The Monte Vista journal., 1915-07-03
TENTH STORY

.-apd you, Donald Porter, here.
sentence to twenty years at nara
boz" -
INV clearly those words stayed IN
h. memory! 1t was all as though
had happened yesterday. The muir
smelly courtroom, the spectators,
,,s,sure" bent, the newshounds OF
= great dailies, the striving lawyers
"A the purblind judge. He had never
.en able to decide from that day to
4, whether the Judge had been
hought and paid for or no. What
n It matter? The Judge wasn't ele-
6eptally responsible. How clearly he
emembered every fluctuation OF his
Nm distract mind during that long
,al At first he could do nothing
nj laugh at the absurdity Of it all.
concerned him at first only as a
o,bersome misunderstanding that
pbbed him of his precious time. Then,
the trial went along, as false wit
esses we're introduced. and things
ned for his railroading to prison.
nd he felt with sudden horror his
earness to a punishment he didn't
the least deserve; he had become
pnlcky at the grossness of the con-
piracy against him. So cleverly had
BILE looted the bank, so carefully had
planned It, that 1t had looked, at
e trial as though he (Porter), had
oted it and made Cole, its president,
B Innocent accomplice.
Cole AS he thought that name,
L ugly subtle lines of his face deep
hed and his fingers twitched nerv-
Isly, as though yearning for that soft
roat they had once squeezed with
their grasp The day Coles light
ntence had ended, and he had
alked iauntily amongst his fellow
isoners on his way to freedom, the
bards had to be quick to save that
roat from those yearning fingers. He
d almost had him that time! Well,
would get him. He had told him
II that time and time again.
This thought, this unquenchable
tie for the man who had so tricked
q was the only thing that kept the
in his poor emaciated frame-the
y thing that had enabled him to
md the frightful routine OF prison
these long, weary years. 1t was
wonder to Don Porter that he re-
emoered it all so clearly as he did.
Ne whole thing had had a daily re-
afsal in his mind, and for years now
mad awakened each morning to
$50 realization Of the unspeakable
tror OF his position, and had gone
oed each night with curse in his
art and on his lips for the man who
50 tricked him-had so spoiled
lie, and the lives of those few
70 mad put their faith in him. He
oeen very good these past years
80 good!-all but that once. He
almost had him that time! That
usn' always gave him a moments
,e'' phantom pleasure that always
&c way again to despair; a despair
seemed duller, that the moment
VIC mad been touched with light.
despair was despair that he
Culd not live to be reyeneed He
nade mad, insane attack on him
u, out the guard was too quick.
mat was fully five years ago. and
usa been good since then-good
~, we goodness OF child who ex-
MS reward-patient with the pa
\. VI a man who sees each day
- n''l nearer to his hearts desire.
hearts desire,
seemed strange to him at odd mo.
nna ma! he who had always been
', , anu sensitive, he who had al
No, 'eN an Instructive kinship for
u.s. gentle and sensitive should now
,no,h Ills hearts desire the death
va ner man. And yet it was SO.
n w ~, and he was jealousy glad
onss WIN the best years of his life
sd neu out, literally thrown away
n,a after his release held forth
'''n''Se to him-no promise but
kn,,s, milton had arrived at her
,ay WV year 1t would be difficult
lu,is, now she had arrived at her
,,.. year, unless one might saw
mo-, sesed to 1t. For Edith was
dec,,,. Vi us, that queer admixture
"ns and hesitancy that set her
' ,a, OF the analyzable tyne
a. h b.' and labeled, and ever
tho r next act as uncertain as
rb.,. motive of her last.
lowed 81 queer twist nature had