The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1922-05-12

pr utH rent wen, ~ &oth tck law
sonethin' serious come up!-
But. Harriet"
snow. Thaddeus." begged the woman
almost crying, you must help me. dear
I've thought 1t all our. an it's easy Al
can be. shan't tell any lies, Of course
] cut my finger today. didn't II"
n "Why-yes--I believe So" he nc
knowleged daxedly: but what has
that 10 do"
That's the accident Thnddeus
You're ter send two telegrams NJ once
lone ter Jehlel. an one ter Hannah
Jane. The telegrams win say: 'Acci.
dent 10 your mother. Funeral Saiur-
day afternoon. Come at once That's
Jest ten words"
j Now. that's all true, amt itf" she
asked nnxiously. THE accident is this
cut. The 'fun'ral' Is old Mis- Went
: worth's. heard terday that they
couldn't have II until Saturday. so
thatll give us plenty of time ter get
the folks here. / needn't say whose
J fnn'ral II is that's goin' ter be on SAT-
urdny. Thaddeus. want yer ter hitch
up an drive over ter Hopkinsvllle ter
send the kilograms. The mans new
over there. an won't know yer. You
couldn't send 'em from here, Of
course"
Thaddeus Clayton never knew just
how he allowed himself to be per-
suaded to take his part In this crazy
scheme" as he termed II. but per-
suaded he certainly was.
II was a miserable time for Thad-
deus, then. First. there was that hur-
ried drive 10 Hopkinsville. Though
che day was warm he fairly shlyered
as he handed those two fnteful fele-
grams to the man behind the counter.
Then there was the homeward trip,
during which. like the guilty thing be
was. he cast furtive glances from side
TO side.
Even home itself came to be mis-
cry, for the sweeping and the busting
and the baking and the brewing which
he encountered there left him no place
TO call his own. so that he lost his pa
tience at last and moaned:
Seems ter me. Harriet. you're a
pretty lively corpse
His wife smiled. and flushed little.
There. there. dear, Don't fret.
jest think how glad Wen be ter see
'em" she exclaimed.
Harriet was bllssfuily happy. Both
the children had promptly responded
TO the kilograms, and were now on
their way. Hannah Jane. with her
husband and two children. were ex-
pected on Friday evening; but Jehlel
and his wife and boy could NOT possibly |
get In until early on the following
morning.
All this brought scant JOY TO Thad- |
deus. There was always hanging over |
him the dread horror OF what he had |
done. and the fearful questioning as
TO how 1t was all going to end.
Friday came. but telegram at the
last moment told OF trains delayed and
connections missed. Hannah would
not reach home until 9:40 the next
morning. So II was with a four-seated
carryall that Thaddeus Clayton started
for the station on Saturday morning to
meet both OF his children and their
families.
The ride home was silent one;
but once inside the house, Jehiel and
Hannah Jane. amid a storm Of sobs
and cries. besieged their father with
questions.
The family were all In the darkened
sitting room-all. indeed. save Harriet,
who sat In solitary state In the cham
ber above. her face pale and her heart
beating almost to suffocation. 1t had +
been arranged that she was not 60 be
seen until some sort Of explanation
had been given.
Father, what was it," sobbed Han.
nah Jane. How did It happenr
ut must have been so sudden" fal.
tered Jehiel. at cut me up COM
pletely."
Il can't ever forgive myself."I
Hannah Jane hystertcally.
"She wanted us to come East. and ri
wouldn't. Twas my selfishness--'twas
easier to stay where I was: and now
now"
"We'be been brutes. FATHER" cut In
Jehiel, with shake In his voice; call
Of US. never thought never
can--can we see
herr"
In the chamber above, a woman
sprang to her feet. Harriet had quito
forgotten the stove-pipe hole to the
room below. and every sob and moan
and wailing cry had been woefully dis
tinct to her ears. With streaming eyes
and quivering lips she hurried down
the stairs and threw open the sitting.
room door.
"Jehieli Hannah janet I'm here,
right here-alivel" she cried. "An'
I've been wicked. wicked woman. I
never thought how bad Z was goin' ter
make you feel truly never, never
did Twas only myself wanted yer
20. Oh. children. children. I've been
70 wicked--so awful wickedw
Jehiel and Hannah Jane were steady
Df head and strong Of heart, and JOY.
/ Is said, never kills; otherwise, the
results Of that sudden apparitlon In thed
sitting-room doorway might have been,