The Washington herald., 1916-07-23
THIRTEENTH EPISODE.
FIRST DAY.

FIRST DAY.
When Tom wolcott came to his senses,
IN the hospital, his first thought was
that he had been transported to para
disc.
1t was a white-tiled paradise and It
srnelt of iodoform. But, none the less,
It was paradise.
For, above the injured man, leaned
someone who surely could be nothing
less than an angel
The angel was white-clad. slender,
infinitely graceful. Her gold-brown
hair crowned her dainty little head like
a saints aureole. Her great dark eyes
were looking down into Toms with
world Of tender pity. Her shapely lit
tie hand was holding a cool drink to
his pain-parched lips.
Presently she moved away. And Tom
Olcott. closing his bloodshot eyes, tried
to think-to remember.
Little by little the events Of the day
drifted back into his confused mind.
He recalled going, usual to his
physical culture school; chatting a mo-
nent with Ninna Blair, his splendidly
efficient assistant; then going into the
gymna sium where the first class OF the
morning awaited him.
He remembered showing one OF his
stupider pupils an easy trick on the
rings" Then, as he had swung from
heard the swapping OF a defective rope.
He remembered plunging downward far
beyond the friendly shelter OF the mat.
headforemost on the hardwood floor.
His next clear recollection was OF this
bIg-eyed beautiful girl leaning over
him.
Tom looked about him. He saw he
was in a private room Of a hospital. The
white-clad girl who had leaned above
him was no longer there. In his disap-
pointment at her absence Tom Olcott
suddenly became aware of three distress
facts:
First, that his whole BODY felt wrenched
and sore. Second, that his head burned
and throbbed in an exquisite anguish.
Third. that his right arm and shoulder
were bandaged and helpless.
While he was digesting these unpleas-
ant discoveries the vision IN white re-
entered the room. And now, his sight
growing clearer. he saw she was no
fsver-born apparation, but a trained
nurse; also that she was the very pret-
tiest and most winscme girl he had ever
beheld.
Even in the pain and deadly nausea that
gripped him. he felt queer thrill of de-
light as his eyes met hers. He wanted
to tell her how beautiful he was But
an impulse of sanity checked him, and
he merely asked
How did I get here?"
You were injured while you were con-
ducting a class at your physical culture
school. A Miss Blair. who said she was
your assistant, telephoned here for an
ambulance and for a private room for
you"
Good old Minna"' he said family
She's a brick. She always knows what
TO do. How badly am I DANA ged, nurse"
Not dangerously, at all. Mr.. Olcott."
was her CHEEKY answer. But your COL
lar-bone is fractured and so is your
right wrist. And you are suffering from
shock. There was conclusion Of the
brain, too. But you've come very nicely
out Of that. The skull is not injured
and"
In brief" finished Tom. my paint is
scratched and my carburetor needs ad-
tusting. But my cylinders are all right"
The nurse laughed at his plucky at
tempt at making light Of his troubles
Tom found her laugh wondrously sweet;
almost as sweet as her voice. itself And
that was quite the sweetest voice he had
heard in all his twenty-nine years
What is your name?' he asked with
an almost childish bluntness
My name is Olive Hale" she made
answer adding with mock severity, And
now you must stop talking and try 10
get some sleep. The more rest you get
the sooner you will be back at helm IN
your physical culture school. And the
sooner you can see that pretty assistant of
yours again"
Tom half-imagined there was a tinse
Of bitterness in Olive Hale's last sentence
But he dismissed the motion as too idi-
otic for belief and said:
My pretty ASSISTANT? You mean Min
na Blair? Why Minna isn't especially
pretty. At least. II she Is, never
stopped to think about It We're both
kept too busy at the gym, Minna and I.
to bother about each others looks But
she's a brick. She's perfectly fine,
don't know how I'd get on without
You must not talk" Olive interrupt
ed.
This time there was no levity in her
tone, but professional coldness that con-
trasted sharply with her former manner
toward Olcott-
She left the room as she spoke. Tom
stared after her; at first in bewilder-
rent at the sudden change in her be-
havior toward him; then In dreamy recol-
lection OF her beauty and girlish charm
Tn afraid" he nuttered, half aloud,
I've fallen IN love. And with girl
I haven't known more than ten min
utes- Lord. How this shoulder hurts!
And, some ones poured red-hot metal
into the place where my brains used to
be! To fall into hospital and into love
the same day-its more than the con-
tract calls for
The weeks of forced idleness that fol-
lowed would have been torture to Tom
Alcott's active body and mind, but for
Olive Hale's almost constant presence in
mis- sick room. Daily his love for her
grew stronger and deeper. Daily he had
more ado to choke back the avowal that
surged to his lips.
Had he been able to read the girls
heart he would not have troubled to re-
strain his love words. For. from the first
moment Of their acquaintance the hand
some young athlete had taken strange
hold upon olives heart. AS his own love
grew so did hers
The only cloud athwart their romance's
dewning sun was caused by Minna
Blair's FREQUENT visits to her injured en-
ployer. Whenever Minna had spent a
half hour at Toms bedside Olives man.
ner toward him was distantly frigid for
the rest Of the day
Ono afternoon Minna came to the hos