The pioneer-review. [volume] (Philip, Haakon County, S.D.) 1920-current, 1921-02-17
Loves Miracle
By ALDEN CHAPMAN
%. 1920. Western Newspaper Union.

it." said Bert Noble. How did You
come to purchase it?"
Il got ii on foreclosure" answered
William Breen. Il don't operate II
myself 1t is leased to the man who
runs it, You see, Horace Mayworth,
the former owner, lost all he had in
foolish speculation. The present les
see hires him tomanage the farm, for
Mayworth knows how TO do that. His
wife Is dead, his sons married and
moved away and his daughter works
Tor and lives with milliner in the
village.
AS | too well know" muttered No
bic between his set teeth, and his eyes
cleaned vengefully. "Ah! nothing
could suit me better than to pay back
Horace Magworth for the wretched-
ness he infused into my life when ]
was his employee. 1t was more like
being a slave"
1t was ten years since Noble had
been at Clyde and he had returned so
changed that no one had so far recog-
nized him. He now paid $500 down as
forfeit money. He had left Clyde hat
ing the whole world An almshouse
pauper, Mayworth had taken him into
his service only to work him nearly
TO death, &c abuse him 10 persecute
him. He had broken all the spirit
there was in the poor lad, and at last.
hating him bitterly, the place all
about, the Indifferent and despising
community, Noble had gone forth an
outcast morally and mentally with dis
torted views of the world.
He had led the life after that of a
miner in the very worst district of the
West. He had gambled had himself
become figure among those he could
intimidate. Hard-hearted, with no in
nate human sympathy, he had ac-
quired a fair fortune and had wan
dered back to the scenes OF his youth,
he knew scarcely why.
A fierce joy possessed him when he
learned of the misfortune that had
overtaken Horace AIayworth. Ahl
what satisfying rec0mpense in finding
his enemy fallen. There flashed
through the thoughts of Noble an inn
pulse to secure mastery over the old
farm and its former owner, TO oppress,
TO hHmiiiate, TO revengefully cause
him TO atone for all the wrongs he had
wrought upon him in the past. Even
memory of the kindly friendship OF
the daughter, Irene, in his early boy
hood days, did NOT assuage or divert
the resolve to pay back that old score
of oppression and abuse that had poi
soned the whole life of Noble.
So the returned wanderer allowed
no one TO meet him and none recog-
nized him. He glOafed over fancied
revenge anticipating the rare pleasure
he would experience in Furnishing the
man he SO fervently hated. Point by
point, detail by detail he planned and
plotted and cherished the climax mo-
ment when he should see Horace May
worth driven forth pauper and
friendless.
One rainy evening he attired himself
in an enveloping coat and wore hat
pulled we'll down over his eyes. There
had come to him u great curiosity to
once more see Irene Mayworth. After
ten years the inspection though the
store window was a revelation TO bim.
She had grown superlatiyely beautiful
and as he watched her, she all unsus-
pecting, he recalled how in that DULL
dark past she had been the one person
who had taken the interest of plying
friendship in him. Two men had
paused under the store awning to es-
cape the rain. He heard one of them
speak Irene's name and moved nearer.
''The grandest girl in Clyde" spoke
the man. 'They say she has paid up
every dollar of some old Indebtedness
of her father, buys him his clothes
and otherwise cares for him with ten
derness and fidelity
my wife told ME last week that
Miss Mayworth was providing for a
poor family here, and she helps the
the girls at the factory by working
nights to trim tseir hats for nothing"
Half dozen evenings Bert Noble
visited the yicifity Of the millinery
store Somehow it became species
of fascination TO him. Somehow. too.
the angelic influence of this courage
Gus, bright souled victim of misfortune
softened his moo1. She. too, had suf-
fered, but Hnid her desolation love
and sympathy had sustained and glo-
rified her.
Bert Noble changed all his mean,
rancorous plans OF revenge in single
hour. He completed the purchase of
the farm and appeared publicly. Tie
manifested himself to Irene and she
welcomed his return with genuine glad
ness. One day Noble went to see May
worth. 1t was to hand him a deed TO
his former landed possessions. The old
man broke down with contrition, with
a gratitude that seemed to bring q
blessing and peace and new life i'm
pulses to Noble.
Instead of rerp-erating a base re-
venge Bert Noble awarded peace and
contentment to the last days OF Hor-
ace Mayworth. The after went around
q new man. confess ng his past errors,