Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-11-16

got a locket from me that way, and
the jewel in the lid was worth more
than you gave me for the loeket. All,
1 forgot myself! Jupiterl What a mis-
take to tell you its valuei 1t is want
ed again. Will YOU
By this time Adam was standing be-
side the woman, ~interrupting Israel.
An hour later he paused at Lissie's
gate on his way home with the precious
little gold case in his pocket.
whats all this about a locketf'
asked Lissie. 81 meant to run over
and see mamma, but 1 had a visitor
and couldn't leave home. l didn't know
there was a locket in mammals pos
session."
"a picture of you when you were
five years old, I believe. I've got 1t
again. Here, look! I haven't opened
it yet"
"Why, papa, what's the matter with
you and mamma? That picture of me
1 tore out of the locket some sixteen
years ago, cut it in four pieces and
threw In the ash bin, along with the
locket, which l hammered into its orig
inal elements. Mamma knew, for l
told her. She forgave me and forgot
it, SO far as l know. 1 was little then,
and she wasn't worrying over my be-
ing a lost baby. Why, papa, this isn't
a girl at all! It's a young fellow with
a smooth face, and, why, papa, look at
it! It's none of ours. Look at that
.z..o.koI -,oirIx ~, hi, foaaI Must no
some mistake"
Adam confronted his wife with the
open locket In his hand. us that the
one?' he demanded.
Eyes, yes; that's it! I'm so glad!
How did YOU
"Woman, you cared SO much for that,
did you? That smirking"-
"Smirking, do you think? Well, he
was but a youth, a young blade, may
be, but he loved me when l was also
youne." She kissed the picture, smil-
ing.
Adam snatched the locket from her
hand, threw it on the floor and set his
heel on 1t.
"a young blade, eh? Then he must
be an old blade by now and in need of
grinding. I'll make powder of this, if
1 can't of the original! So that's the
trouble, the crying in the night and all
the rest of it. An old love affair that
you never forgot! Jim Moller-nobody
but Jim Moller ever smirked like
that
A light dawned on Lorena Hedges
face. ADAM" she said softly, you've
forgotten many things. It's a locket
you gave me on my sixteenth birthday,
with your W picture inside. You said
things that day, foolish, maybe, but
sweet to remember. twas Renie then;
now I'm Lorena. It's the same in ey-
erything. It's been like beginning in
the morning with songs about roses
and sunshine and ending at night with
quarrels about the price of pork chops.
If / had back the romance, the senti-
ment! oh, Adam, 1t isn't the locket l
cry for. That's just an excuse to hide
what went along with I'll If you'd
speak to me as you spoke then, if
WAS that it? Haven't I shown folly
enough In this last, ten minutes to
prove I'm still a boy? We men are
such blame fools. We think when we
care for a woman a hundred times
more than we did for the girl she grew
from she'll know 1t without any of our
telling. Renie, I'm not a poet, but |
wouldn't trade you for all the girls in
America rolled into one giggly, slip
perry little bundle"
"I-I wasn't trying to make you say
things, but Oh, I'm so glad you've
said them-glad the locket got lostt'
"There, now; don't you cry any
more"
II don't believe I will again, ever"