The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1917-03-01
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49, etAN OikSy NOV
proved only that / amounted to
nothing. Nowhere have they found
even the shadow of my vanished
personality" Despair cleuded his
face for a moment. ct seems in
credible that any human being
could have amounted to so little I"
Anxiety, something like indeci-
sion, assailed her for the first time.
And the effect Of all this on
your work = here = now9" she
asked, her lips uncertain again.
You were right in what you
told me the last time | saw YOU"
he admitted. 81 know now they
will attack me--the lebbyiss-on
the assumption that I have some
thing in my life to conceal" He
laughed lightly, without mirth.
That, you know, is rather anus
mig"
She did not smile.
And it viii hurt the work."
she persisted.
Il hope not" he said. "There
is this to II advantages: it has
gone SO far, this movement, that it
will keep on, no matter what hap
pens"
She stood, leaning all her weight
on one foot, her position making it
seem that her shoulders stopped a
little. Her eys were still a cues
ton.
Il see now," he upbraided him
self, chow foolish, how tragically
foolish, I was in the beginning in
trying to run away from my trou-
ble-my disgrace. Nobody asked
questions when [ first began this
work. Who was |, that anybody
should bother9 / was a monde
script, a nonentity, circusing on
the street corners. Then, later,
when a few began to look up to
me, / told myself it did not mat
ter what I had BEEN"
cit didn't, really" she com
forted him, "People are forever
asking what a man has done. That
is now what matters. It is what
he is, what he wants to be. If they
would only understand that about
everybody"
"The truth is, I suppose" he
went on, eager to make her under
stand, 81 was ashamed of not be-
ing like other people. And I tried
to hide my difference from them.
That was my great mistake. We
can't hide anything we We ever
done, al we? We are today very
much what we did and thought
yesterday, and we will be tomor-
row, in great part, what we do to-
day"
Eyes" she assented, "each year
is beautifed or made hideous by
the lengthening shadows of those
other years we have left behind"
ESQ.," he forced again the rail
lery into his voice, "there is moth
ing more nothing at all, is
there?"
lis it too late now to stop hid
ing2" she put a final question.
He could see that she was fight
ing against her bewilderment, try
ing to beat down the doubts that
assailed her.
aUnder the circumstances,
yes he declared, putting with
emphasis the result Of all the
thought he had given the prob
lem. Nobody would believe-no-
body in all the world but you"
She smiled sunnily.
"You will ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
/ do believer"
THAT knowledge" he said
earnestly, lis to me like an order
of knighthood."
She held out her hand and shook
his, manlike. /.
Now" she concluded, "let me
drive you back. Gracious! How
long we We e
Her cheerfulness, however, was
assumed. 1t disappeared utterly
when she felt the trembling Of the
hand which he put to her elbow as
she stepped into the machine. AS
they rode, they were silent, or,
when they did speak, it was of in
consequential things. He felt that
there was nothing more to. say.
There was nothing, he knew. That.
was his tragedy. There was moth
ing more-she could say. That was
her grief.
In spite Of his protestations, she
drove him to his office.
Always she said, as he told
her good by, you will know that
It believe