Mountain Home Republican. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1915-1946, 1922-01-07
FOUND
BY BARBARA WOOD

q. 1921. by Mcclure Newspaper syndicat

gentle sigh. But was 1t a sigh?f 1t
seemed almost like a sob to the man
sitting upright In his chair In the IL
brary, straining his eyes to pierce the
darkness, and his ears to catch the
next sound that might break the ST.
lence. But no sound came, and after
sitting tense and motionless for Il few
seconds he loosened his grip on the
arms of the chair, rose, and walked
! quietly and unhurriedly to the open
window opposite. The scene from the
window was as peaceful as could be
imagined.
Somewhere out there in the dark
ness was a human being-a girl, or a
woman-who had crept up to his win
dow with what intention 1t was I'M
possible for him 10 guess.
With a sudden determination to find
her, Roger Tilton put his foot over the
window sill and in, q moment more
he had dropped noiselessly to the
ground and was ready to begin his
search.
OH, IOT u Ciuc. HC "
himself. And then, gradually, 1t came
to him that the air seemed to carry
a very faint, sweet perfume.
He drew a flashlight from his pocket
and threw Its rays about the place
where his feet had landed In the soft
earth. Not two inches from the toe
Of his polished oXfords lay a crumpled
little white handkerchief, and with a
e thrill of excitement he picked
1t up, smoothing 1t out between his
fingers to see If there might be an
initial In the corner. 1t was q small
white square of linen, and 1t was still
damp.
$50 1t was a sob, after ALL" he
thought, and then his eyes caught the
mOnogram-three letters embroidered
very neatly and obscirely in one cor.
ner: RIB. The man looked as though
he had been struck and after a mo
ment he, too, caught his breath in
something very like a sob.
RUTH he whispered.
He felt as though someone had
gripped his throat in a vice. At last,
almost desperately, he breathed this
prayer:
"Oh, God, If it Is Ruth, please lei
me find her. Please; for l can't lei
t her 90 again"
He moved slowly toward the west
wing Of the house.
| 1t was then that one might have
noticed the slight limp that was al
ways with him, and perhaps, If hi,
thoughts could have been read, one
: would have found a world Of suffer
Ing and sorrow behind those clear
t blue eyes that were eagerly search
ing every shadow and hiding place
For his memory had gone back to tina
day two years ago when he had CONF
@ back from France-a victim of shell
d shock and bearing in his thigh an ex
8 ceedingly disasreeable wound which
b would thereafter place an impedimen
on every step he took. That day wal
the hardest he had even faced, for tn
thing he wanted most in all the worlt
to do he could not dO-to see Rutl
Bradford to go to her and to fee
9 the comfort of her hot tears on hi
n face.
He remembered with a twinge 0
' pain the contagious ripple of her laugh
4 ter, and he wondered whether she hat
d learned to laugh again after h
stopped writing. They had been en-
gagged when he went to France ant
q for months their letters were long, FIRE
quent and comforting. Then came tn
> shock and the wound, followed b.
many weeks In a hospital. After tina
he had sent her no more letters. Hi
a pride and his sense of honesty forbade
|, 1t, for he realized that it would no
be fair to expect her to bind her per
feet womanhood to one who wa
/, MANNED for life.
All these thoughts and many NOR,
raced through his mind tonight and |
: was with a start Of surprise that h,
found himself at the edge of thu
swamp.
, 1t was only a matter of minutes be
fore he found her, but 1t seemed lik'
years. She lay face down In a patel
|, OF moonlight. Her hair was loosenet
so that 1t lay like a pool Of gold abou
her shoulders. One foot was unmer
, cifully twisted in the gnarled root o.
a tree; that had been the cause Of hel
cry of pain. Roger knelt beside he
and with fingers that trembled h
loosened the strap Of her slipper ant
very, very gently removed the injured
foot from Its Imprisonment. He liftet
a strand of her hair in his fingers ant
pressed 1t to his lips.
"Oh, little girl, | didn't know; /
didn't know |" he sobbed.
At last, while he was. watching hel
closely, her eyes opened, slowly, quiv
eringly, and looked up at him with 9
questioning, far away look.
rRuth!" he whispered, and again
truth"
His lips sought hers again ant
again, and 1t was many minutes be
fore either Of them remembered thai
they had voices.
Roy" she said when she finally die
remember. and the old familiar nick
name sent a thrill of JOY right straight
to the mans heart. Roy, your new
~ htda frnm mo apafn will vnu2 oh