The Lamar register., 1920-07-28
WHEN HEDGES
SPROUT
By VICTOR REDcLIFFE

lNfl Nu'lNtFAr 04HlAfl ifulf ~ llNhlI anu
therein thr soul nf a rrue man spoke.
H. held Ia his hand leTrer IN neat
feminine handwriting Ihe teII of which
-huWed thoughr. Intelligence and char
u.lrr II un- signed Adele Mercer or
~ nnn h- had never heard before.
"N huev+r The Young lady is. she
writes lEe u urue woman commented
Mercer Poor BrIni He must have
gone thrnu.h iurk days. indeed. with
o. family "f -N mothefless children III
ness nna~poNerty"
The cfSesr friend Of his youth Nor
ton Erlt had married and had gone
wrst hfrvn wears before the present
Time They Ind corrrspouded. ana
then the business cares of each had
interviewed. ~ the rud of ten years
WILTON received letter from Brill tell
ing of hu1ur-~ sirius gle the death of
his wife mud his own half blindness
and pavtry with SIX little ones TO care
for He asked Wilton 10 loan him a
few hundred dollar II was ally
sent. From that tine wilton had mol
heard q worI from hnn unui the lettei
signed Adele Mercer urriVed.
II came al q time when By a strange
iy cohTiiental freak Of fate Wilton
had been forced 60 face ruin within
few short months he went thrnupl
the experience nf losing half his cupi
tai through tie emhczzlement Of
trusted partner Creditors forced liqul
darion. When -he storm was over Dale
wilton found himself free Of debt. but
with less than three hundred dollar
10 begin life all over again. when the
letter came II added TO his already
acute depression aud encouragement
The deepest chords of his being were
stirred with infinite pity. but he was
helpless 10 prooer the aid which he
felt' was incumbent upon him as tt
sacred duty.
Miss Adele Msrcpr wrote briefly
clearly. srn-lbly. She did not explain
how It was that she had become prac-
tlcnlly the guardian Of the children Of
Morton Brill. hut such seemed 10 De
the fact.
II write TO you" her letter ran. be
cause upon his dying bed MFR. Brill
asked me 10 do so. am striving TO
keep his little group together until !
have your counsel as TO what is best
to do He has left nothing and the fu.
ture OF his little ones is distressing
problem"
Somehow the situation OF the six
little Brill children Interested Wilton
because he pitied them and felt a Ger
tain responsibility ne could not evade.
When few days later he reached
Appleton Il was TO find Miss Mercer
and the little ones occupying poor.
cheap cottage. sparsely furnished but
neatly kept
At once Adele Mercer attracted him
She was young woman OF abOlt
twenty-five, mature and sedate In her
ways, but presenting certain beauty
OF face thst was prepOssessing When
Wilton learned her history he fully un-
derstood bow the life OF an orphan
and later II sense Of duty In behalf OF
the Brill children had bent her mind
TO serious. practical phase OF life
She had come to Appleton from little
village with no business experience.
had been unable 10 find position and
was quite at the verge Of destitutiGn
when she learned that four OF the little
bTlll GilltFtu were uDWn Win tIe
measles apd the father was looking fot
u nurse.
She came to stay and when the dark
struggling days Of illness and poverty
came for the family remained Loyalty
to share their troubles The bright.
happy children with no true realiza-
tion OF their rorlon condition at once
took TO Wilton rs to a second father.
''The city is no place for them" he
told Miss Mercer NOR for me. either
have been thinking Of a single re
source | have. 1t will take me day
or two to explore its value or other
wise" and he rendered her some money
for family expenses until his return.
"Oh, 7 am able to provide for our
necessities" said Adele. you see. ]
devote the evenings to some garment
work for "A store near here" and VII
ton understood why this peerless self
sacrificing woman looked thin and pale
and wearied most of the time.
The resource he had alluded to was
the one piece Of property Wilton had
ever owned II was the spot where be
was born. The old home had long since
gone to decay, but barn in a fair
state OF preservation had been made
habitable by a man and his wife who
had leased II and a two-acre plat OF
ground. raising strawberries. Each year
tNl -.