The pioneer-review. [volume] (Philip, Haakon County, S.D.) 1920-current, 1921-04-28
Hearts and Arts
By FREDERICK HART

20 1924 by Mcclure Newspaper syndicate)
The sight of a young man stridlhS
rapidly along the road toward her IA
theirs woodlot was not in Itself enough
to make pretty Elsie Dean raise her
eyes to follow him: hut when the par
iicuiar young man is dressed in nan
nels instead of the blue jeans thar
were the accepted weekday attire of
her immediate environment, and when
he carries In one hand a spindly look
ing arrangement of rods and braces
and In the other a black case that
is too large to be IA doctors bag ana
too small to be q suitcase; and when
he has on his back an oddly shaped
bundle; and in particular when he is
handsome and care-free looking, 1t Is
small wonder that Elsie looked after
him.
Indeed. she went TO the front gate
to see him go down the road, which is
why she saw him suddenly swing
aside from the beaten path and climb
over the fence that divided the wood
lot from the outer world.
Now her fathers wOOdlOt was ter
ra sanctiSsima. as she well knew. 1t
bristIed with "No Trespassing" signs
and warnings limiting at the eXtremi-
ties of legal pains and punishments
for the hardy soul who should set
foot within its sacred giades; so I'll
sizes surprise soon turned to wrath.
Her father and his men were all in
the far field haying. and there was no
immediate male to whom she could
look for assistance; but she did not
hesitate. Down the road she ran and
over the fence on the strangers tran.
She was up with him in almost a
moment; he had evidently not heard
her coming, and she was prepared to
blast his soul with a sCathing com
mand TO depart, when the Oddtty of
his conduct struck her. He had un-
folded the spindly arrangement and
10! Ii was a tripod with a cross-picce;
and on the tripod rested a square of
snowy canvas; and out of the little
black bag many, many brushes and
lot of little tubes and d heart
shaped piece of wood on which the
young man proceeded to squeeze the
contents of some of the tubeS-the
brightest reds and green's and yellows
Elsie had ever seen. And then this
startling young man began to make
lines on the white canvas, humming
to himself as he did so. Enthralled,
and totally forgetting her previous
vengeful ideas, Elsie drew nearer {;
he heard her, and turned sharply.
"Ohw she gasped. And then, re-
membering his iniquity, she went on
sharply, "This is"my fathers wood
lot ~
"RealIy2' The young man did rot
seem particularly impressed by the
statement.
Eyes Ii is--and you're trespassing."
$50 l am! did notice some signs,
but I didn't pay much attention to
them, l don't believe i'm signs"
"Ohl" Elsie was not quite sure she
was not being made fun of; the
stranger seemed so irritatingly calm,
as though the right was on his side
rather than hers. you'll be arrested
IL you stay here much longer
"Pve never been arrested. l wonder
what it's like. Is the local calaboose
comfortable, do you think?' Then
dropping his manner of badinage, he
continued: Really, | know quite well
that am trespassing; but l am work
ing on painting with which | hope to
win great prize and these woods
ground. 1t seemed a pity to miss the
perfec; opportunity just for the off
chance of being arrested. SO | came
In. intended to ask permission, but
there seemed to be no one in sight. so
just broke and entered. Now, please
don't turn me over to the police I"
His penitent manner mollified Elsie,
and besides, her curiosity was aroused.
''Oh-youre an artist?"
"Yes-in a way. If my picture takes
the prize / shall know that / am an
artist. i live in hope. And you must
not be so hard-hearted as to blast my
ambition. There is. no other stretch
purpose as this"
Well-y0u can Stay-but you must
ask my fathers permission after to-
day."
~ WILL" But he seemed in no hur-
ry to go on with the work. Instead,
he looked at Elsie--looked SO long
that she became embarrassed and
blushed
Il beg your pardonl" he exclaimed.
7 had no right to stare SO. but"