The Lakeland evening telegram., 1917-06-25
A CHILD
10 We
L Was Mors Than
That Later
b ETHEL HOLMES

am an old maid. I have never had
love AFFAIR and nsver expect to have
Goa Perhaps this = why l take an in
lemsst IN ths loves Of other people
y I1othing b 70 attractive to me as to
}atcA . young couple drifting into
hat current which 1t first moves 80
.sSmpsrceptibly that they are not aware
.cyxhey ars IN Il Indeed, so unconscious
Ere they Of being ipcipient lovers that
NJ does not occur to them to conceal
4khe fact from any one else.
rs And to me there is something espc
ially touching about the loves Of chill
Nirsn. Some deny that there is such
thing as pair Of children lovers. |
leny their negati0n. and l do so on a
yery sound basis. When was ten
o,: ,ears old was In love with boy Of
fifteen. This Il the nearest | ever
.ame to love.
q remember one day sitting at my
G window sewing when a boy and girl
i.)assed on the other side of the road.
The boys straw hat was dingy, ana
j, here was plenty Of ventilation in its
crown. His only other clothing was a
shirt and trousers-no shoes or stock.
Glngs, nothing around his throat, his
collar being open and displaying the
al tanned skin. The girls clothing was
~ neither better nor worse, and there
=, was about 10 much Of it.
The two were evidently absorbed in
each other. What they were talking
about ! was too far from them to hear,
Ii but It was Of vital Importance. 1t
may be that the boy had been kept
in" after school and they were indig-
-nant over time thus lost in play. 1t
may BE- that some urchin had smashed
. the china head Of the girls doll.
Whatever It was It was being discuss
Jed with animation.
And ! maintain that these childish
I, interests are Of more real Importance
, for tho time being than those which
come later. No addition to an adults
stock Of wealth gives the same zest as
q new toy to one Of these little people.
j Often afterward | saw these two and
I always together In this they were
: different from other children who play.
+, boys with boys and girls with girls. |
learned that they were Henry Morse
and Lila Bunker, farmers boy and
, farmers girl Indeed, we were all
' farmer folk, all knew one another, ev.
erybody being interested in some degree
i at least In every one else, simple com
!. munity and more than usually free from
the petty jealousies common to man.
kind.
Henry MorSe's father was determined
: that his son should have good educa-
tion, and the boy was sent away to
.. school After this used to see Lila
going By our house, but no companion
supplied Henry's place She was al
ways alone, and fancied her thinking
OF her other self. But this was simply
fancy on my part. AS l have said in
the beginning. not having had any love
Affairs Of my own. conjure up love
Affairs for others. In this case of
Henry and Lila l knew nothing of
what was passing between them except
from observation, SO l may be excused
for filling In occasionally that the story
may mot seem too disconnected. At the
last was present and shall not have
to draw on my Imagination.
When Henry came back from school
there was more modish appearance
to his clothes and to his manners
Poor Lila. who had remained on the
farm, had only an unadorned beauty
freshened BY pure air and sunshine
They were now about sixteen years
old, though Henry was half head
taller, and could not see that their In.
terest In each other had waned, though
the childish unconsciousness that they
were OF different sex had disappeared
l used to zee them go by the house to.
gether a. formerly. but the prattle Of
childhood had given place to the more
sober conversation Of youth. often
wished could hear what they were
saying to each other.
Henry did 20 well at school that his
father decided to send him to college.
wondered what effect his four years
association with young men and won.
en- Of the world would have on my pet
love AFFAIR. I feared that Henry. hav.
Ing become used to the polished girls
he would meet. would return to see In
Lila q country girl lacking the airs
and graces Of her sisters of the city.
Would this ALLEVIATE him? It was to be
expected that It would. And, though
country born and bred myself, don't
know that those Of us who 60 to the
city and acquire city ways are to bt
blamed when we return and Yield ),
dissatisfaction with country ways.
Henry remained away a year at col
lege before he came back to the farm
Then one July morning. when sitting
at my window darning socks, looked
up. and there on the opposite side Of
the road were the couple | had first
noticed eight or nine years ago as
children. Though Henry was plainly
dressed. bis clothes were not country
clothes 1t seemed to me that he might
pass anywhere as a city bred young
man. And Lila-how my heart went
out to the DOOR child In her effort m