Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1921-03-01
CHAPTER VIII
Chanpe nf Scene

t"u! iIlBerS sat IN the sun, upon the
top rail of n high fence, and watched
a grnnting SOW suckling her incredibly
large litter OF amazingly hungry pigs.
Il have dreamed n dream and the
dream has come truc!' he mused with =
IN himself, conscious of vast salts
faction.
lie had clean wisp of fresh, fra .
grant straw between his teeth, the roll :
ing sweep OF green -carpeted valley
before his eyes, the bursting spring
time in his heart, a vision in his soul,
and the great round world under his
feet. In his pocket, since there had
been neither time nor opportunity for n
visit to the Mission street pier, were Il
few small silver coins. He drew them
forth, smiled at them, and tossed them
down to the SOW and pigs. The SOW
shifted at them and lay back grunting
lazily; the pigs were not to be di-
verted from their breakfasting by the
Inconsequential glitter. Ladytingers
laughed.
If in all OF Lockworth Valley. a val.
ley of contcnted souls, there were this
morning happier individual than Rob
ert Ashc, then surely must that radi-
ant person be in hiding, with his con
suming JOY, under some great haystack.
For not yet had the sun shone upon
him.
Last night there had been a moment
when the boy had been lifted high
upon the mounting wave of his own
destiny, when it lay In the future
whether he would be hurled downward
into black maelstrom. chaotic and
menacing, or laid lightly upon the sun
kissed beach of fairy island
But now he could forget that mo
ment so supremely tense. Now he could
look across the miles of the valley to
the calm, big boled oaks gathered like
a parliament of kings upon the foot
hills; now he could breathe an air
which seemed to draw its subtle fra
GRANGE from blue sky, golden sun, and
the tender green of the meadow lands,
and which put new ecstasy into his
soul; now almost he felt that he could
kneel like some old pagan "sucklcd in
creed outworn" and pour out his
gushing thanks that he had been led
into vale Of the earthly paradise
Now he could love life like sweet
heart; now could he adore the earth
itself as though she were a woman.
For now she was one who, courtcd
long, drew her veil aside and smiled
at him. Tenderness was in her look
and promise and surrender; the fra
arms were about him; yonder, where
the fields swelled gently, were her warm
breasts seeming actually to stir under
the soft green of her robe.
Last night his brain had been sceth
ing with suspicious, pricked by in
Vulnerable questions demanding their
answers. How had it chanCcd that
Ambrose had been on hand at the SUIT
cliffes'? Had the thing been that frame
up which Polly had mentioned? Was
Polly at last n traitor to his inter
cSts? Why had Justin Haddon.
Mrs. Stetheril's lawyer, shielded him?
These were but few OF the questions
which suggested so many others. To.
day they were all unanswered. Just
now they did not seem to matter. He
was like n sChoolboy who, knowing
that he should be in his classroom
struggling with an examination in i'm
proper fractions, goes racing away with
his dog across the fields, concerned
utterly with ground squirrels, cotton
tails and an ultimate swimming hole.
From his perch upon the inclosurc
fence Ashe surveyed what was to be
seen of the valley somewhat with the
eye Of proprietor. He noted the gen.
cral chcCkerbonrd design and found that
it was saved from gcomctrical hideous-
ness DN the DNNulHB DTuHCHeS Ot IHe
fruit trees themselves, which bolster
ously had dcfcd the pruning knfc's
command to symmetry, and by the stir.
ring fields OF wheat and barley inter
sected joyously and illOgically by the
springtime rivulcts. Lockworth creek
itself the sovereign to which these lit
tie fellows paid tribute. could be seen
from here demanding further tribute Of
three bridges across the long lane
between the fertile fields which was
the county road running straight to
Lockworth Town.
The town, three or four miles away,
cresting a broad based, fiat topped hill,
its white walls and Clambering rose
vines granted sweet daintiness by
the distance, looked the fairy capital
Of the happy valley. Even the track
of the narrow \gauge railway connect
ing the village with the main line june
tiOn, hidden, happily, by the blue wall
of mountains to the west, fitted not in
harmOniously into the placidty of the
landscape, looking rather like toy rails
than the crude iron path of material
traffic.
The black column of smoke standing
NlOft and mi ghtily staining the blue Of
the sky might be as it was In
fact signal that the Stetheril
mills were grinding Ashe chose to look
upon it as vast, billowing plume float
ing bannerwise over the valley.
ITS all mine IL belongs to me 20
a lnNTTNITEn uDNfORRnU