Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1914-04-23

had always drawn her most and she
instinctively chose one of these today.
1t was the road whereon squatted Mad
Anthony's whitewashed cabin. "Dahs
er pSn gwine look in dem eyes, honey,
= pake 'em cry en- cry" She
q : n the incident of that day,
NJ read her fortune, but
Eavering prophecy came
~ 20, a with a shivering sense of
reality. go dah's fab en- she ain
afeah'd. en- dahs watah on she ain
afeah'd. Els de thing whut eat de
ha'at outen de breas-dat whut she
afeah'd of" If it were only fire and
water that threatened herl
She struck her hands together with
an inarticulate cry. She remembered
the laugh in Valiant's eyes as they had
planted the roses, the characteristic
gesture with which he tossed the wav-
ing hair from his forehead-how she
had named the ducks and the pea
cock and chosen the spots for his
flowers; and she smiled for such mem
cries, even in the stabbing knowledge
that these dear trivial things could
mean nothing to her in the future.
She tried to realize that he w.. - go
from ner life, that he was the one
man on earth whom TO marry would
be to strike to the heart her love
and loyalty to her mother, and she
said this over and over to herself in
varying phrases:
"You canti No matter how much
you love him, you can'tl His father
deliberately ruined your mothers life
your own motherl It's bad enough
to love him-you can't help that But
you can help marrying him. You
would hate yourself. You can never
kiss him again, or feel his arms around
you. You can't touch his hand. You
mustn't even see him. Not if it breaks
your heart-as your mothers heart
was broken!"
She had turned into an unbeaten
way that ambled from the road
through a track Of tall oaks and pines.
scarce more than a bridle-path. wind
ing aimlessly through bracken-strewn
depths so dense that even the wild
roses had not found them. In her
childish hurts she had always fed to
the companiOnship of the trees. She
had known them every one-the black
gum and pale dogwood and gnarled
hickory, the prickly-balled button
wood" the lowly mulberry and the
majestic red oak and walnut. They
had seemed friendly and plying coun
sellers. standing about her with arms
intertwined Now. with the rain weep
ing in soughing gusts through them
they offered her no comfort. She sud
denly threw herself face down on the
soaked moss.
ooh, Cod" she cried. Il love him
so! And had only that one evening
It doesn't seem just If could only
have him, and suffer some other way
He's suffering, too, and II isn't our
fault! We neither of us harmed any
one! He isn't responsible for what
his father dd-why, he hardly knew
him Oh. God, why must it be sc
hard for US? Millions of other people
love each other and nothing separates
them like this!"
Shirley's warm breath made a little
fog against the star-eyed moss. She
was scarcely conscious of her wet anC
clinging clothing and the soaked
strands of her hair. She was Sc
wrapped in her desolation that she M
longer heard the sound of the perse
vering rain and the wet swishing o
the bushes-parting now to a hurried
step that fell almost without sound OF
the spongy forest soil She starteS
up suddenly to see Valiant before her
He was in a somewhat battered
walking suit of brown khaki with
leather belt and felt hat whose brim
stiff with the wet, was curved dowI
visor-wise over his brow. In an In
slant he had drawn her upright, AM
thsy stood. looking at each other
drenched and trembling.
How can your" he said with
roughness that sounded akin to anger
Here I'm this atrocious weather-lik
thIsl" he laid a hand on her arm
you're wet through"
Il don't mind the rain" she ar
swered, drawing away. yet feelin
with a guilty thrill the masterfulnes
of his tone. as we'll as it's real concern
I'm often wet"
His gaze searched her face. featur
by feature, noting her pallor. the blue
black shadows beneath her eyes, tn
caught breath, uneven like child
from crying. He still held her hand
In his.
Shirley" he said. Il know what 20
intended to tell me by those flowers
r1r L -