The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1914-07-23

I the thought, between him and her
there swept through the shimmering
candle-lighted air breath of wet rose.
fragrance like an impalpable cloud
and set in the midst of 1t misty star.
tinted gown sprayed with nlies-of-the.
valley, and above 1t a girls face clear
and vivid, her deep shadow-blue eyes
fixed on his.
The music Of a two-step was Ian
gushing when, little later, Valiant
and Shirley strolled down between
the garden box-hedges, cypress-shaped
and lifting spire-like toward a sky
which bent, silent canopy Of mauVe
and purplish blue. Behind them
Damory court lay a nest of, woven
music and laughter. The long white
muslined porch shimmered goldenly,
and beside it under the lanterns dal-
lied fiirtatious couple or two. ghost
like In the shadows.
Come" he said. Let me take You
to see the sun-dial now"
The tangle had been cut away and
narrow gravel-path led through the
pruned creepers. She made an excla-
nation Of delight. The onyx-pillar
stood in an oasis of white-moonfow-
ers, white dahlias. mignonette and mar.
cissus; bars of late lilies-of-the-val.
ley beyond these, bordered with Arum.
lilies, white clematis, iris and bridal.
wreath, shading out into tender paler
hues that hinged the spotless purity
like dawning passion.
White for happiness" he quoted.
"You said that when you brought me
here-the day we planted the ram.
blers. Do you remember what
said? That some day, perhaps, should
love this spot the best of all at Damory
court" He was silent moment, trac'
Ing with his finger the motto on the
dial's rim. When l was very little,
he went on-"hardly more than three
years old, think-my father and
had a play, in which we lived in q
great mansion like this. 1t was called
Wishing House, and it was In the mid
die Of the Never-Never Land-a sort
Of beautiful fairy country in which
everything happened right. l know
now that the Never-Never Land was
Virginia, and that Wishing House was
Damory court. No wonder my father
loved II! No wonder his memory turn
ed back to 1t alwaysi I've wanted to
make it as it was when he lived here
And want the old dial to count happy
hours for me.
Something had crept into his tone
that struck her with a strange sweet
terror and tumult of mind. The hand
that clutched her skirts about her
knees had begun to tremble and she
caught the other hand to her cheek
in vague hesftant gesture. The moon
flowers seemed to be great round eyes
staring up at her.
Shirley" he said, and now his
voice was shaken with longing-~wirl
you make my happiness for me?"
She was standing perfectly still
against the sun dial, both hands, laced
together. against her breast, her eyes
on his with strange startled look
Over the hush of the garden now, like
the very soul Of the passionate night
throbbed the haunting barcarole oi
Tales of Hoffmann:"
Might Of stars and night Of love"
an inarticulate echo of his longing. He
took a step toward her, and she turn
ed like one in sudden terror seeking
way Of escape, But he caught hel
close in his arms.
II love you!" he said. Hear it now
in my brides garden that I've made
for you! love you. I love you!"
For one instant she struggled. Then
slowly, her eyes turned to his, the
sweet lips trembling. and something
dawning deep in the dewy blue thai
turned all his leaping blood to quick
silver. MY darring!" he breathed
and their lips met. ..-
In that delirious moment both had
the sense Of divine completion thai
comes only with love returned. Fol
him there was but the woman In his
arms, the one woman created for hin
since the foundation Of the world. i
was Kismet. For this he had come tt
Virginia. For this fate had turned
and twisted thousand ways. Through
the riot Of his senses, like a silvel
blaze, ran the legend Of the calendar;
Every man carries hts fate upon {
riband about his neck" For her. some
thing seemed to pass from her sou
with that kiss, some deep irrevocabl'
thing, shy but fercely strong. that hat
sprung to him at that lip-contact a.
steel to magnet The foliage abou
them fared up in green light and thu
ground under her feet rose and feI
like deep sea-waves.
She lifted her face to him. It wal
deathly pale, but the light that burne'
on it was lit from the whitest altar
fires of southern girlhood. "Six week
ago." she whispered, -you had nevel
seen mel"