The citizen. [volume] (Berea, Ky.) 1899-1958, 1916-12-14

very superior mfnt yesterday lie
made Of II q ceremonial. do you
think you would-care TO Join me. sirY"
They had been friends for close to
forty years not because Of common
tastes. but In spite Of innate dissimi.
larity. Dexter came to his feet. He
reached out and crushed the other
mans hand within his soft. white On.
gers Nor was his reply quite accord.
ing to formula.
II don't mind n ! do. CAL" he nc.
cepted fervidly. Thank God. I don't
mind II dor
Arm In arm they recrossed to the
white columned house. And they kept
close. each 20 the other. throughout the
hours Of suspense that followed. end.
ing potent though unconfessed reas.
surance In such compa nionship.
Dellrlum came again upon the sick
man who lay In the room which Miss
Sarah had always kept waiting for
him. Fever strobe upon him. while the
girl who had brought him home slept
In complete exhaustion. At times
Steve lay quiescent. only muttering az.
fully: the next moment he called crisply
for Fat Joe-he feared for his bridge
and Joe had TO exert every iron muscle
to hold him down And always he
spoke Barbara's name. with poignant
gentIeness that left Miss Sarah on the
verge Of collapse. But he continued
to live. through that day and the next
night. even when the doctor shook his
head and Fat Joe rose to 20 for the
girl. as hn had promised he would. In
the last extremity. He continued to
live. and with the coming Of the second
dawn suddenly he was no longer de.
lirious. stephen O'Mara opened his
eyes and gazed feebly but very under.
ttandingly Into the eyes Of FAT Joe.
who was watching at that moment
Joe tried to hush him. but he would
ak q little
u know" he pronounced each wore
with calculated effort. II have been
very sick. and must not waste my
strength. But have to be clear. nrst.
on one point. Have | dreamed II. Joe.
or-or did she bring me homer
With his voice alone. when all else
seemed failing. Joe had kept his friend
alive. The doctor believed It: Miss
Sarah knew It to be so. And frst Of
all Joe had to voice his thankfulness.
for II was an explosive thing.
Didn't tell her soT' he demanded
In his whining tenor didn't say 80,
all alongl And I let that doctor worry
me. just because he's got a diploma in
frame. hanging on his wallr'
Then he answered Steve's question.
"She found you" he said. 'She
brought you home"
A long time the sick man lay and
pondered. And finally he found 1t pos
sible TO smile
II have not cared whether I lived or
died." he said In little more than q
whisper. IAN along ! have seemed
to know how near I waste going
across. and have been near to quit
ting-at times. For was happier than
I'd ever dared let myself be. before
and then. with the FIRST shot that
dropped Big Louie. knew He
shook his head. still smiling vaguely.
81 have not wanted to live. but ! am
looking ut things-more like q man
now You need not worry any longer,
Joe. I'll sleep a little while. l think.
and then I'll put my mind hard on get
ting well. when ! awake"
That marked the end Of delirium,
and with sleep which came almost
while he was talking the fever began
to abate. He put his mind on get
ting we'll" when he awoke twelve
hours later. Strength was flowing In
a steady tide back into his body long
before Barbara's knees would again
bear her weight. For she had squan-
dered her endurance without counting
the cost. and she paid the full penalty.
She lay three days and three nights
railing at her weakness before she
could get up at all. and even then
Cecile. her little maid. clucked dis
creetly at the dark circles beneath her
eyes.
Joe was several days absent on that
errand which had all but emptied the
seething town Of men. He returned
the same day Barbara was about
again. forced to admit that Harrigan
and Fallon and Shayne had won clear
And there was nothing left to the dis
gruntled groups which struggled in be-
hind him. save tall and heated con-
lecture. Some said that they must
have managed to cross the border. 9th
ers maintained that they had found
sanctuary I'm the lumber camps OF the
lake country to the west. but no mat.
ter which guess was right the net re-
suit stood unchanged. For II Is upon
the one who runs away that the blame
Is always laid. and Archibald Wicker
sham knew fully as well as did Caleb
and Allison and Fat Joe that. without
Harrigan. they could not hope to touch
him. Harrigan had disappeared from
the ken Of men. and wickersham de-
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