Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1920-03-18


of sheer inability to endure this in
genuous estimate of Carols heartache.
Perhaps you'll tell me-because it's
time for me to be going over"
Angela had risen, too, and stood be-
side him. Her features were COM
posed, but still suggestive of inward
emotions q little too tender to convey.
eff there's anybody in the world, -
she said, "who could give Carol any
consolation just now, it's you. / don't
suppose you ever were minister, but
you look as though everybody could
come to you and tell most everything,
and you'd help anyway, you'd
try to. SO I wish you'd you'd
sit and listen Carols got to
talk to somebody, and when you're
hurt the way she is, you can't talk to
your family and you were a
friend of Dicks. And :" She
allowed, and went on more slowly.
you can use your own judgment, of
course, but if 1 were in your place
I'd lie."
'Liew he repeated, aghast.
eyes, I would! He he
must have sent her some word, Mr..
billiard! He must have" She was
desperately serious now, and thor
oughly aroused. at means the whole
world to her! It's everything Why,
even I've got more than she has, and
she was waiting for him to come back
to her! I'd lie myself black in the
face, but I'd tell her sOmething-tell
her anything l could think of to make
her believe he hadn't stopped caring
1t can't do any harm now. 1t can't
hurt you. And l won't even ask you
whether you do or not. Only you're
here, and she'll trust YOU"
will she?"
"How could she help it? And
and that's all. Please don't let her
think he didn't carer
billiard stood irresolute; chaos in
his brain. "Tll see," he sale
with difficulty. "Tll see."
Wont you promise me? 1 won't
ask you afterward, if YOU"
Does it mean so much to your
Ever and ever so much.
Won't you please promise?"
He gazed at her a moment, yielded
with a show of reluctance.
Very well-I promise. Because
| you've asked it. And because it's the
dearest, most generous, most thought
full thing l ever heard of in all my
life. And after that, can't we
be truly friends?"
Flushed, perplexed, honored, She
| gave him her hand with a hesitancy
which betrayed the deep sense of com.
pliment she felt.
81 don't think I could be prouder of
anything that could possibly happen
to me-" she said. sr
Was it worth the blatant mummery
he had conceived and executed? Was
it not worth that, and infinitely more
She was proud Of his friendship
and she shared that distinc.
ton with no one else in the entire
universe.
Proud of it! Hilliard was fulsome,
| ly abaShed AbaShed-yeS, and stimuli
taneously glOrified. He had come to
make the city proud, ignorantly proud
of the man whose deeds had merited
no renOwn. Here, at the very incep-
ton of his plans, Seventeen-year-Old
girl was proud of him as he was
Courage. Inspiration. Resolve.
He had won her respect by the prom
Use of a lie; and in this instant he
vowed to deserve, by other and in
creasing lies if need be. the prestige
he was unalterably committed to gain
whereby the past should be as moth
ing, and the future should be a mag
nificent citadel of recOnquered dreams
She was proud Of him, and she haG
approved the lie in behalf of Dicky
Morgan's memory. Unwittingly, she
had sanctioned the very purpose OF
his coming, and the method of his ap
proach. She had confirmed his Owr
intentions, and given him the will t.
advance He was to act as the Stancf
defender of her playmate persisted
and to make of himself new and 6
better man, worthy of the eulogie'
which, as trustee, he now accepted fol
the unworthy Morgan. He consecratet
himself to this end. Told himself
fiercely that he would succeed. AnC
she was proud of him! 1t was an
other omen.
1t was eleven o'clock to the minute
when Hilliard, not quite so blithe a:
wedding guest, and yet not alto
gether as doleful as mOurner, waved
his hand to a slender girl who stood
On the veranda of house diagonalll
across the street, and went slowly III
the Durants' brick walk. He had an
ticipated the effect of this pilgrimage
upon his nerves, he had discounted
1t and Angela's advice had given hin
an artificial stimulus for the moment
nevertheless, as the front door opened
to him, and he saw, over the head o
smirking maid-servant, hallwa!
and a vestibule unchanged, his breah
came a little faster than usual, ant