The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1917-08-11
EVENING sTORY

(BY Earl Reed SilVerS.O


/ ing river; from the porch of the mas
sive hotel drifted the sound of soft
music. Myrtle Thorpe, her chin cup
ped in her hands, looked with unsee-
ing eyes across the water.
II can never marry you now" she
said listlessly.
The rather good looking man sitting
beside her opened his eyes with I'M
affected surprise. The scar on his left
cheek grew livid.
Why" he asked.
Because you're a coward.
Tho girl spoke evenly, as if she were
commenting on the weather, but there
was a finality to her words which
brqoked no argument. There was
something about the set of her mouth
and the smooth curve of her chin
which told Ned Randolph that further
words would be useless. Nevertheless,
! he refused to accept dismissal with
out an attempt to justify himself.
| why am l a coward ?' he persisted.
| There was a hint of scorn in the
glance Myrtle gave him.
You know the answer as well as
i do she said shortly.
But can't swim"
| That doesn't make any difference.
You might have tried to do some
thing
| But there wasn't anything 1 could
do"
The girl dropped her hands in her
1 lap and turned searching eyes toward
the man beside her
| DO you think that if / had been a
man and someone was drowning not
twenty-five yards away, l would have
| run to the dock and would have tried
| to get in a boat? No, l would have
jumped into the water and swan out
| to him."
| Myrtle, you're unreasonable. 1
| cOlI1dn't have done arV good in the
water"
TT was the most humiliating ex-
perience I've ever known" the girl
continued. There you stood on the
beach, with half the hotel looking on,
yelling for help as if you We're child.
| Why didn't you do something ?"
L did the only thing possible. l
! called for help and then went to the
rescue in a boat"
Yes, and before you got half the
| way, Jim Turner ran down from the
porch and swan out to the man who
was drowning. Now everybody says
he's a hero and you're a coward"
And do you think SO, too?''
Yes" There was a hopeless finali-
ty to her answer. with just the b6rest
suggestion of a sob at the end of the
word. She turned her face away,
| and, for a long two minutes, neither
spoke. Ned broke the silence.
Bravery doesn't always consist in
ish,'' he said. IF 1 had plunged into
the water, there would have been two
| people to save instead of one. | did
the only thing possible under the ,ir-
cumstanees--and I'm sorry that you
| should be Inundated"
The girl smiled just trifle bitterly.
You don't know how much it
would have meant to me if you had
proved yourself a hero she said. My
family have always counted heroism
| as the one best thing in life. Five
of my ancestors were in the revClu-
tionary war; my grandfather was a
| colonel in the Confederate army, and
my two brothers are down at Tort
Myer,"
list ?"
Yes"
1T wouldn't do any good"
Why"
''Beacuse I'm physically unfit"
She shot him glance in which
| doubt was mingled with amusement
| You're surely big enough" She
4 rose suddenly to her feet. 1T won't do
any good to talk about it," she con-
| unued. II couldn't help wondering
why you haven't done something about
| afraid
The man WINGED ever so slightly at
her words
I'm sorry you should, think that, -
he answered. Maybe some time
You IL find that you are wrong"
Pm glad that 1 found out about
you before it is too late" the girl went
| on, ignoring his words. 81 was fool
lsh TO consent to marry you, anyway.
We've only known each other for a
few weeks, and you haven't told me
a single thing about yourself except
that you've been to Europe for two
years and have come back to rest from
business. You didn't even tell me
| what kind of business it was"
! Does that really matter? I asked
you to marry me and offered you all
| that have. 1t isn't so much but it's
enough to keep us both in comfort. All
l ask is the right to be happy-with
you
I'VE never could be happy together
| ] would think of my brothers over in
France. facing the German guns and
| risking their lives: and then / would
think of you here asking for the hap
piness which they made possible.
! could never do it, Ned"
] rs it all overs them"
| Yes, It's all over"
| For a moment Ned Randolph stood
| undecided, as If debating further ex-
| plana ion. Then, without a word. he
of the hotel. After he had gone Myr-
tie sank down upon the sand, her
head in her hands. For a long time
she lay quiet, and then. the light gone
! from her eyes, she got up. As she did
So she discovered a small ornament
, lying in the sand where Ned had been
standing She picked it up and ex-
amined it curiousiy. Then her mouth
opened in Amusement 1t was a Vic
toria Cross and on its back was in
scribed the name of Theodore Ran
dolph. For long time she stood half
stupefied, the cross in her hand Then.
with something like sob. she turned
and hurried across the sand to the
hotel. She found Ned sitting in the
far corner of the veranda. Her face
crimson, she went. to him directly,
holding out the insignia of honor.
Il found this on the saEd," she
said softly. rs 1t yours?'
The man nodded.
Yes" he answered. It's mine"
d,.Ff fx.Il