The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1920-05-14
CELESTE
BY AGNES q. sRoaAN.
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MRS. Lawson, It'll be so nice to have
good visit once more. Folks don't
get to our corner of the world too
often, an you'll want to know what's
happened to your old friends. reckon
we an our houses look about the same
as they used to before you went away.
Amt much progress In Landsend. You
asked about Celeste an those are the
same words / says to her last time
got up as far as her place. You
know It's awful inconvenient to get
there, but Sam said he'd take me when
ne drove over with supplies, so went.
| Celeste's gran'ma had died then, an
celeste was alone IN the little house
her gran'ma left her under conditions
that Celeste would go on livin' in It.,
an keep the place like 1t was used
to. l reckon 1t wasn't so much be-
cause she cared about losln her leg
acy that Celeste kept on livin' there
alone, but the girl has that kind of a
conscience. A dyin' wish to her is an
oath-it has to be kept.
Course there was another condi-
tion'to the will, which was that Celeste
should go on livin' there only until she
married and had home of her own;
there wasn't nothing binding against
that. But land! the old lady felt pref
~ sure about having her place kept
up. IL ever sweetness was wasted on
desert air 1t was Celeste's. There she
sat In her gran'ma's faded parlor,
CLOWN like rose, cheeks all pink,
her eyes bright an her hair soft and
curly Celeste Robins" I says, show
DO you manage to keep cheerful in all
this lonesome waste?"
I'm not exactly lonesome" she
says Il read an sew an play, an
drive my old horse Mollie. But will
admit. I often do wish for compan-
ionship."
We'll" says I. "NIr. Right win come
along some day" AS said il knew
there was as much chance OF anyone
who would be Mr. Right to Celeste
hndin her in that buried corner-as
there would Of the president to drop
in for afternoon tea.
"oh, didn't mean that particular
kind OF companionship," Celeste SAYS,
iaughin'. II just meant that il would
be nice TO have some pleasant person
about TO enjoy things with. There's
so many things to enjoy" says Ce-
leste; 1.-THE flowers in SIMMER. and
right now. even with all the snow
about, there's the birds, who come to
be fed and sit in rows on the red berry
tree, and there are cookies TO be
baked for the scllOolchlldren." she
says. How they love to find me in
my cutter at the bend of the road
when they come home from school.
Sometimes i drive the smallest ones
home"
Il hope" l said, as n parting joke.
that Mr.. Right will drop in soon an
you"
"Airyplanes don't fly this weather" |
Celeste had laughed back. An looked |
up to see blizzard gathering around |
me. All night that blizzard ragged.
while the thermometer went down be-
low zero. No mail came in to Lands
end that night, or went out. either:
for the trains had been blocked in big
riffs miles out, where even snowplows
couldn't reach EN-"
But as the train didn't draw in. no
whistle sounded. So, quicker than us
careless wits, Celeste was at the tele-
phone asking the station agent why;
IN when she learned of the plight of
hose stranded people the girl pulls on
Ter fur coat, ties her red hood and
soes out in the darkness to harness
hollie to her cutter. An when Mollie
vas ready for her fight against the
light and the roads Celeste runs back
o the house to fill up hamper with
eatable she could find. She
ound considerable. Celeste always
lid keep cooked up. I can believe
hat she looked like an angel TO those
hungry folks in the car when she
vent smilln' down the aisle, her red
ood over her pretty hair, an her
asket on her arm. She'd fell into
everal snow mounds as she came, but
he didn't mention that. O
An when one little frightened girl
armed that Celeste had driven there
he held on to her and begged to be
iken home.
"Marion's not very WE'LL" a man told
eleste. I'm afraid a night In the
ar will be hard on her."
The trains were held, you see, near
to Celeste's faraway home than to
andsend. An, with the child's arms
round her, she suggested to the man
HON she took to be the father, that
he be allowed to carry Marion home
It'll her for the night.
After one look into Celeste's face he
freed willingly. That was the begin
ng OF the end. The man wasn't
arion's father, as 1t turned out, but
! uncle who'd gone to fetch the child
his own bachelor quarters after her
Their died. An when this uncle man
ed TO get to Celeste's next day, an
e child hung on to her there an beg
d TO stay--why, that's the way IL
rs arranged. He came back, this un-
:, to visit, reglar, an as her gram
rs Will hadn't said nuthin' about