Belington progressive. [volume] (Belington, W. Va.) 1912-1927, 1916-02-10


Siletz leaned forward and dropped
her burden in Sancrys lap. showering
lin with the blood of the bleeding.
hearts She did not look at him. Then
| they trotted away around the corner
to the shed and Sandry's lips tight
| ened pitifully as he gathered up each
smallest spray of the woods-treasures
Where she stood back against the
| wall. one hand at her pulsing throat.
| Miss Ordway saw that tightening of
| the lips. the droop that came into the
mans whole face. and her eyes mar
rowed and hardened like a cats
That night she came TO him in the
eating room.
Walter" she said, I'm stuck in
the middle of chapter. Will you go
over few pages with me and give me
the benefit of mas ideas?"
He smiled
| I'm afraid mine will not be of much
account. but such as they are you are
welcome to them"
They will answer" said Miss Ord
way, "a woman cannot write from her.
| self for men-she must write from
man to man. III bring my manuscript
out here
And turning. she went from him to
the sanctuary of the little south room
When she returned she carried hand
full of closely typewriter pages.
They drew up one of the pine
benches. spread out the manuscript be-
tween the catchup bottles and sat down
| together.
| Instantly with the touch of the shift
| ing sheets in her fingers Miss Ordway
| seemed to drift away from the per
| sonal She became detached, absorbed,
swallowed up in the thrall of work
and Sandry had feeling of what such
work must mean TO one
Now see." she said, half excitedly.
| here is the point about which | am
a trfle in doubt But | will have to
can get grip or it..
| She turned toward him. spreading
out fat on the paper one exquisite
hand. Among her other hidden vani-
ties, Poppy Ordway cherished an inor.
dinate pride in these hands of hers
and she knew their value and their DO
tency to the last atom.
| With an unconscious appreciation
| Sandry now looked down at it where
| it spread across the page Uncon
sciously. too. his mind caught shad
owy comparison-the memory of the
olive-colored. slim hands of the girl
Siletz But she was speaking and he
looked again.
Now suppose my hero is confront
ed with man-his friend, it han.
pens-who. in the plausible and I'M
| impeachabe methods OF modern bust
ness, has calmly become possessed of
my heros wealth There is no DOS
| 1t has been done in manner that
gives 1t the seeming of legality Yet
| the victim knows in his heart that the
| other is thief. Now here is nv
point"
Miss Ordwav was talking slowly as
if thinking carefully and no one listen
ing would have suspected that the
words she uttered were purely me
chanical having been written out and
memorized that afternoon. and that
her mind was busy with a different set
OF ideas. In fact this was what she
was thinking. tabulating rapidly a set
of items
Widening eyes-aroused interest
abnormal. Fingers tapping the table
startled nerves No SUSPICION, but as
constituent at SO unique a coinci
dence"
Aloud she was going on: Suppose
my hero to be modern man of aver
age good principles. could he bring
himself to steal back deliberately an
the amount stolen from him, and not
consider himself criminal?. Could he
go out among men with his head up,
not deeming himself thief? And
would the modern man of average
honor do such thing?"
Miss Ordway was leaning forward
seemingly absorbed in her problem.
her eyes on Sandry's face. wnere con
ficting expressions were struggling
Tor the mastery.
In moment" she was saying to
herself. eager as a hound; lin mo-
ment he will commit himself" for the
bright. blue glance of the young owner
wavered a bit, he opened his lips. shut
his hand upon the oilcloth and his jaw
hardened with tautened muscles
No! He wouldn't be a thief-that
would be the right law"
Every nerve in Miss Ordways body
jumped, though there was no outward
sign,o as the tension that had been
growing between them snapped with
the voice of Siletz
The girl had stopped on the far side
of the room, unnoticed by either. and
| now she stood leaning forward with
her hands upon the table, her braids
hanging beside them The shadow OF
her parted hair was over her eyes
| Miss Ordways fingers crawled into
her palm rigid with desire to intiict
| bodily pain upon this unlimited blum