Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1916-05-13

persistence, allu Will uiuCShtd No1ih
dcnre tliat his way was Tie only way.
he would hold to that way Of "ifakinS
a man. of Bbbs. who understood very
well. In his passive and impersonai
fashion. that it was 4 way which might
make. not man. but dust of him. But
he had no shudder for the thought
The truth about Eihbs was in the
poem which Edith had adopted. Rnt
he had not hidden his feelings about
his father where they could not be
found. He WAS strange to his father.
but his father WAS not strange to Liz.
He knew that Sheridan's plans were
conceived IT, the stubborn belief that
they would bring about 4 good thing
for Bibbs himself: and whatever the
result was TO be- the son lad no bit
terness Far otherwise. for rs he
looked at the big. wocfu! figure. Shak-
in" ard tortured. an almost unbeara!le
pity laid hands upon BibbS' throat.
Roscoe stood blinking. his lip culver
ing: Edith wept aulibly: Mrs. Sheri-
dan leaued in half collapse against
her husband: hut Eibhs knew that his
father was the one WHO cared.
stepped forward with their sllcvels,
and Bibhs nodded quickly to Roscoe,
making a slight gesture toward the
line Of waiting carriages. BiDbS sazen
stcadfastly Mt the wOrlzmcn; he knew
that his father kept looking back as
he went toward the carriage. and that
was thing he did not want to see.
After a little while. "It'S too bad"' he
half whispered. his Iirs forming tie
wortls--anh his nearing, was that it
was too bad that The strong brother
had been the one to go. For this was
his last thought before he walked to
HE coupe and saw Mary Nertrees
standing all alone on the. other side
If the drive. g}sssHns
She bad just emerged from a grove
" Icatlrss trees that grew en- slope
where the tcmhs We're many. Against
such Il background Bibbs was net In
,ongruous. with lis figure in black.
80 long and slender and lis face 50
long ana thin and white; nor was the
unarrtaEcr's coupe out ct keeping, with
the shabby driver doing on, the box
ana the shaggy horses standing pa
ipntly in attitudes without hope aud
without regret. But for Mary Vertrees,
here was 4 groteslue setting-rsAe was
4 vivid living creature of a beautiful
world And graveyard is mot the
place for people to look charming. Z
She also looked startled and con-
fused. but not more startled and con-
fused than Bibbs. All his life Bibbs
haG kept himself to himself-he was
but a shy onlooker in the world. New
ertheess, the startled gaze he bent
upon the unexpected lady before him
had causes other than his shyness and
her unexpectedness. For Mary YER
trees had been a shining figure in the
little world of late given to the view
of this humble and elusive outsider,
and spectators sometimes ma thelr
hearts beating faster than those of the
actors in the spectacle. Thus with
Bibbs now. He started and stared; he
lifted his hat with incredible awkward
ness. his fingers fuiYbling at his fore
head before they found the brim.
"Mr. Sheridan" said Mary, I'm
afraid you'll have to take me home
with you. L" She stopped. not
lacking a momentary awkwardness OF
her own.
"Why - why yes Bibbs STAN.
mered. "rll-I'll be de- Won't you
get in?'
In that manner and in that place
they exchanged their first words. Then
x VII