The Logan Republican. [volume] (Logan, Utah) 1902-1924, 1920-02-07

|
startling conviction that besides him
| sell she was the only other living thing
In the room. She stared at him. wide
eyed and trembling. She saw his fig
| ure keyed to one sort of combat, relax
! only TO grow slowly tense again. lie
turned, laid the shotgun aside aud
came toward her with swift sure
| strides. For an instant his eyes
waycred but as he drew nearer they
steadied TO tronslx and hold her
| pinned against the wall.
She felt herself struggling MS .,ainst
an unjust accusation. Unler h r
trembling hands her herr bcut with
great Irregular throhv. 4 lump rose
in her throat and Il crmed US though
II runst strange cr. If she did not let
1t out. In her desperation she hurled
herself forv'' ri, tire her arms about
Msungo's neck. pressed her face
agalns i'm and sobbed.
20 White Man" she gaspcd, 81
W. 90 loncly--I ain so lonely"
The embrace OF woman Is one
thing; the clinging Of a child quite an
( other. The sternness IN Msungo's eyes
olod suddenly; the hard look in his
| face faded, vanished and gave place to
one Of great tenderness. He gathered
Andrea up In his arms and carried
her quickly through the covered way.
He told himself there was every rea-
son TO hasten. for he could feel her
soft warm body. shaken with sobs,
wrapping itself round his heart and
crushing IL beyond repair He laid her
on the couch in his ROOM made n e
/ for her In the many pelts with which
it was covered, plllowed her heaG in a
bundle Of furs and drew over her a
gayly figured sarong. ..
You were cold" he sud, as he
tucked her In; then he lnelt beside
her, took her hand IN bota of his and
, suddenly laid his fac In her open
palm, still moist Wit rer tears.
Andrea drew long whimperlng
sigh and nestled down against the
| warm furs. Her eyes ga7cd imperson-
ally and lilte wondcringly at Msun-
COS bowed head: ihen they wandered
about the room. So this was where he
had lived and worked during many
months. II was a bachelors room,
,arrunged at once for comfort, utility
and sloth. on one side was his cot.
permanently Enclosed In mosquito net
ting and having at it's head a lantern
for reading In bed. Next to 1t, came d
high dranghtsHan's desk roughly
made of packing cases On each end
| OF II, eutterlng candles, still lighted.
rose from mysterious pedestals, empty
bottles. disguised under cascades of
molten wax.
In the shadow Of the high desk stood
the one utterly incongruous bit of fur
nlture, glis,ening mahogany phono-
graph. Andrca's eyes passed II and
then went back to llnger for an in
slant in vague wonder. Why had
Msungo never brought 1t out? Never
played 1t? She was not interested
enough TO ask aloud.
Andrea's eyes finished their slow
circuit of the room and came back to
the white mans bowed head. He had
! not moved and she herself had lain
very still, more through languor Than
by volltlon. She had been IN that state
OF subdued consciousness which
sweeps troubled humanity back 10 the
bordcrland Of childhood, hut now her
mad uwultC A deep lluSh stained her
neck and crcpt up through her checks
carrying with II to her eyes look Of
sudden age. Her hand, imprisoned
under the mans cheek, doubled and
contracted into hard little fist. lie
looked up quickly aud saw the transit
ton that had come to her face. Don't
give in To it," lie said, throwing one
arm across her knees. Don't give In
TO age. Do you think | am so blind
that | don't know where I found YOU?
Why do You think I am ON my knees?
It's In reverence before the glimpse
that caught Of the girihood of An.
drea Pellor. Ny arms are trembling
because they have dared to carry her
clean youth. soft and warm Ms II was
before the touch Of the world and
years, and my heart Is aching with
memory that will never die"
White Man." said Andrea, her face
unsofrened, would you pay three
pounds FOR meY
He stared at her, leaped to his feet
aud started pacing ny and down be-
side the couch. look of thunder On
his brow. No." he said. II wouldn't"
Without looking at her he went to the
bookcase and. after u moment, drew
out worn volume then he placed
chair close TO the couch 81 that the
light of the lantern would fall over his
shoulder. sat down and began TO read
aloud.
Very gradually the hardened and
cheapened look IN Andreas eyes died
out. They grew wide again and dwelt
drcamily on the mans slim figure, She
saw many things about him she had
never noted before. His hair was
rltp and touched with premature
gray at the temples; his shoulders
were broad and his hips very narrow.