Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1920-03-12
THEM WAS THE DAYS.
Tha Parting.

THEM WAS THE DAYS.
The Parting.
Pretty near the end OF summer
even a yellow hint Of golden rod in
the fields. And il was the last the
very last day Of her visit.
All the afternoon you had moped
around the barn. whiting at sticks
and kicking at inQuisidve hens and
whistling "Juanita" in q mournful.
minor key. You couldn't go down
to Purdy's. where she was stopping.
There'd be a lot of darned girls
you'd known all your life Cabling
and winking at each other enough
to drive a fellow crazy. But the
night was yours. It was. Shed
promised.
Every now and then you opened
the feed bin to see If the package
was still there. Two solid pounds OF
chocolate, that was. Cross tied in a
fancy box with red satin ribbons
and ordered up from the stylishest
store in the city out Of your weed
money. Nobody knew about 1t but
you and the postmistress- Just now
1t was extra wrapped in The Liv-
ingstoue County Register and Farm
Gazette to keep the bran out.
Supper was awful. There are oc-
casions when food becomes an In
decency and when you refused the
blackberry turnoyers mother thought
you were sick And then when you
guessed you'd run over to Rob Pur-
dy's and see him about that boat
you were going to build, Lizzie. the
meanie. had to laugh right out
The chocolates weren't such a
success at that. They just kind Of
fingered around and by-and-by she
opened EN- and said they were lovely
and ate q couple and that was all
there was to it. But after while
when the lightning bugs started to
come out and you'd been hummins
"Juanita" considerable, and Ma
Purdy had gone upstairs to stick a
poultice on little Lemuel's carbuncle
and Sue Purdy had wandered off
toward the orchard with Sam Ma
hood and you'd got nd OF Rob.
things began to look up . bit
And It was the most wonderful
night OF your hfe-H only for the
conversation Got knows you don't
know what you said. God forbid
that she should remember. But it
was all about extremely noble things
and how to make the world better
and everything like that
It's hard to say how the subject
rot switched to neckties-but 1t did.
Somehow she didn't like the way
vn,,rs kaa tied She rot to fooling
and flushing with ito show you
how It ought to be done. Of course.
No, you, can swear to this day you
wouldn't have kissed her only-well.
she was 20 long about It. And q
mans only human after all
Bliss! Bright stars OF heavenl
Ecstacy indescribable! And thru 1t
all certain consciousness that per-
haps-anyway, she didn't seem 20
awfuily startled,
No use to stick around after cli-
max like that. Breathless and shaken
you broke from that soft embrace
and started home. In fact you
started five or six times. But when
you did leave you were stepping
three feet in tho air. You were con-
secrated. You certainly meant TO be
better boy.
And then-and then you turned to
look back. There beamed her light,
the very lamp that watched her on
e S.::::se. 1.-. AID =. s:s s>S scs *: ..S
last time. Something gave way
within you Your thorax seemed to
sink heavily into your stomach. Your
lip trembled. Yes. II you hadn't been
male creature, far above such an
emotional weakness you might al
most have cried q little.
Maybe you did.
Investigations Of our friends 81
lars tells us:
Distilled waters run deep.
~ y ~ n H 7slg3 E. y, ". ~