, 1915-10-14

l~ove-curfs who had been his great
grandmother smiled wistfully down
from her gilt frame above the console
and In the library a melancholy
deeper than that of yesterdays trag.
edy seemed to hang, through which
DevilJohn, drawing closer the leash
of his leaping bound, glared sardon-
ically at him from his one cold eye
The shutters Of the parlor were
closed, but he threw them open and
let the rich light pierce the yellow
gloom, glinting from the figures in
the cabinet and weaving a thousand
tiny rainbows In the prisms of the
great chandelier.
He went upstairs, into the bedrooms
one by one, now and then passing his
hand over a polished chair-back or
touching an ornament or a frame on
the wall: into The Hilarium with its
records of childish study and play.
The dolls stood now on drass-parade
in glass cases, and prints in bright
colors. dear to little people, were on
the walls. He opened the shutters
here, too. and stood some time on the
threshold before he turned and went
heavily downstairs.
Through the rear door he could see
the kitchens, and Aunt Daphne sitting
under the trumpet-vine piecing a nine
patch calico quilt with little squares
Of orange and red and green cloth.
Two diminutive darkies were sprawled
on the ground looking up at her with
round serious eyes. while a wary ban
tan pecked industriously about their
bare legs.
EN- den whut de roostah say,
Aunt Daph?"
"or roostah he hollah to all he
wifes. oo-ooo! oo-ooo! Young
Mars come!-Young Mars comet
Young Mars comet En- dey all mighty
skeered, case Mars John he cert'n'y
fond OBJ fried chick'n. But de big tub
key gohbler he don bIeeve ct tall.
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.! he say,
lax dat Den de drake he peep eroun'
de cornah. en- he say, Hash! Hash!
Haish!' Fo' he done seed Mars John
comm, sho' nuff. But ct too late by
den. TO Aunt Daph she done grab
Mis- Pullet, en- Mars John he gwine-
2 CaG nun ulb DOly NChlh ~ ho
suppah. Now you chillun run erlong
home ter yo' mammies, en- don yo'
pick none OBJ dem green apples on de
way, neidah."
1t was not till after dark had come
that Valiant said goodby to the gar
den. He loved 1t best under the star
light. He sat a long hour under the
pergola overlooking the lake, where
he could dimly e the green rocks,
and the white froth of the water bub-
bling and chuckling down over their
rounded outlines to the shrouded level
below. The Don lifted finally and
scared through the sky, blowing out
the little lamps of stars. Under its
light a gossamer mist robed the land
scape in a shimmering opalescence,
in which tree and shrub altered their
values and became transmitted to sill
yer eentinels. watching over a de-
mesne of violet-velvet shadows filled
with sleepy ~twitterings and stealthy
suckle.
At the last he stood before the old
sun-dial. rearing its column from its
pearly clusters OF blossoms. Il count
no hours but the happy mes" he read
the inscription with an indrawn
breath. Then, cropping at its base, he
lifted the ivy that had once rambled
there and drew up the tangle again
over the stone disk. His Bride's-Gar
denI
In the library. an hour later, sitting
at the big black pigeonholed desk, he
wrote to Shirley:
II am leaving tonight on the mid
night train. Uncle Jefferson will give
you this note in the morning. l will
not stay at Damory court to bring
more pain into your life. l am going
very far away. / understand all you
are feeling-and 80, goodby. goodby,
God keep you! l love you and l shall
love you always, alwaysi"