Cherbourg."
 All things must have beginning" suggested Valdez.
 And an ending" laughed Nadine.
 No, no, There is where my philos- ophy Is happier than yours That which lives never dies-in my opin- ion"
 Love dies" said Nadine with quaint assumption of experience Then 1t did not live" He turned suddenly toward the girl and his voice took on an accent of seriousness Do you think that should you and love each other time would rob us of that love? Do you not want to believe that a million years from now it would be the same when we were perhaps reincarnated as flowers or birds on that twinkling red planet up there?" He pointed to the red star about which they had previously spoken.
 Nadine turned her face upward to- ward the wonderful sky and gazed with unseeing eyes at the Armament.
 Have you no answer for me?" ques- toned Valdez.
 No whispered Nadine, and swayed slightly toward him.
 In another second she was in his arms. held tightly, as If the very wind would rob him of his treasure. You do love me-you wonderful being" he said. And you will marry me and come down into the mountains of Chile with me-will you not-and will show you the red star that watches over my country"
 No, no" she cried swiftly, "I could not marry you! It would kill me to live beside one who has no faith. With a movement sudden and unexpected Nadine slipped from his arms and along the deck. She had disappeared before Valdez could gath CT his beWildered senses.
 The girl had torn aside the drap- cries of Valdez rather comfortable philosophy and had set tiny lighted candle somewhere within his taber- nacle of flesh After that she had left him alone and he knew not where to turn. He realized that life without Nadine would be as void of beauty as a garden without flowers
 AS for Nadine, she went below to her cabin and fell to dreaming and in her dreams she saw herself boarding a steamer for Panama, then going by rail to Colon and from there to Val paraiso. After that Nadine's clear reasoning became vague, for it was there that Felix Valdez again entered her actual presence and only the mem- ory of the touch of his arms remained clear to her So great was the long ing to see him once again before the long separation that Nadine slipped in har