The Tabor independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1913-19??, 1915-05-13

rncir contaminated! An hour before
ne would not have believed IL possible.
But now! Where would IL end? How
far would an ILL wind carry that hith-
TO nnswerying craft out Of its estab-
lishrd course? WHAT was Horace Blag-
den'H estimate Of himself to be as time
gave II a chance TO develop?
An for the tall. gaunt man who strobe
beside him, what were his thoughts?
What must they have been, to drag
down his shoulders in this way and to
lower a chin that never had dropped
before?
They entered the gate in the stone
wall guarding the sanctity Of the grey
house on the hill. Not until then did
Horace Blagden give sign of the
thoughts that were burning in his
brain. He stopped, checking Eric with
a word.
ut did seem to me, Eric, on seeing
the two drawings, that the one hear
ing your name was crudely done l
could not understand it. was
amazed, and / must say l was graft
fed. Now i understand. You could
not possibly have made the design at
tributed to you. But the thing that
puzzles me most, is how Chetwynd,
with his traing and his extra prepar-
alton for the contest, could have pro-
duced UGH a miserable botch. He has
had the best of instruction in New
York. Ii can't see why he did not
do better.'
Eric had his own private opinion.
but he could not bring himself to the
point Of advancing ii at this time. Mr..
Blagden YOU find out soon enough,
without his help. Still, the boy could
not quell the secret JOY that filled his
soul as he contemplated the harsh
times ahead Of Chetwynd, and the bit
ter things that his uncle and aunt
would have to swallow. The thought
of this actually revived his fallen spir-
its. The future would pay handsome
ly for the present: he could afford the
gloom Of today in view OF tomorrow's
glory.
Perhaps he didn't consider 1t worth
while" he explained.
Horace eyed him sharply. IF he did
not consider 1t worth while, why should
he have gone to the trouble to But
there, we were to say no more about
it. He shall explain for himself. We
can't judge him unheard."
They went forward. AS they came
into the shaft of light thrown out by
the open hall door, the older man again
stopped. This time he grasped Eric's
arm in a grip OF iron.
Eric" he began in a low, tense
voice, you heard me say back there
in the office that / could have killed
you. Will you be able to appreciate
my state of mind when l tell you now
that it was in my heart to kill you il
you refused to accede to my demands
in this matter. There is a revolver in
my desk drawer. You were no to have
| gone out with that awful story on your
lips. But that is not all. 1t would
nav died there in that room, for no
one would be alive to repeat it,"
What do you mean, sir ?" asked Eric.
a TRANCE chill running through him.
He looked into the haggard face OF His
uncle as 1t stood out clearly in the light
from the doorway. 1t seemed to him
that Mr.. Blagden suddenly had grown
very old
Il should have killed myself as WELL"
said Horace Blagden quietly.
The boy stared at him in utter
Amusement. Suddenly 1t was revealed
to him what all this really meant to the
head of the Blagden family. He was
conscious of a choking sensation in his
throat; there was a rush of moisture
to his eyes. A great, perhaps unwel-
come wave Of pity for the mar swept
over him.
It's all right now, Uncle" he MUIR
INJURED brokenly."
AS they entered the hall. Mrs. Flag
den emerged from the library. She
sent a swift, searching glance into
Eric's eyes, a glance expressing doubt,
anxiety and no little antipathy.
Eric smiled. a bitter, scornful little
smile. the real inwardness of which she
was never to grasp.
He could account for her %uneasiness.
He had but to go back for a few min
utes to that second call on the tele-
phone. She la said to him then, in
accents of real despair and dread:
You are not telling him of Chef
wynd and Mary, are you? You can't
be such a beast. such a dog as to for
| get your promise to me. II l thought
you were telling him, I'd turn Mary
out into the street this very minute, be-
cause l know your uncle would insist
on 1t himself when he got home. Have
you breathed 1t to him? Speak! Why
do you hesitate?"
mo. it isn't that. Don't be worried,
Aunt Rena," he had said.