Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1919-01-27
THE GIRL WHO
ALMOST MISSED
Bv Mary Douglass
YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT LOVE is.
Chapter LkNll

tnhpler LhNll
"IIave you ever thought of marrying
Howard repeated.
stood very still where was Then !
looked at him as he sat in his deep chair
with the crutch beside him, his blue eyes
looking UP into mine with strange glcam
in their depths
yes | breathcd
He could not have heard the word.
He must have understood The motion
Of my lips.
His fingers frightened ON the char
arm and he bent n triilc forward
Would you think bc began.
forestallcd him with hurried catch
of the breath Better that my pride should
he hurt than his | cared for hun too much
to wound him for my vanity.
81 have thought Of being married
the words dragged themselves from me
Each one hurt AS though | were tearing
open my soul for stranger To see the
Jagged wounds
Il love loved" | corrected myself
"a man He was fine and big and brave
thought he cared for me ! waited Tor
him to tell me so lie went to war but
he never told me. You sec, he did not love
me.
Howard snid nothing. The silence
in the room grew MS taut rs stretched
band The clock tickcd rolentlesSlv IN
the stiffness
You still love hlm2
bowed my head but said nothing
"You hear from hlm2
mo" | answered violently = have
never heard from him.
sank down on the char farthest
from the light. and turned my face from
him So that he could not soc my eyes
Then Howard asked me strange
question: :. -.
What do you mean by love. iIa2ci2 .
looked m nj him Nll Thought Of
self consciousness had dropped away Tie
was asking me IN abstract question: he
was saving me hv leading away from IN"
| subject
X vcr brilliant. he knows more than any
ono else ! know.
"Ycs2" Howard asked and his voice
was pleasantly lnterrogative
And he is companlonahlc and
Yes Howard asked again and
could almost fancy he looked at me
| quiyzically.
| ',Hc Is n good friend
"Is that an YOU mean he questioned
leaning forward IN his char.
/ 'lcs," | answered puzzled
oNv Cod, Hazel, You don't know
what love lst'
| could only stare II him
Come here. 10 said almost roughly
As though were rc=mcrrod. ! crosse,
t. hun
"Sit there
sat down ~ the little char next t. him
lie stopped over and caught my hand
III his. Little girl YOU don't know wha'
love IL II Is this madness that leap
through the VEINS II II this that yn,
cannot live ii that other ono u not near.
| drew back With sudden scclmf
of fright from tins man Who held my han,
in his and looked II mo with burning eyes
| that seemed 10 st alight i tlazc IL ny
own soul
you h marry me, and II tcaei y.u t,
love me You never loved that 9th nan
| You thought vou did but tha' wa'
nothing but the calmcst fncndship
Hazel, ten you You don't know yci
what love ls'
ooh no. Howard" cred tcapss
my hand from h,S and ~nnnging r'ck
You r. going to marry me you must
marry me-
You can't mean. il, ] begged Il AN
4 not pretty and thosc others. those pr'ttS
girls that N07l admirc So
II admire them he SAID gcntiv
hut ] love youl
Howard v6u must never talk TIN,
way again, / said. Il dc not love You
/ cannot marry vou Oh Howard liked
vou 81 ior a friend has It All got to stoI
nov? ?"
Ills white FACE looked back At me and
thcn he spoke III the gcntlcst Of voices
4 No. shall hc Your friend the same a,
before Come. il Is time ynuwcnt home now
We walked home through the silvered
| darknes, of the April night Howard die
not break the silence, nor did l say word
closed the door when he had left
me AND sat there in the darkness 81
my sltting-room.
| What had he meant that | did not