Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1917-04-26

its stem between her teeth, stopped
and looked at him.
"Tel me-" he said anxiously,
lis my smile hideous7"
The young girl looked at him a
long moment, and her eyes were
troubled.
1T is not like anything / have
seen on the Happy Highway, she
answered, and turned from him.
The bent old man was regarding
him s~teadfastly.
Why is my smile hideous?''
asked the young man wringing his
hands in anguish.
1t is a message from the House
of Happiness" the old man said
with an earnestness that barely
escaped being sadness, "the writ
ing from the ruler of the House
OF Happiness. Sooner or later it
comes to everybody on the Happy
Highway.
1.-The man bearing the jewels
Tor the young girl who kissed you
as you passed-you failed to note,
perhaps, that his shoes were dusty
and his hands knotted and Scared.
THE woman who sang to you
you did not read the story in her
deep, deep eyes-the shadows of
the longings and sorrows that had
shaken her and bruised her that
she might at last put her soul into
a song.
"And he who pleased you with
plctures-you did not see that he
was thin and tremulous with
weakness because of hunger and
suffering. The makers of pictures
starve and suffer and die so that
they may leave behind them the
glory they have in their hearts.
And the tear jar with it's won
derful perfume-you have not
learned that flowers are the spirits
of dead loves and lonely women's
tears.
"But the woman who came to
you at the fountain and made
songs with you-she gave you her
self, all her visions, all her dreams.
And yet, you gave her nothing,
and you let her go. The suffering
and the scars Of all these things
were as nothing to the woe you
to her and the scar you
put upon her SOUL"
"But what does it all meant
asked the young man, heartbroken
and astonished.
1T MEANS" said the bent old.
man, that all may reach the
Happy Highway, but that the only
staff which will support any one
to the House Of Happiness is
kindly service. You will observe
that the blessed palace is far away.
All these pilgrims served you, and
You have served none. They are
rewarded. Look!"
The young man looked, and he
was amazed by what he saw. Far
down the Happy Highway, almost
within the shadow of the House of
Happiness, were those who had
served him and been kind to him
the strong man through whose fin
gers jewels ran like a food of
color in the sloping sunlight, the
singing woman followed by the
three girls with their strange,
stringed instruments, and she who
had kissed him many days and
many nights and made songs with
him by the fountain. !,
And the young man stood and
thought for a great, great while
after the bent old man had left
him. The long mauve shadows fell
and longer across the Hap
py Highway. And the one bird
who sang at that hour made her
song one lingering, plaintive note.
The House of Happiness was swal-
lowed up in the distance.
II must render service to 9TH
ers," the young man said softly.
II have taken everything and Civ
en- nothing. l must make somebody
/ must hurry to the House
Of Happiness.
And he wept bitterly.
Then, suddenly, even while he
brushed away his tears, he found
that he was running, light footed,
the deep, yellow carpet Of
and that he could see
the lovely gold roof Of the
House Of Happiness!
J. On the end of his story there
in the room absolute silence
save for the whimperinlg Of the
He sat, his elbows on his
his hands hanging free, his
eyes busy with the changing lights
Of the fire, After q little while he
could hear her quick, sharp breath