The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1916-12-21

| with her father, new nome In the
northern wilds.
She gathered some sprays Of purple
hyacinths that a late frost had with
cred on their stalks. These she twist
ed into a detected posy and tossed
into the lane, mourning even for them.
Then she stopped and began to dig
idly about the roots of some lOve-in-
the-mist. Suddenly she was reused
from her day-dream by the sound of
footsteps passing on the side street
that passed the garden. And then she
heard an ejaculation like the moan of
a beast caught in trap, and heav-
Ter voice speaking. Too startled to
move, she listened behind the screen
ing bushes.
"What ais you, man."
"The mark! The mark!"
"What foolishness now? What
mark?"
There! The purple posy! Oh, my
God" The speaker seemed to choke
The other laughed contemptuously.
Nonsense, man, those be but flowers
someone has dropped. They mean
naught"
"You cannot know" said the other
convulsively. "If you but knew the
OATH
"A fiddlestick for the OATH" the
gruff voice blurted. ''Throw the thing
away, I tell you, and forget it. Hast
it with you?"
There was a pause, and then the
commanding voice resumed:
Throw it away, man. 1t was naught
but a mummery."
The girl heard their steps pass on
down the street. Rising quickly, she
stared at their retreating backs. The
one was a tall youth, whom she rec
ognized as young Doctor Elliott; the
other a broad-shouldered pOrtly fig
ure, a stranger to her. AS she turned
back her eye caught sight OF
crumpled bit of paper lying on the
path outside the garden and with girl
ish excitement she hastily ran out and
picked it up. Dirty and greasy it was,
as if with long handling, and on it,
written in struggling hand and IN
couth spelling. were the words:
I. Edward scull, of my own free will
and Acoard do declare and solemnly
| sware that will never reveal to aney
/ person or Persons aney thing that may
| lead to the discovery of the same Either
in or by word sign or action as may lead
! to aney Discovery under the Penelty OF
being sent out of this World by the first
| Brother that May Meet me after the per-
/ oIo ~ T n that T
| will Punish by death aney trater or
| traters should there aney arise up
/ amongst US I will persue with unseaceing
| vengence, should he fly to the verge of
| Statute. I will be gust true sober and
| faithful in all my dealings with all my
| Brothers. So help God to keep this my
/ Oath Involated Amen"
| What had Doctor Elliott to do with
Edward Scull?" She puzzled over
the riddle and tried to dismiss it with
a laugh. But as she returned to the
smiling garden 1t seemed to her that
cloud, no bigger perhaps than mans
hand but still cloud, came over the
place.
When Elliott, having ridden in from
Louisville on his mare, called on Toi
nette later in the afternoon, they
strolled, at his suggestion, along the
river path. She had not known him
F, long: but On each of his weekly visits
to C0rydon he had disclosed in every
look and word a growing passion for
her.
The girl, walking in reverie that
drew a veil of tenderness over the
deep sapphire of her eyes, and the
April day, fading out in a dream of
amethystine blue and a dazzling glory
of gold, seemed part of each other.
By her side walked the tall young
doctor; and he, too, was part, surely,
Of the beautiful fellowship of the
happy world.
He speaks: "Toinette, here are vio-
lets. Blue as your eyes, Toi
nette !"
She does not answer; the words are
only part of the day, they need no
answer.
"Toinette, you must marry mel"
"What!" She heard now. But she
could not believe what she had heard.
|
ing" she laughed.
But he paid no heed to her. "Toi-
nette, there is no one in the world,
there will never be anyone"
"Oh, please don't go on! I shall
never marry. 1 do not believe I was
meant for marriage. Aren't some girls
born to be spinsters?"
mo, no! Not your
Eyes, I shall be an old maid. There
is no one in the world that / shall ever
marry. l shall be happy with my IA
Their all my life-and have only good
friends, faithful friends" she added
in whisper so low that it seemed a
thought, not speech.
''Your father is young no longer. He
must wish you to marry-he will be
happier if you do. You must not sac
rifice yourself to hint is unjust"
"While he lives 1 shall not leave
him; and oh, do not make me think
that there will ever come a time
when :"
Forgive me; I am sorry. But
can't you marry and still be with him?
|. Wouldn't he rather gain a son? Oh,
; Toinette, if could only tell you what
feel! You must marry mel love
you sol"
81 can never marry you"
"Why not? Is it because you love
| o1So9B