The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1917-09-14

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he was quite happy.
The assistant, Mr.. Ward, -whistled as
he climbed the hill. AS the hill was
steep, this proved two things-his
youth, and his lightness of heart. True,
old Hilary Kingston was dead, and vio-
lently done to death. But to Mr.. Ward
death was but the gateway to a larger
life; and only very sad In the young,
who have not yet lived.
Mr.. Ward was young, broad-shoul-
dered young man, with clear, rather
deep-set eyes, and firm mouth. The
people OF Saint Jude's prophesied that
the world would hear of Mr.. Ward.
There was only one bar to his progress:
he had too much humor. 1t seemed to
the people of Saint Jude's that religion
Is a serious thing, forgetting that good
cheer ls one OF the things 1t must bring,
and 1t be religion.
Boroday met Ward In the hall. Old
Hilary was upstairs by that time, lying
In his great bed. All the doors and
windows were open, and sunshine filled
the rooms. Ward thought 1t an I'M
usually sane house Of mourning.
"Tm glad TO see the sum-" he said.
$50 many people close things up
Miss Kingston wished things undis-
turbed"
II came to tell her--but / suppose
she doesn't care to see anyone--the
rector is away on holiday. I'll wire
him, of course"
Ia I.1 At... tynf. tI.set
where the rector had so recently re-
ceived his check. He turned and eyed
Ward.
"Why bring the rector baek2" he
asked. st Is little late for--the
comforts of religion"
"Mr. Kingston gave lavishly to the
church. Whatever the church can
do
II rather think" said Boroday po-
litely, .'that he gave, not to the church,
but to the poor"
Inasmuch as We give unto one of
the least of these" Ward replied,
and returned Boroday's gaze.
Elinor had pulled herself together.
BY the one standard that had ruled
her life she acted now--her fathers
wishes.
Ward, brought face to face with her,
found her unapproachable, calm, al
most cold Found her very lovely, too,
and let his ardent young eyes rest on
her oftener than was wise. Her sit
uation appealed to him. She seemed
to be quite alone, save for the Russian
with the beard.
IF / can do anything" he said,
''wlre to your relatives-anything of
that sort"
II have no relatives. My mother
died when l was born. IL have a
curious feeling that everything In the
world has stopped-as though I'd
reached the end of things"
II seemed to Mr.. Ward that he
should offer some of the comfort of his
faith to this shrinking, wide-eyed girl
before him. But what7 Rumors had
come to him, of course.
death Is only tragedy when we
think of 1t as an end and not as be-
| ginning" he said. ut is always sad.
hope you understand that I know
how terrible all this is for you. But
to have lived ones life, active and
well and useful to the end, and then
to depart, In the fullness of days, for
new activities-somewhere else"
Elinor shivered In the warm sum
shine.
"You see" she said drearily, II do
not believe those things. / should like
to just now" Then, almost defiantly:
HE was useful You will never know
the things he did that were helpful.
But perhaps we would not agree ON
that, either"
The Russian was walking up and
down the hall, impassIve, watchful.
Under his stolcal Indifference, he was
suffering fortunes. A bullet from the
automatic had gone through his left
arm, grazing the bone. Luckily, the
bullet was not1in the wound. Henri
cite had bathed and cleansed it, but
he was in agony. He was suffering
pain, bereavement, defeat. His face
expressed only decorous and conven-
tional regret.
Now and then he glanced In at the
library door, but generally he watched
the road up the hill. AS he had
watched the Church ascending, SO now
at any time might come Law. He
would be prepared.
He had grown beard since the st.
Louis matter. That would help. And
he had waited to return and claim old
Hilary's body, until the Record extra
had announced his killing. Walking
up and down the wide hall, his keen
mind was going back, detail by detail,
over the day. Talbot and Lethbrldge
In the car had kept on. They had
had changes of clothing in the ma
chine. BY now they should be at the
country club, and halfway around the
links. The car, with its changed IL
cense plates, would be standing in the
NsNNat -