Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1914-09-16
GIRL IS DECEIVED
BY MAN MET IN
RAILWAY STATION
ENOUGH TO AROUSE SYM
PATHETIC INTEREST

Every person i'm Cloverdale station
was attracted by the trim little figure
i'm tan linen dress one morning in
early June. From her flower basket
hat To her round, silk-clad ankles and
tiny tan pumps, there was that APP
pearance of freshness, exquisiteness
and harmony which is the worlds de-
mand of woman. And from under the
low-hanging hat peeped the brightest
and cheeriest of faces.
The girl was with her father and
mother and three others; a man and
two women. Her companions were
sngularly alike in the respect of a
common darkness, almost stupidity,
OF expression. The people in the
waiting-room recognized ii as the
characteristic of deaf mutes, for they
perceived interchanges of gestures,
which they knew as sign language.
Strangely, they did not identify the
girl as one of the group Of mutes, al
though she sat with them on the long
bench. But when two small boys
who were wrestling, slipped and fell
on the smooth tiled floor, she touched
the arm Of the woman who sat on one
side of her. and laughed. Then they
knew; it was a high, unaffected un7
canny shout, rather than laugh; it
was plainly the utterance Of one who
never heard a laugh that betokens
real mirth and enjoyment Of life; il
was a laugh like that of the others
who sat there, blank OF faces, nimble
Of hands-the laugh of a deaf mute
Her glance settled for the space of
minute on tall young man who
stood before the ticket sellers win
dow. He was clad in the most con-
vential OF summer clothes-straw hat
blue serge, tan shoes. But blue serge
was Effies ideal OF desirable manly
raiment, and she looked. At first she
saw only a broad back; then the man
turned, and she saw a youthful face
that plainly was made to smile, face
that combined the physical essences
of good companionship and of good
sense. In all, it was a very pleasing
face, and Effie realized that this was
the kind of man that she would like
to know Not that she had fixed a
type or ideal; with all her superficial
simplicity, Efiie was wise enough to
/ know that she must not dream. She
had dreamed, now and then, when she
! first began to read and she found that
her life could be very miserable If she
allowed it. Thereupon she had rigid
| ly schooled herself not to think of
what she would like to be or to have.
She had never looked with interest
at man before; now-oh, We'll it
must be that blue serge that fitted so
well.
She watched him as he, glancing
around, smiled in the direction OF her
| bench, and as he came, with hand out
stretched, toward her father who sat
| by her side, Effie started. when she
saw him greet her father in the fami-
/ liar sign language. A mute? That
admirable young person? With the
curiosity of child, she stared at him.
Easily, he continued the conservation
Of gestures, and she decided that he
could be nothing else but one like her
self.
Rfie had never pitied herself, but
her heart went out to the young man;
she saw in him perfection deprived of
opportunity and of full pleasures. But
il is hard to sustain sympathy with
person whose condition is identical
with your own; so with Ellie, whose
pity became interest. She sided
closer to her father and slipped her
hand under his arm. The stranger
would see; an, he did, and as he look
ed in her wide eyes, he smiled, as the
others had, at the daintiness Of her.
Effie's heart gave a throb, and she
looked away.
Efie wished that she knew him; she
knew nobody. There were father and
mother. who loved her, and who cried
now an then when they Rugged her;
there was Terry. the deaf and dumb
man who came to their house OFTEN
there were Mr.. Simpson, and Mary
and Mrs. Dardell-all like herself. But
none Of them looked especially pleas
( in blue serge, or otherwise, and none
of them looked as if they could pick
her up and carry her away Off, and
make her glad that they did. And, Z
she remembered, they were all timid.
and always seemed to shrink from
some unknown terror. The man in
blue serge was afraid OF nothing, be-
cause he looked good and smiled.
And to think that he was one like
herself!
She caught her father spelling out
her name on his fingers. The young
man nodded to her and smiled again.
In her childish manner, she smiled
back, snuggled closer to her father
and motioned the young man to the
seat beside her.
Efie was untutorec, natural, in
many ways child still. And when
she put her hand in the young mans,
IL meant nothing but that she under /
stood, and was sorry, and that they