The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1915-05-27

state OF happiness TOT MS Iatner. In |
he recognized them as essen.
tials.
Ay, he was lonely. The house was
as bleak as the steppes OF Siberia. He
ionged for companionship. friendship.
kindness--and suddenly in the midst
Of II all he leaped to his feet.
Pm going out, gentlemen" he ex-
claimed, breaking In upon an unappre.
ciated tale that Mr.. Riggs was relat-
ing at some length and with consider
able ferceness in view OF the fact that
Mr.. Dawes had pulled him up rather
sharply once or twice In matter OF
inaccuracies. Excuse me, please"
He left them gaping with astonish-
ment and dashed out into the hall for |
his coat and hat. Even then he had |
no definite notion as to what his next |
move would be, save that he was going |
out-somewhere, anywhere. he did not |
care.
Somehow. as he rushed down the
front steps with the cool night air
blowing in his face, there surged up
within him a strong. overpowering
sense OF filial duty. II was his duty to
make the first advances. II was for
him to pave the way to peace and hap
piness Something vague but disturb
ing torinented him with the fear that
his father faced grave peril and that
his own place was beside him and not
against him, as he had been In all
these lily directed years. He could
not put II away from him, this thought
that his father was in danger-in dan
ger OF something that was not phys
lcal, something from which. with all
his valor, he had no adequate form OF
defense.
| At the corner he paused, checked by
an irresistible impulse to look back.
ward at the house he had just left. To
his surprise there was q light in the
drawing-room windows facing the
street. The shades in one of them
had been thrown wide open and a
stream of light flared out across the
sidewalk,
Framed in this oblong square OF
light stood the figure OF a man. Slowly,
as II drawn by force he could not
resist, the young man retraced his
steps until he ST BOD directly in front
OF the window. A questioning smile
was on his lips. He was looking up
into Ranjab's shcdowy. unsmiling face,
dimly visible In the glow from the
distant street lamp. For long time
they stared at each other, no sign OF
recognition passing between them. The
Hindu's face was as rigid, as emotion
less as II carved out of stone: his
eyes we're unwavering. Frederic could
see them. even in the shadows. He
had the queer feeling that, though the
man gave no sign, he had something
he wanted to say to him, that he was
actually calling to him to come back
into the house.
Undecided. the man outside took
several halting steps toward the door
way, his gaze still fixed on the face In
the window. Then he broke the spell
II was notion on his part. he argued
} II he had been wanted his fathers
} servant would have beckoned to him
, He would not have stood there like
craven image. staring out into the
| night. Having convinced himself ol
J this. Frederic wheeled and swung of
up the street once more, walking rap
idly, as one who is pursued. Turning
he waved his hand at the man In tn,
window. He received no response
Farther of he looked back once more
The Hindu still was there. Long aftel
he was out Of sight of the house HI
cast frequent glances over his shoul
der as II still expecting to see tn,
lighted window and its occupant
AS he made his way to Broadway
somewhat hazily bent on following tina
thoroughfare to the district where tn
night glittered and the stars wer
shamed, he began turning over In hi
mind a queer notion that had just sue
gested itself to him, filtering througl
the maze Of uncertainty In which h
had been fioundering. II occurred (
him that he had been mawkishly ser
timental In respect to his father. Hi
attitude had not changed-he was ser
ously impressed by the feelings tina
: had mastered him--but he found hin
self ridiculing the idea that his fathe
stood in peril OF any description. An
suddenly. out OF no particular trend G
thought, groped the sly. persistent sui
picion that he had not been altogethe
responsible for the sensations OF a
hour ago. Some outside influence ha
nodded his emotions for him, som
cunning brain had been doing hi
thinking for him.
Then came the sharp recollectio
Of that motionless. commanding figur
: in the lighted window, and his ow
puzzling behavior on the sidewalk ou
y side. He recalled his impression ths
someone had called out to him jui
'e before he turned to look up at II
Is window. It was all quite preposterou
" he kept on saying over and over agai
:" to himself, and yet he could not shall
}; off the uncanny feeling.
,e Earlier in the evening, without war
IN tnu without tho aliQhtpat encoura o.