Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1918-02-19

"Will you forgive me-" she asked
rising from her chair and coming i'm
pulsively toward him. "I'm sorry
misjudged you and treated you so
You must be very good man. Please
forgive me-"
He took her hand, which was swal
lowed up in his big one. His eyes
were moist also.
"Lord love you, dearie," he said
''there's nothing TO forgive. I realized
that must have seemed Like mean,
stingy old scamp. Yet didn't mean to
be. I only wanted to look into this
thing just a httle-just as matter Of
business, you know. And l. Caro-
line, did that doctor tell you anything
more|
"Any more?" she repeated In bewil-
derment. HE told me that you were
the kindest man he had ever seem"
"Yes, yes. Well. maybe his eyesight's
poor. What / mean is did he tell you
anything about anybody else bein' In
this with me"
Anybody else? What do you mean?"
"Oh, nothin', nothin'. I joked with
him spell ago about wealthy rela-
ton Of the Moriarty tribe turnin' up.
Twas only a joke, Of course. And yet
Caroline, IL think I'd ought to say
He hesitated. What could he sayf
Even a hint might lead to embarrass-
ing questions, and he had promised
Dunn.
"What ought you to sayr asked his
niece.
swell, nothin', I guess. am glad
you understand matters little better
and don't intend for the estate nor you
to pay these Moriarty bills. Just get
'em off your mind. Forget 'em. I'll see
that everything's attended to. And,
later on, II you and me can, by putin
our heads together, help those folks to
earnin' q better nvin'. why, we VIII,
heyf"
The girl smiled up at him. ~ think" !"
she said, that you must be one who
likes to hide his light under bushel
Thank you-uncleP
She left Captain Elisha in a curious
state Of mind. Against his will he had
been forced to accept thanks and
credit which, he believed, did not right
fully belong to him. 1t was the only
thing to do, and yet 1t seemed like dis
loyalty to Malcolm Dunn. This trou-
bled him, but the trouble was, just
then, a mere pinhead Of blackness
against the radiance Of his spirit.
His brothers daughter had for the
first time called him uncle.
A note on the dining room table
proved, to the captains delight, to be
from James Pearson. It was brief and
to the point.
"Why don't you come and see meT
wrote the young man. "I've been e1-
pecting you, and you promised to come
Have you forgotten my address7 II 80,
here It is. expect to be In all day to-
morrow"
The consequence Of this was that II
o'clock the next day found Captain
Elisha pulling the bell at brick house
In q long brick block on a west side
street. The block had evidently been In
it's time the homes Of well to do peo-
Die, but now it was rather dingy and
gone to seed. Across the street the
first floors were for the most part small
shops, and in the windows above them
doctors signs alternated with those OF
modistes, manicure artists and milli-
ners.
The pull at the boarding house bell
was answered by a rather slatternly
maid, who informed the visitor that
she guessed Mr. Pearson was In. He
most always was around lunch time.
So Captain Elisha waited In typical
boarding house parlor before q CRATE
with no fire In 1t and surrounded by
walnut and plush furniture until Pear
son himself came hurrying downstairs.
"say, you're a brick, Captain War
rem" he declared as they shook hands
II hoped you'd come today. Why
haven't you before"
The captain explained his having
mislaid the address.