The Huttig news., 1917-07-07
CHAPTER l.


 out from the mass of commuters that thronged the city trains. The gray derby was part of old Hilary. Ex- cept on those rare occasions when he attended service at Saint Jude's he was never seen without it.
 He lived on the hill above the yil- 1age, with his daughter-had lived there for ten years. The hall was beautiful, but old Hilary received no visitors, returned no advances. Visit ors thought this curious. The villagers, prosperous business men with smart wives, shrugged their shoulders. The mans house was his own. If he found that he could do without the town, the town could get along without him.
 There was no mystery about the hall. and little curiosity. Cars going to the country club passed under the brick wall of its Italian garden. Their occupants sometimes caught a glimpse of Elin0r Kingston there, reading in a rose arbor, wandering among her peonfes and iris in the spring, or cut ting sprays of phlox in midsummer.
 The men thought her rather lovely: the women, odd, with her blond hair and dark eyes. The assistant rector of Saint Jude's, newly come to the vil- lage, met her face to face on one of his long country walks. month or so before old Hilary's death, and could not forget her.
 He led the conversation to her that night at a dinner.
 "An exquisite face" he described her. "but sad, almost tragically sad"
 "Blond?' The lady on his right was Mrs. Bryant. In honor of the new assistant rector. who came of fine fam fly and was a distinct acquisition to the village, she wore the Bryant pear shaped pearl. She spoke rather curt iy. "I should not call her exquisite but you probably met Elinor Kingston. Her sadness is pose, believe; she has everything she wants."
 The assistant rector was young but very wise. So he spoke no more of Elinor until the women had left the table. Then he ventured again.
 Don't join the army of those of us who worship from afar," advised the youth who had moved up beside him. She's the loyeliest thing fin this part of the country. But, except our sainted rector, no one ever gets to put foot on the place. It's exclusiveness to the nth power, and then some. There's lot of talk, of course, or used to be-. Old Kingston brings his servants from New York, and except an elderly housekeeper, none of them speak Eng
 fish, They used to say around here that he was refugee, but that's all rot. He's stingy old dotard, afraid some handsome youth like myself will eaptivate the girl. That's all there Is to It."
 The assistant rector whose name was Ward, smiled perfunctorily. In- stead of the gleaming table, spread with flowers and candles, with the gay colors of cordials and liqueurs, he was seeing q girl standing at the turn of country road and gazing down into the valley and the distant village with Faith hope and charity, and the greatest of these Is faith. Faith In our selves, faith in those around us, and that subllmest faith of all which trusts in something beyond. To all men is given such faith at the begin ming of life, and some keep 1t to the end. But here and there Is one who has lost it, who cannot turn his eyes up and say "Lord, Lord" Old Hilary had not kept the faith.
 Years ago he had not been evil. He had gone from philosophy into unbe- lief. that route which all must travel. But. unlike the many, he had not come back.
 He had started with socialism, but socialism must be founded on the Christ, and him he scorned. So from socialism he had drifted to anarchy. To rob the rich and give to the poor, at first. Later on, to rob the rich, to incite seditions, to arm the rebellious- oh, it was comprehensive enough, vast, ly wicked with that most terrible law lessness of all, that believes itself law. To pit his wits against the world and win-that had been old Hilary's creed. For the oppressed" had been at first the slogan of the band he gath cred around him. Against the op- pressor' it became later on. Vastly different the two. Most of human charity and kindliness lay crushed down and trampled underfoot during old Hilary's progress from Christ to Antichrist.
 The band had been gathered with much care. Responsibility, order, de- corum-these spelled safety to old Hilary's astute mind. Most of them were younger sons of English landed families, with sprinkling of other na- tionalities. Young Huff was an Aus tralian, for instance the son of wealthy sheep-owner. Boroday the Russian-implicated in the bomb throwing that destroyed the minister of war-was nobleman. Old Hilary bad Uot him ouf If Sihario aurinp