Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1919-12-05

him. Marrying doesn't mean so much,
to know that-that people think of
you-and to see them. I thought we
were all-oh, pretty happy the way
thugs were, and I don't think it would
mean giving up great deal for him
or me, either, if we just went on as
we have been. IL see him almost
every day, and"
"Mother!" Georges voice was loud
and stern. do you think you could
go one seeing him after this!"
She had been talking helpiessly
enough before; her tone was little
more broken now. "Not-not even
see him?''
"How could you?" George cried.
Mother, it seems to me that if he
ever set foot in this house again
oh! I can't speak of it! Could you
see him, knowing what talk it makes
every time he turns into this street,
9nd knowing what that means to me
Oh, / don't understand all this
don't! If you told me, year ago,
that such things were going to hap
pen. I'd have thought you were in
sane-and now I believe amp
Then. after preliminary gesture of
despair, as though he meant harm to
the ceiling, he flung himself heavily,
face downward upon the bed. His
anguish was none the less real for
it's vehemence; and the stricken lady
came to him instantly and bent over
him, once more enfolding him in her
arms. She said nothing, but suddenly
her tears fell upon his head; she saw
them, and seemed to be startled.
"Oh, this won't dor she said. "I've
never let you see me cry before, ex-
cept when your father died. ]
mustn't!"
And she ran from the room.
A little while after she had
gone, George rose and began solemnly
to dress for dinner.
He sat gauntly at the dinner table
with Fanny to partake of a meal
throughout which neither spoke. Is
/
her, an injunction it was as well they
obeyed, for she did not come at all.
But with the renewal of sustenance
/ furnished to his system, some relax
alton must have occurred within the
high-strung George. Dinner was not
quite finished when, without warning,
sleep hit him hard. His burning eyes
could no longer restrain the lids above
them; his head sagged beyond con-
troll; and he got his feet, and went
lurching upstairs yawning with ex-
haustion. From the door of his room.
which he closed mechanically, with his
eyes shut, he went blindly to his bed,
fell upon it soddenly, and slept-with
his face full upturned to the light.
It was after midnight
when he woke, and the room was dark.
He had not dreamed, but he woke with
the sense that somebody or something
had been with him while he slept
somebody or something infinitely COM
passionate; somebody or something in
finitely protective, that would let him
come to no harm and to no grief.
He got up, and pressed the light on.
Pinned to the cover of his dressing Ia
bic was square envelope, with the
words, "For you, DEAR" written in
pencil upon it. But the message in
side was in ink, little smudged here
and there.
81 have been out to the mail box,
darling, with a letter I've written to
Eugene, and he'll have it in the morn
ing. 1t would be unfair not to let
him know at once, and my decision
could not change If waited. Il would
always be the same. think it is
a little better for me to write to you,
like this, instead Of waiting till you
wake up and then telling you, because
I'm foolish and might cry again, and
I took VOW once, long ago, that you
should never see me cry. I think
what makes me most ready to cry
now is the thought of the terrible suf-
fering in your poor face, and the un-
happy knowledge that it is /, your
mother, who put it there. It shall
never come again! I love you better
than anything and everything else on
earth. God gave you to me-and oh
how thankful 1 have been every day
of my life for that sacred gift-and
nothing can ever come between me
and Gods gift. And Eugene was
right know you couldn't change
about this. Your suffering shows how
deep-seated the feeling is within you.
So I've written him just about what
I think you would like me to-though
/ told him I would always be fond of
him and always his best friend, and
hoped his dearest friend. He'll under
stand about not seeing him. He'll I'M
derstand that, though / didn't say it
in so manv words. You mustn't trou-
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