Vernon Parish Democrat., 1921-06-23

Never in all the history Of his family, |
so far as Dan knew, had there been a |
death from the malady that afflicted |
him. Yet his sentence was signed and |
sealed.
But he harborel no resentment |
against his mother. 1t was all in the
game. She had done what she thought
was best. And he began to wonder
in what way he could get the greatest
pleasure from his last six months of
life.
"Good Lord ~ he suddenly breathed.
II may not be here to see the SHOWS
GOMEZ" Dan had always been partial
to the winter season. When the snow
lay all over the farm lands and bowed
down the limbs of the trees, it had
always wakened a curious flood Of
feelings in the wasted man. 1t seemed
to him that he could remember other
winters, wherein the snow lay for end
less miles over an endless wilderness,
and here and there were strange,
many-toed tracks that could be fol-
lowed in the icy dawns. But of course
it was just a fancy. He wasn't in the
least misled about 1t. He knew that,
he had never, In his lifetime, seen
the wilderness. OF course his grand
father had been a frontlersman Of the
first order, and all his ancestors be-
fore hin-a rangy, hardy breed whose
wings would cEumple in civilization
but he himself had always lived in
cities. Yet the falling SHOWS, soft and
gentle but with kind Of remorseless-
ness he could sense but could not un-
derstand, had always stirred him.
He'd often imagined that he would
like to see the forests in winter.
In him you could see a reelection Of
the boy that played beside the pond
Of snow water, twenty years before.
His dark gray eyes were still rather
large and perhaps the wasted flesh
around them made them seem larger
than they were. But it was a little
hard to see them, as he wore large
| glasses. His mother had been sure,
years before, that he needed glasses; /;
and she had easily found an Oculist
that agreed with her.
4NO" lldl AAV WtlO llOlO OAA IAAS PoNAAs
the utter absence of color in his
cheeks was startling. That meant the
absence of red-that warm glow Of
the blood eager and alive in his
veins. Perhaps an observer would
have noticed lean hands, with big
knuckled fingers, a rather firm mouth,
and closely cropped dark hair He
| ,Avy-V MI Of hVUf no
looked somewhat older. He know now
that he was never going to be any
older. A doctor as sure of himself as
the one he had just consulted couldn't
possibly be mistaken.
He sat down on a park bench, just
beneath the spreading limb of a great
tree. He would sit here, he thought
until he finally decided what he would
do with his remaining six months.
He hadn't been able to go to war
The recruiting officer had been very
kind but most determined. The boys
had brought him great tales of France
1t might be nice to go to France ant
live in some country inn until he died
But he didn't have very long to think
upon this vein. For at that instan
the squirrel came down to see If he haC
nut.
1t was the squirrel of Destiny. Bu
Dan didn't know it then.
Bushy-tail was not particular!
afraid of the human beings tina
passed up and down the park, because
he had learned by experience that the!
usually attempted no harm to him
But, nevertheless, he had his instincts
He didn't entirely trust them. Afte
several generations, probably th
squirrels of this park would climb al
over its visitors and sniff in their ear
! and investigate the back of thei
necks. But this wasn't the way o
Bushy-tail. He had come too recent
ly from the wild places. And he won
dered, most intensely, whether thi
, TALL fOrkeG creature had pocket ful
of nuts. He swung down on tn
grass to see.
"Why, you little devilp' Dan sal
in a whisper. His eyes suddenl
: sparkled with delight. And he forge
, all about the doctors words and hi
p own prospects in his bitter regret
| that ne had not brought a pOcketfr
/ Of nuts.
t And then Dan did a curious thini
e Even later, he didn't know why he di
o it, or what gave him the idea that h
could decoy the squirrel up to him b
o doing it. That was his only purpose
Il just to see how close the squire
r would come to him. He thought h
s would like to look into the bright eye
a at close range. All he did was SUI
n denly to freeze into one position
If an instant rendered as mOtionless
I. the rather questiOnable-looking stor
4 stork that was perched on the foul
tain.
- | ii Ia-s4A9