The herald., 1918-03-07
HIS MANHOOD
BY OLIVE GROVES.
Copyright, 1871, by the Mech
per Syndicate.)

waved to the mOtOrman to stop. linen
she boarded the car.
1t was a crisp morning, and the sun
was Just peeping over the HORIZON ike
q ball of FURNISHED steel. The street
car was already packed, and the motor
man was standing with his hand on .
the crank to let the vehicle go.
~ have picked her up at all hours .
of the night" he remarked TO a pas
senger beside him on the platform. lie /
was Paul Lacroix, the motorman,
young, handsome.
The electric car was on trip To-
ward the business center of large /
city, and was uncomfOrtably filled, as
usual ut that hour, with stenographers,
clerks and q few miscellaneous pas
sengers.
Going down an avenue that paral-
leled the street upon which the car
was running was another young man,
handsome and straightforward. He
was a camouflaged employee, for he
spent certain hours in the office of his
father, who was a rich business man.
He had been looking lover the top" and
facing "high balls" the night before,
and being late to work, was racing his
little submarine-in common parlance
called an autOmObile-to reach his Of
fee on time.
On went the electric car, held in
leash by the mOtOrman, who remem-
bered the presence of his lovely pas
senger. There was no more room for
passengers and none disembarked, so
the car moved on without further in
terruptiOn.
The manipulation of the mundane
submarine" turned on more Juice"
and speeded up TO make up for the
| time he had wasted the night before.
His mind was partially upon the high
/ balls that had sparkled in the electric
/ lights, and his nerves were somewhat
unsteady.
The street down which the car hur-
ried and the avenue down which the
automobile was racing were rapidly
converting. Down some distance was
a circle upon which stood an eques-
trian statue, and there the street and
avenue became one.
When within a block Of this circle
the car, in answer to ring, came to
stop. Pushing her way through the
crowded aisle, Miss Blanche Carter,
the passenger who had merited the
consideration of the motOrman, disem-
barked. Holding tightly to her hand
satchel she made her way toward a
massive brick structure block away.
Lacroix did not see who had left
the car, for the crowd was too dense.
When the signal to go was given he
put on full power. Now obvious TO all
else than reaching his destination on
schedule time, he was soon going full
speed.
In this age, when all realize that the
building in which they work may be
blown up by dynamite, the house in
which they sleep RACED by bomb from
a flying machine, the vessel In which
they ride destroyed by a submarine
and that they may be riddled as they
walk along the street by a trench
gun masked ten miles away, or ridder
down and crushed to pieces by joy
riders and hair-brained chauffeurs II
are not equal to looking on unmove(
at an electric car, controlled by love
mad motorman, and an automobile
handled by Wildcats youngste
dashing wildly and rapidly TOWARD
each other. And 1t is not to be won
dered at that as the street and avenu
came together, and car and auto, un
awares, were making for the sam
point at the same identical moment
the occupants Of the car, penned a
they were, should be excited.
Seeing no chance of avoiding tn
collision, the young man jumped fror
his auto. Occupants of the car rushe
madly toward the rear. LacrOix turne
off the current and put on the brake
He might have let 60 and run bach
ward to safety, but the manhood l
him asserted itself. He might hav
been selfish In that he thought Of tn
girl who impressed him so much. Bu
he remained steadfastly at his post.
Reaching the large brick structure
which was an infirmary, Miss Carte
entered. She had scarcely finishe
donning her professional suit when sf
was called upon to assist in dressin
a badly wounded young man. 1t We
Paul Lacroix. He had been the onl
one who had been injured by the CO
lision, and his injuries were seriou
Pau's life hung on thread for son
| time, and then a slow recovery fo
1 lowed. But as time sped onward
1 learned to be dependent upon his nur'
and to regard her In another light ths
| that in which he thought Of her Il
| day he was injured. At length he b
gan to regret the coming of that di
!, upon which he must leave the hospiti
One day the nurse brought to h
bed a bit of roast turkey and pot
flowers-her gift. He looked up at b
/ with tears in his eyes, and said:
81 indeed have much to be thankf
for, but 1 want one more gift. Can
j have it?" And he reached out b
hand and drew her INTERESTINGLY I
! ward him.