The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1915-08-20

teacher" she said impulsively. who
are your
lie took her hand In his and clasped
It In q friendly way.
"IT he repeated In an altered tone.
why, they call me 'Daffy Daniel"
"Daffy DanielP Frances was star
tied. "How absurd Of theml I meant
your real name" she added.
Daniel Ford" he said dazedly.
Good night, Mr.. Ford" said Fran
ces. Mrs. Tweedy is ringing the bell
80 desperately 1 must CO."
Ele watched her cross the fields until
she disappeared In the shadowy orch.
arc.
That night Daffy Daniel startled
Pond village folks by coming to prayer
meeting, a place he had avoided for
twenty years.
Perhaps he hoped the schoolteacher
would be there. Perhaps It was a
sudden whim. Anyway, cid friends
nodded at him, and women smiled, and
the minister shook hands and called
him "Mr. Ford"
Miss Blake did not go to prayer meet
ing. She sat alone In the sitting room
and corrected exercises until the
Tweedys came home from the church.
h, Mrs. Tweedy was filed with mild ex-
citement
"Daffy Daniel was at meetingr' she
announced as she sank into chair.
"ls that an unusual eventr smiled
Miss Blake.
"once in twenty years. Kinder un-
usual" remarked Abner dryly.
ats queerv' calculated Mrs. Tweedy,
and then she went on to tell about the
forthcoming fair and carnival which
was to be held in Firemen's hall.
"And the decorations are all Grape
paper and pink cheesecloth," ended
Mrs Tweedy. Suppose 1t got aiire7"
'@That would be dreadful" shuddered
Miss Blake as she went up to her room.
That night the schoolteacher dream
cd that she attended the carnival In
Ftremen's hall and that suddenly the
whole place was ablaze. Some one
picked her up and bore her through
bulOhe W NOOi
And she opened her eyes and saw
that her heroic rescuer was Daffy Dan
lei
why" she had said to him In wild
surprise, "you are manW
And he had answered:
"a man asleep. You have awakened
me"
She continued to think of Daniel
Ford far more often than was neces-
sary or required by mere pity for his
lon ely condition.
She knew now that many Of his &C.
centricities were due to his habit Of
living alone with his grief. She knew
that through systematic reading he had
educated himself above his neighbors
Daf fy Daniel was a gentleman and a
scholar, and the attitude Of his neigh
bors was incomprehensible.
The night OF the carnivall
Firemen's hall was a bower Of beau
ty, according to the Pondpoint Bugle.
FLOWERS, festoons and fair femininity
cro wded the fioors," II said enthusias-
tically before II went on to describe
the tragedy that followed.
In the middle OF the festivities some
one cried "Firel"
There was a sta impede for the single
ext, but man impeded the way, a big
man with arms stretched across tho
doorway. who cried authoritatively:
zone at a time, one at a tmel wo-
men and children firstr
The man was Daffy Daniel, who had
not attended festival In twenty years.
While the firemen threw a feeble
stream on the fiimsy wooden structure
Daniel Ford kept the crowd from panic
until there remained mere handful
Of people, who, frightened at the vol.
umss OF smoke pouring up the stairs.
declined to 90 and huddled near the
viii dows.
Among these Frances Blake fingered.
enc ouraging, soothing and helping one
and another.
Then Daniel Ford suddenly broke
loose upon them, grasped woman I'm
his arms and rushed down the burning
stairs TO safety.
Again and again he made the peril
ous Journey. until the room was In
flames and there remained only the
schoolteacher. pale and calm.
A. -