The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1914-06-20

response. And when at dusk the
nurse told him that he must 60 but
that she would call him If there was
any change, he walked unsteadily
from the room and made his way to
the library-the room that seemed to
belong in SO peculiar a manner to
them both. 1t was here that they had
come to understand the heights and
depths Of each others characters, il
was here that the happiest hours OF
their life had been spent. He sat
down heavily and buried his face in
his hands.
A light touch on his arm startled
him. 1t was Margaret.
What are you doing here!" he duly
inquired. Where is Hannah"
"She is helping Miss kellogg take
care of mother"
1t was plainly his duty to have put
the child to bed long ago. Helen would
not have wanted her to stay awake
until this time.
"You ought to be in bed, child, at
this hour. Can you get ready your
self to
Eyes, daddy, I don't need any help
for that, but / need you to help me
with my prayers. Mother is asleep,
guess, and Miss Kellogg said mustn't
waken her. So just kissed her good
night and came away. But you see
she can't say the prayers with me to-
night, and neither can Hannah until
it'd be awful late, and so thought that
you would take mothers place tonight.
Will you daddy? I knew that you'd
have to have beads in your hands too,
so took mothers for you. They had
fallen from her hands when nurse
moved her, SO it didn't disturb her for
me to take them" And she extended
the chaplet to the grief-stricken man.
What thoughts coursed through his
mind! What remembrances pounded
at his brain! And yet it was not re
morse for his obstinacy that stood out
most prominently in that medley Of
throngfng memories. 1t was the
significant fact that the religion which
had erected an impalpable barrier be
tween him and Helen nearly a veal
ago was again advancing it's claims in
this very room, that Margaret was
making profession of her mothers
faith, and, as credentials of her mis-
sion, was offering him her mothers
beads!
The silent woman upstairs hat
never spoken more eloquently than hel
rosary now spoke for her. 1t seemed
a part of herself. He knew how much
she valued the unattractive brown
beads. They had been blessed by thu
Pope and had touched the shrine o
Lourdes-privilege he had once ridi
culed, but which now assumed price
less values. They had meant so much
to her, and now, for the first time hi
took the beads in his trembling hands
The larger ones had been carved ant
the rough surface was worn to {
lighter color, mute evidence of thu
countless times they had slipped
through the now feverish hands.
Nothing had ever before seemed
quite so precious to him as this string
of beads. 1t was strange, too, that a.
this time her religion should stand ou
as her most characteristic possession
Before it had seemed subservient
thing, having no possible connection
with her many admirable qualities OF
heart and mind. He was beginning tc
have clearer idea of the relative
value of things, spiritual and temporal
And so personal a possession had
these beads been that the wild idea
came to him that they might in some
mysterious manner enable him to
keep her. He wound them about his
fingers.
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