The Big Sandy news. [volume] (Louisa, Ky.) 1885-1929, 1916-07-28
A.
Misapprehensiion
BY WILLIAM CHANDLER


count Of the absence Of the man i had |
gone there TO see. asked the clerk OF
the hotel where stopped If there was
free library in the place. he direct
ed me 10 one Of the most attractive
little buildings 1 ever saw. In the cen !
ter OF a grove went there and nosed
over the fiction shelves for awhile and
finally took down novel
On turning the leaves BIT Of paper
fitted to the floor. picked II up and.
seeing some words written on IL In
pencil. read them:
Ten years today since Prank left Us
and am no more reeonciIed 70 his alb
sence than the day after his departure
On. the long. long weary day.
Now, there was something In this
that dtted me Ny name Is Frank
Tisdala Twelve years before had
accepted position in a commission
house in Hongkong and gone out there
to make my fortune I returned on
visit after eight years sojourn IN Chi
ma and never went back / was TWEEN
" wears old when / left home. and
among the girls 10 whom said good
by was one Alice Ringold But was
not aware that / was any more TO her
than any other young man
/ took the book and the paper 10 the
librarian. telling her that had found
the one in the other. She said tbs; re
turned hooks We're apt 10 have a varie-
" OF articles in them usually Put there
in lieu OF q book mark l asked her
II such articles were returned. and Der
reply was. Sometimes ! requested
that II she returned the paper had
left with her 10 the person who had
written IT she would let me know. I
left with her q postage stamp and my
address.
Not very long after my return 70
my homs received a letter from the
| librarian announcing that she had
found the kisce whose name was ap-
pended % the writing on the paper
had discovered The lady had dropped
1t Into the book which was lying open
on table. some one else had closed
the book. and II had been returned to
the library with the slip In it The
librarian Eare the name Aiice Rim
gold
Vow. had passed the age Of thirty.
supposing that no woman had shown
| any predfsposition toward me. wa
on the verge Of middle age. with no
one to care for me. and nOw accident
l,aIly I had discovered that girl from
whom l had parted dozen years be-
fore had been E,ins for the asking dur
ing the whole OF that period | remem-
bered Alice RingOld. a shy little thing.
50 young that / would not have be
lieyed she could love any man She
could not at the time have been more
than fifteen
| Here was q chance TO break away
from the bachelorhood into which
fate seemed TO have thrown me
would renew my acquaintance with
Alice RingOld. and If she was Of the
same mind-and from the lucent date
Of what she had written il was likely
that she was-I might settle myself IN
home under the same advantages as
pertained 70 youth But | must CON
tive 10 make the meeting appear ae-
cidentaL
She had removed from the tOvr
where she had lived to Acland and
there / went. Having learned whert
her home was situated, set out 10 I'm
her. proposing 10 make up a story a
10 how I had come to know Of bel
being In AcIand- Just before reaching
the house a young woman came out oi
the front door and in another moment
met me face 70 face
ri She was Alice RinSold- Between six
: teen and tEenty-six there is not .
great difference in ones appearance
] as between tventy-six and thirty six
At any rate. there was enough left Of
{ the girl had known for me- I0 recos
nize her Istopped- lifted my hat and
| spoke 70 her She boxed At me. and
saw at once that she knew me
Alice RinSOld: = | asked
-Yes: and you are Frank Tlsdale-
2 Singular that you should know me
. after so many years absence
No more singular than that yoz
: should know me
i have been wondering what bad
, become q Jon since my return n
Ameriea- have been bunting you foI
n months
She cast her eyes down just as she
did when she Was little more than 4
child She was going to the village
and / walked beside her l told her Of
the many times | had thought OF hel
during my absence in the east and how
/ had lonsed that fate should hsv,
brought us together again
II With that slip of paper in my pos
session had al the holiness Of &
: grenadier- made rapid progress
. speaking more AMI more plainly in my
lovenakinS as advanced When
parted with her told her would SCI
her in the evening. AMI when Ia,
evening came. having gone through ths
preilminaries, proposed 10 her
she said I, was very sudden and {
great surprise 10 her smiled inward
" Al this. thinking u the I.aper l had
found However. after a little coyness
Il - .ls..,..s.aN -. ~.