The Mellette County pioneer. [volume] (Wood, Mellette County, S.D.) 19??-1971, 1920-12-03

the will to live which had been In him
cOnSpicuouSly indomitable
On Or. Brownell's Inst visit. he con-
firmed what was in truth a fear.
HAS Mr.. Sidney. TO your knowl-
edge" he asked. "recently found a SUI
preme satisfaction In any event?"
"None that l know Of" l said.
"Why?"
Hes changing. He is different now
from anything I ever knew him to be.
I always have believed that his case
was out Of our province. and that life
and death. for him. depended upon
resolve and that the resolve had \
purpose. You have not found things
wholly normal here, have your
"No, ! haven't"
"Thrre is something here" said Or.
BrOwnell. ~ don't know what 1t is.
You don't know what II Is, but de-
pend on il, something of importance
10 Sidney has happened. 1t may not
have satisfied his LIES resolve. but
I think it has. For the present, he
does not need me-possibly never
again"
Jed observed the change in Mr.. Sid
ney. Afterward ! knew that he was
n much more acute observer than /,
for the good enough reason that his
observation had n background OF
knowledge which | lacked. There was,
no doubt directly as the consequence
of this, an unbelievable change in
Jed. He was very fond of Mr.. Sidney.
In u unhappy experiences with him.
we had overlooked this fact and had
failed 10 use 1t rs we could have. His
affection for Mr.. Sidney was the one
thing greater than his cupidity and
self-lOvp. with their attendant train
Of ~malevolence. violence, surliness,
brutality and treachery.
He was convinced that Mr.. Sidney
was about to die. and the thought
affected him tremendously. He be-
came gentle; he abandoned his rasp-
ing manner-which, indeed, he never
had carried into Mr.. Sidney's room,
but which was an intermittent provo
cation elsewhere. He was more than
over with Mr.. Sidney, and each eve
ming, after the others had gone, they
had n bottle Of wine which Jed drank =:
bur lie did not 90 singing down the
halls afterward. He was quiet and
cOnsidpratp. courteous to Mrs. Sidney
and thoroughly friendly 10 me.
October went and the brown month
Of November took ever the White-oak
leaves. and the woods stood in mono
chrome. Isobel and I rode every
morning, and just before the early sun
down we usually tool a short walk.
TO rustic the brown leaves underfOOt
and enjoy the sweetness Of crisp mir
filed with the OdOrS OF n Seelnlv de-
cav underfoot. Soon nfter sunSc we
were in Mr.. Sidney's room. He great.
w enjoyed to have the family about
him. not engaged in entertaining him
or waiting on him. but occupied in
anv amusement or work that could be
undertaken by his fire.
Jed had a cot moved in and spent
the night with him. He did not want
the nurses to have this Office. and rs
he was perfectly competent, ! con
scented.
1t was an intensely happy and in
~tensely unhappy experience for me.
Mr.. Sidney. | was convinced. would
not live to the hepatica season. leo-
bel had permitted him to follow The
changing seasons from spring 20 Win
ter Ivy bringing him flowers. and his
delight at seeing the first hepaticu
had beer as great as hers in brinSin.
it TO him.
Isobel could not realize that her ia
ther was dying. No one would have
been so brutal as to tell her-Or would
1t have been brutal? But Mrs. Sid
ney knew, I knew, Jed knew and Mr..
Sidney knew-and was happy.
The day before Christmas came with
a driving snow which set in with an
east wind early in the morning. 1t
was a real Christmas snowstOrm,
heavy, persistent and driving. bur not
unkindly.
In the afternoon Morgan OF the
Metropolitan agency anne. driving
with difficulty through the drifted
banks Of snow in the roads. to see
me again. | was full Of apprehension
as l told Jed to show him in. His
mood was different from what II had
been before, when he almost ragged Ou,
of the house. 1t seemed to me every
bOdy'S mood was changing.
Nevertheless n child's fancy came
into my mind. Outside was the storm
through which travelled fierce animals
of northern forest. and tcrr. ont OF
the Storm. came Tie werewolf.
"poctor.' said Morgan. 1--WE N1yc
done Il great deal of work stree
saw .Jou. | told You W wCrll, hc-
cause the mSc Interested me We
have traced Mr.. Sidney through every
known operation an! act-so long ms
we can find him as Mr.. Sidney. Every
act is honorable; many of them are
acts Of astonishing charity ANA kind
ness. That is so far as A.r. sidney
exists"
TO BIZ CONT1NCEDJ
Frolicsor,e Birds and Fishes.