Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-07-23
CHAPTER XVI.
(Continued.)

He reeled with weakness as we
started toward his horse. helped
him into the saddle.
81 guess I'm not as bad as
talk" he remarked.
If il were so he must have re-
vised his view of that distinction
which he had been lying to achieve.
1t was a curious type OF vanity
quite new to me then.
Young Mr.. Latour fell behind me
as we rode on. The silence was
broken presently by Mr.. Purvis,'
who said:
You can hit like the hind leg of
a horse. l never see more speed
an gristle in Teller o your age.
Nobody could swing the scythe
and the ak as much as | have with
out getting some gristle, and the
schoolmster taught me how to use
it." l answered. But there's one
thing that no man ought to be con-
ceited about"
Whats that"
"His own gristle. I remember
Mr.. Hacket told me once that the
worst kind of a fool was the man
who was conceited over his fight
ing power and liked to talk about
it. If 1 ever get that way l hope
that 1 shall have it licked out of
me-"
81 never git conceited-not that
I amt some reason to be-" said Mr..
Purvis with a highly serious coun-
tenaRce. He seemed to have been
blind to that disparity between his
acts and sayings which had dis
tinguished him in Lickitysplit.
l turned my head away to hrc-
my smiles and we rode on in ST.
lence.
81 guess I've got somethin' here
that is cocollated to please ye," he
said.
He took letter from his pocket
and gave it to me. My heart beat
faster when | observed that the
superscription on the envelope was
in Sally's handwriting. The letter.
which bore neither signature nor
date line, contained these words:
"Will you please show this to
Mr. Marion Baynes? I hope it will
convince him that there is one
who still thinks of the days of the
past and of the days that are com
especially one day"
Tears dimmed my eyes as 1 read
and re-read the message. More
than two of those four years had
passed and, as the weeks had drag
ged along | had thought more and
more of Sally and the day that was
coming. l had bought a suit of
evening clothes and learned to
dance and gone out to parties ano
met many beautiful young ladies
but none of them had the charm of
Sally. The memory of youth
true-hearted, romantic, wonder
working youth-had enthroned her
in its golden castle and was de-
Tending her against the present
commonplace herd of mere human
beings. No one of them had play
ed with me in the old garden or
stood by the wheat-field with fly
ing hair, as yellow as the grain
and delighted me with the sweet
est words ever spoken. No one of
them had been glorified with the
light and color of a thousand
dreams.
l rode in silence, thinking of her
and of those beautiful days now re-
ceding into the past and of my aunt
and uncle. l had written a letter
to them every week and one or the
other had answered it Between
the lines had detected the note of
loneliness. They had told me the
small news of the countryside.
How monotonous 1t all seemed to
ME then! Roger Barnes had bought
new farm; John Axtell had been
hurt in a runaway; my white mare
Lad got a SPAWN!
Hello, misteri"
| started out of my reverie with
with a little jump of surprise. A
big. rough-dressed, bearded man
stood in the middle of the road with
gun on his shoulder.
Where we goin'?"
up to the Van Heusen place"
Where do We hail from?"
"CobleSkill."
"On business for Judge West
brooke"
yes"
Writes to serve?"