The Wahpeton times. [volume] (Wahpeton, Richland County, Dakota [N.D.]) 1879-1919, 1917-07-12

Then something happened. 1t was
Joe Whitman. Joe was about twenty.
four, with rather stubby nose,
brtstling brown hair, and eyes that
seemed to laugh no matter how serious
he tried to be. Joe was not opulent,
ne was slowly making his way up in
n lawyers Office; but everybody liked
him and wanted him, which, after all,
for ones peace of mind may be better
even than opulence. Eva did not seem
to regard the lack Of money seriously,
since Joe was apparently climbing
steadily toward the achievement of q
decent living. She thought only of the
JOY, the new impetus to live which his
presence gave to her. The young man
was what they call "a live wire," which
really does rightly apply to those who
are so much alive they make it felt
by others.
"For Eva he made the drab days full
of sunlight. After awhile she WON
dercd if he came only out of pity for
her. Then she knew that if it was
only that it would be more cruel than
death.
The blind sometimes seem to devel.
op a. sixth sense, and Alvin Towne Ill.
vined that she loved this man. At
once he was tortured with the fear
that Eva might leave him. The thought
was unbearable, and one day he let
her know little of what was in his
mind.
"What could do without you?" he
walled. "What could I do?''
''Why think of such n thing?" she
said putting her arms around him. and
laying her cheek against his. "Arcn't
you I'LL have in the world? Why
should l go away?'
".Are you sure" he urged, "there is
n" one else?"
She protested and petted him into
a happier mood. But one evening when
she WAS letting Joe out, and was alone
with him in the hall, he held the hand
She gave him in good-by, and would
not let 1t go. Her eyes fell beneath his
gaze.
"rhere's never been any time to say
IT," he said. $50 it's got to come blunt,
but mean it! want you, grille! Do
You want me?"
81 never wanted anything so much in
my life" she laughed bit hyster.
irnlly.
.Ior's reply seemed to he expressed
in those actions that speak louder than
words: and when the door finally
closed Eva stood in kind of blissful
trance only to be awakened by the
rather impatient call of her father.
The sight of his helplessness seemed
suddenly to drop the girl from the
heights of heaven to the depths of
srlf-reproach. What could she say to
him? How could she tell him of her
happiness?
When Joe came the next evening she
wrote upon slip of paper, and hand
ed it to him. He was not to speak to
her father vet. Later she would ex-
plain. They wrote oil sorts of funny
and foolish things on the slips of pa
per, and laughed so over them that the
fathers inquiries put Joe's ingenuity
to test in inventing answers.
Finally Eva saw that the time had
come when her father could be put
off no longer. She must tell him. 1t
would better come first from her than
from Joe. The blind man hearing the
confirmation of that which he had
feared the worst, broke out with
pitiful wall of reproach and despair.
"But, dear!" she coaxed. 1--WE will
both be with you. It will not be leav-
ing you"
"Oh, know" he walled. "You will
think only of each other. That's natu-
raj. You will forget me! forget me!
I'd rather be alone than that. Can't
you wait little till I'm gone? 1t won't
be long,"
Then Eva had to promise him that
they would wait while. The next
time that he heard Joe was coming
he refused to meet him, saying he was
only in the way. He would lie down
for while, perhaps he would sleep.
Poor Eva had to face another trying
interview. Joe had grown rather
FESTIVE over the prolonged delay in be-
ing allowed to speak to her father. AL
though she had tried to make him I'M
dcrStand the situation, he had begun
to almost doubt if she really cared for
him. Youth and the impaticnce Of
lover cannot always be strictly I'M
selfish and reasonable. So when she
told him how her father felt. and that
1t seemed the only thing for them was
to wait, he asked in q chOked voice:
"DO you love me?"
Joe" she cried. "What cruel
question:"
mo-" he said. mot so cruel as to
have to ask it,"
IF you think that, will not ask you
to wait. You must go your way, and
leave me to mine," she said.
A cane struck against chair. They
turned to see Alvin Towne standing in
side the room.
"Wait!" he commanded. II think I
fell asleep-I don't know-but Mary
came to me. I tried to go to her, but
she would not let me. Her eyes &C.
eosted me, as they never did when
she was here. got up, and found my
way here. I heard what you both
said. It is we'll Mary led me here, I