Cheraw chronicle. [volume] (Cheraw, S.C.) 1896-2005, 1914-08-20

= in the BUSINESS of
-~ his scratching
fountain rln to
even casually notice his neighbcrly
/ little visitor.
Finally, the man looked up fr{tn the
finished sheet, pushed back hia SOM
brcrO, wiped the sweat from thS band
OF fair, white skin that ribbed his
tanned brow, and, with Il sigh 50 deep
drawn that it started CULVER -etlgreen
movement on the rug, read over the
letter he had written and now Held in
his thin brown hand.
1t began with brusk tenderness:
"DCar:-At last the verdicts in,
and instead of the expected hinged
by the neck until lie shall die 4 SEN
tcnc" of imprisonment for life.
For your sake. carried the cpse to
the highest court of appeal. Went to
Los Angeles and had the great Will
lia.d lcok mo over. Eoth lungs have
healed. Provided | stay put-go on in
the same sun.bakcd rut OF the paft two
years, there is no reason why !. Should
not rival Methuselah in hoarine ess of
ago. Ny life the forfeit if l break
parole and attempt an escape.
And so. sweetheart, we come 10 the
parting Of the ways, my way and yours.
ought to have given you up long ago.
But at first | thought it would lie for
such a little while that it woulh not
matter, and afterward hoped AGAINST
hope that should he able to ,gol back
to civilization and you.
Now l release you, little girl insist
that our engagement end.
"Gocd-by, dear, and God bless you.
You need not answer this. shall un-
derstand when your letters -stoul COM
ing. No, do not offer to go on whiting
as friend to friend. l could not quite
bear that now. NORMAN"
Silently, without a quiver o the
grim set liTs, he folded the litter,
Slipped it into a stamped, addressed
envelope. slowly sealed it, then his
head bowed in his hands. he began to
sCb-with mans anguish and the
abandon Of q little child.
The days dragged by, heavy-weithted
with a sense of prison chains.
Norman had boasted that he still had
his work. But he could not writd He
could not think. He could only fever-
ishly wait for the letter that hd had
asked her not to write.
Yet not until two weeks had passed,
and he knew at last that she had taken
him at his word, did he realize to the
full measure of bitter disappointment
how much he had counted uponA one
more letter from her.
IT,, east-bound overland was d in
an hour, and he was going o
He stood on the station pla
Notwithstanding sfrom excite
and haste of packira every nd
again casting "a sta .Ra -
his shoulder as thoa afraid 6f fYeins
watched.
With the caution Of the real pris-
oner breaking Jail, he had only bought
q ticket to a rear-by point.
The kindhearted meddlesomenes
of his ncighbors. the tyranny Of the
doctor under whose thumb he hadbeen
so many months, were capable Of 60
ing any lengths of interference when
il came TO 4 matter OF what thu con-
sidcrod his own good.
A whistle sounded A fare light
swept the gathering night n the
track. lie suatchcd up his suit-oU6 6es-
impatiently dropped them again. The
locomotives headlight flashed from
the wrong direction. He had forgbtten
that the wcSt-Eound train pas0d ten
minutes before his own.
The putting engine paused for bFeath
the usual short, hurried instant Pf an
express. A black parallelogram1 Of a
trunk was tossed from the baggage
car. The black figure Of woman pas
senger got off the Pullman.
The express gave creak forward
ratified, rumbled, and roared int3 the
awaiting blackness. - -
The new arrival stood hesitathg,
nervous, lost-child air about the slight
shadowy figure. Norman took quick
sep tc her assistance. The blurred
light of the station lamp softly en-
wrapped her.
lie started back, cold fear clutch
ing his heart. The brooding of THE last
hidcous days had been too great a
strain-his mind had suddenly given
way.
Hut the woman did not start bhck-
she ran toward him with a glad q ly Of
Norman"
It Ma not the hallucination Of a
nervous breakdown. 1t was Nan. Nan
her dear flesh AID blood sell. Nan
n Eden Nan on the platform beside
lim. Nan in his arms.
And yuu are really glad that I'm
lcra?" she trrinulously laughed, when
1t last he Cpcncd h.s arms vide enough
"r hor to lrrk up into his radiant
&cn.
after started was so frightened
',ut ! had 10 come" She hid her
:car!c,.sw'rt face in the old resting
,!acu II was the only way | could
wakr you understand, you dear, fool
ii stupid. yon.
Ana 'Lc1 ho hM"w that ar-%oman
,cr.r really Ir.r; Until she makes a
.acl!iicc for th" W@n.