The Palatka news and advertiser. [volume] (Palatka, Fla.) 1908-19??, 1916-03-10

some time in her life. If didn'
speak my mind there'd be more per
fectly good dresses to send in tn
missionary barrels than there arr
now. There's Susan Cody going by
| must ask her how she wants hel
sleeves made. The Chronicles on the
table somewhere-you can read the
locals until l get back. Don't sup,
pose you've been to the office yet"
Lucy gazed at the pink buds in the
apple tree just outside the window
until her eyes could distinguish then
no longer. 1t might be better to fol
low Amelia's advice. She found the
paper and turned the pages with un.
teady hand until she came to the 90
calls"
/" Miss Lucy Benson will appear at
church some Sunday morning in a
yellow wolfe dress trimmed with
black velvet ribbon" The words
seemed to dance up and down the half
column devoted to the Milford news.
She held the paper tight to hide her
puI iiiS SIiSOho, lol BIC IciIu AHle-
LAS step. Directly in front of her
eyes was the Norville news; she be-
gan to read the first item with the in
terest she would have bestowed on the
Greek alphabet. She finished it. The
paper fell from her hands. Her face
was white. She seemed to be mois-
ening her lips.
Amelia stood in the doorway, her
keen blue eyes searching the face Of
her friend.
"Have you seen a ghost, Lucy?"
They were the first words that came
to her.
Lucy looked at the speaker as if
she were an inanimate object. She
glanced nervously from the window
and back at the woman in the door
way; then she recovered herself.
"a ghost? Why, of course not,
Amelia. But I guess you are right,
after all. You know about such
things. l just had foolish fancy
and I'm over it now. l believe l
like the narrow black and white stripe
better than the wide. Trim it any
way you LIKE mean you know best
GAIL right" Amelia forced herself
to speak in an unconcerned voice. "
thought you'd see straight in time.
"lll send for the goods tomorrow, but
l can't make it up for three weeks.
Let's see, you might as well get lit
tie extra to allow for making over.
What's your hurry, Lucy?"
But Lucy Benson was already at the
door, murmuring faint good-by.
When she had turned the corner into
the main street, Mrs. Hatch snatched
up the lockwood Chronicle.
what under the canopy of heaven
did Lucy see!" she exclaimed. "There
wasn't thing here this morning. IF
I've got to read the whole paper
through, might as well begin"
In the upper left-hand corner of the
first page devoted to the local news
Amelia began her search for infor-
nation. Upman Corners-nothing
there. misunderstanding quiet.
Milford-no startling home news.
Ringville-dead, as usual. But half
way down the last column she stop
ped. Camden-"Philip J. Grant,
Philip Grant, Phil Grant," she re-
peated, as her eyes clung to the first
item. She read it aloud.
"Philip J. Grant, who has not been
in this vicinity for several years, is in
New England on business. He will
visit friends here and in Milford be-
fore returning to his orange groves in
Florida"
The woman sank into a rocking
chair and converted the paper into a
fan, which she used vigorously.
"Phil Grant alive" she calculated.
"There's no reason why he shouldn' t
be, though he ought to have died for
treating Lucy SO. It all comes back
plain as day. What store he set by
her! She was prettier to him in her
plain little dresses than all the rest
of us in our frills and ribbons-and
no wonder, with her shining eyes and
that lovely complexion. Until that
night She went to Fanny's party
sweet as rose in her faded blue and
white muslin and Phil was just max
ing up to her when in sailed Rosa
Turner in an exquisite lavender gown.
Beside her Lucy looked like the little
country girl she was. Phil gave
Rosa one look and never took his
eyes from her that evening, eve1
when he was dancing with Lucy
And then when he had haunted her
steps for a week, she told him she
was engaged to a bookkeeper in Bcs
ton where she lived. Rosa's worst
sin was flirting. And Phil took ev
cry cent of his money from the hank
and boarded the first train for Ne"
York and we've never been sure where
he was since. I'm Lucy's best friend
but not once has she mentioned hi
name from that day to this. That
gown was what did it. Rosa was as
oerfect in lavender as Lucy would
have been in yellow I wonder how
she knew And l talked to her like
hat when she was hungry for some
hing pretty! Now it's too late, for
t would look as if she was dressing
Up for Phil. Poor Lucy! Poor girl
twenty-five years of remembering
would have killed me. l thought it
vas hard enough to live without Reu-
zen these ten years-but | guess I've
lad the easiest time"
With order sheet and samples, Mrs.
latch worked at her desk that even
ng. Very carefully she wrote the
directions and pinned the chosen bits