Mrs. Grundy. (Tracy City, Tenn.) 1903-1930, 1921-10-13

age to stick up for that which seem
TO be right, than you. Now ri tel
You how You came by those fine dual
! tiles and the hot-headedness-"
Elizabeth Littieford sat wide-eyed
tense, half breathless. If he meant /,
tell 1t, why didn't he tell 1t Why al,
he heat about the bush like that?
| "Bill, this is hard for me. Ii bring,
| back terrible thing. You know abou
David Moreland. ... When / awok.
that morning and found him lyins
| dead at my crazed, drunken hands.
wished that l. too. were dead.
| That great and silent wilde IS
slnothered me. imagined that could
hear voices calling to me. saying
"Cain! cainr
"They came from the laurel thickets
from the trees overhead. from the
ground, from everywhere. You see. i
wasn't all bad, even In MY Wildcats
days. Then ! thought of the law. ana
ran. -.
but the cry Of a child from the
cabin ] was leaving halted me before
had gone thirty yards David More
lfnd's wife had left him with baby
only few weeks old, which didn't
pay any particular attention to until
that morning. that black morning Al
that time there was no other house
for miles around. ! couldn't leave the
crild there to die of starvation. after
killing its father So went back ana
got the baby, and all Its clothing. and
took II away with me. left it at a
farmhouse down in the owIand. AMI
went to another city, and started life
afresh.
But later married, and shortly
after that / went to the farmer ana
persuaded him to let me adopt the
child. brought IT up as my own. ana
educated 1t, as a sort of compensation
And came to love 1t. But II was
years before my wife loved 1t. she
didn't like children then. But she does
now. She is paying now, and am
paying. Don't you understand. Bill
don't you understand"
There was choke In his voice "a.
ward the last. Bill Dale went to his
feet. His eyes were wide, but he did
not seem unhappy: and for that Eliza.
beth was grateful. John Moreland sat
as still. with his bearded, viking face
as expressionless as though he had
known 1t I'LL along.
"And so really am In my own
country!" cried Bill Dale II am
Moreland, and the Morelands really
are my own peopler'
Yes, you are in your own country.
and you are Moreland and your
baby name was David,' said John X.
Dale.
It was then that John Moreland
spoke.
"Bill, when ] fust seed !. on, you
made me think o. my brother tile day
he was married / amt never foyot
that. | sartainly amt surprised Lone
at NIL. We didn't know about the
baby. Cherokee Joe told me the baby
had died.
And now, SON." pleaded old Dale,
his voice breaking. "say that you for
give me-"
Bill Dale, David Moreland's boy,
knelt beside the old sheepskin-lined
rocker, took the old coal kings hand
In both his own and bent his head
over it.
ITS all right" he said thickiy. ITS
oil right"
Elizabeth Littleford arose and stole
blindly out of the house. Her foot
steps led her, quite without her real.
ling where she was going, across the,
meadow and TO the river above the
sycamore. And there on
that sacred spot, where che had first
felt her heart leap at the sound OF
Bill Dale's voice, she sank down In
a heap in the snow and cried. and
cried.
Twilight was gathering rapidly, hut
she did not aotice it. She did NOT
notice. either. that the air was grow.
ing steadily colder with the approach
Of the mountain night. To her
warm sun was shining above In
bright blue vault; to her the spirit Of
summer was everywhere; In her ears
there was the liquid song of a meadow
ark, the sweet twittering of wood
the low humming Of wild
bees. The pouring of the crystal wa
.ers between the two boulders above
he pool made music to her. and blend.
q with It she seemed to hear the voice
II. a big. clean, strong man
i was thinking OF the difference be-
ween you and some other women i |
inow."
Then ray of hope shone into her
leart. Bill Dale was really More
and and, therefore, of the hill blood