The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1915-05-12
A SCRAP
OF PAPER
A Story For Thanksgiving.
Bv RUTH GRAHAM y
By RUTH GRAHAM


the morning was marvel of sunshine
There is delicious feeling about frs
convalescence that fancy is explain
able from the contrast between sui
|; fering and the relief from suffering
1t seemed to Olcott that he was neve
so we'll in his life, and yet it woult
have been well nigh impossible for hin
to get out Of the invalid chair in which
he had been wheeled to the glass in
closed porch of the hospital.
He had not been there long before
an attendant dropped a newspaper il
his lap. Unfolding it, he noticed some
words written in pencil in II woman's
hand on the margin. They read:
Dear Patient-I am very sorry for you
| hope you will get comfort from this
paper. which I intend to put in the box
| at the terminal of the railroad for pa
pers to go to the hospitals. / pity you
especially being confined on account OF
illness when Thanksgiving is coming on.
Cheer up! On next Thanksgiving day
| trust you will be in condition to enjoy
a fine Thanksgiving dinner.
This communication to an unknown
dear patient was signed with two ini-
tails. L. A. The newspaper was a
weekly issued at place called Edge
water. some twenty miles from the
city.
'"rhat little note" said Olcott to him
self. was written by girl. No one
else would have signed her initials.
The place in which she lives is made
up OF residences Of well to do people.
I question if in all there are 500 houses.
l shall have no difficulty in discovering
who f. A. is, and propose to dine
with her next Thanksgiving. ! would
do SO this year but for the fact that
there isn't time and couldn't eat a
Thanksgiving dinner"
Olcott was young man Of means.
The reason why he was at 4 hospital
instead Of his own home was twofOld
first, he was q bachelor, without
near relative, and. second. he had beer
recommended by his physician to go
to hospital as the most convenient
place in which to be i'll. Possibly in
his convalescent state he was especial.
ly impressfble. Be that as it may. be
read the paper that had been given
him. conjuring up visions of the per.
son who wrote the message on the
margin. When he had finished the pa
per's perusal he tore off the message
for preservation and future use.
Olcott was ut an age when an ap-
y,ro Inf fcp I'm nj NJ SnaSOt
life begins to lose its edge. When he
was twenty he fancied that he was
courted because of his attractiveness.
Now that he was twenty-seven he had
come to understand that he was court.
ed principally for what his income rep
resented. He had. not lived at home
since the death Of his mother. when he
was nineteen. His illness. during
which he had been under the care of
paid nurses, had made him sensible Of
what might be the tender solicitude Of
one who loved him. Sundry young
ladies he had met in society had en-
deavored to make it appear to him
that they appreciated him for himself.
but he believed that any other man
who could give them home would
do as well.
! For these reasons he was attracted
to this person who had a heart to take
In an unknown person in Il hospital
from whom there was scarcely pos
sibility that she could derive any bene-
fit.
She might possibly be old and home
~. but he did not believe she was.
At any rate. as soon as he was dis
charged from the hospital he proposed
to hunt her up-that is. IL she lived In
Edgewater. If not there was not
much hope of finding her.
When the next Thanksgiving season
came round Olcott had made the &C.
guaintance of Miss Edith Arnold OF
Edgewater and had proved by secur-
ing specimen Of her handwriting
that she was the person who had con-
tributed the newspaper that he had
read rs q convalescert There had
been no great difficulty in this. All he
had to do was to go to Edgewater.
join a club there. consisting Of young
men and women, make the acquaint-
ance Of the residents and look out for
a girl whose initials were r. A.
Miss Arnold was. as he had supposed.
very young. She was barely eighteen.
Olcott paid her great deal of atten-
ton. ut which she was naturally flat
tered. He discovered that her heart
was as tender for the afflicted as he
had supposed. and it was not long be-
fore he had won that heart for him
self.
All this while ne had the pencil mes.
sage that he had torn from the news
paper in bis portmanteau. But he SAID
nothing about it to Miss Arnold. who
supposed that their meeting had oc-
cured by chance. Olcott had resolved
when in the hospital that he would eat
his next Thanksgiving dinner with bel,
and he was working up to that point
This. too. was very easy. for a few
weeks before Thanksgiving he asked
her to be his wife. and she accepted
his proposition. Under the circum-
stances it was quite in order that he
should be invited to take his Thanks
giving dinner ut the Arno!ds'. Toward
its close he took from his portmanteau
the scrap he had torn from the news
paper and passed it around the table;
1t was easily recognized as Edith's
work. Then Oicott said: