The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1922-06-06
Erening Story
NSnow-FoIIowed by Clearing"
az ROSE MEREpITH.

SnOw-folloWed> by clearlng-rls-
ing temperature-no northwest gales"
read Miss Amanda Harper to ner
nephew that Match morning. An
thony looked out OF the window and
grunted, MY experience has been - ar
snow is always followed by cleaning
sidewalks!''
Gracious sakes, Anthony. when I
was young didn't mind cleaning off
sidewalks-keeps the blood in circula
ton, and anyway, the Ladies' aid So
ciety's meeting down at Emmeline's,
and you win have to clear off her
walk. too"
"Of course, auntie, I'll get at it at
onee-Tve an important engagement
at this afternoon. and I'll have ev-
erything ready for the meeting before
go. Good thing I'm a lawyer who
practices in his own house-if L had
an office down street I would never
get there on time!" he laughed good
humoredly as he left the table and
morning mail. Outside the world was
wrapped in a whited rift of snow
which had fallen steadily for eighteen
hours. How many times he had Shoh--
eled~the paths around the house, and
then the broad sidewalk in front of
the house. Next to the house was
"debatable ground" for Anthony's
old sweetheart lived there. solitary
except for a couple of servants. Their
break had come on the very eve of
their wedding fifteen years ago, and
the hurt was so deep that neither one
had ever married. Anthony measured
the long, lonely years by the winter
SHOWS that had fallen; in summer he
rarely even glimpsed Rose Mary Gray,
for she always spent the summer
months with relatives at the sea-
shore, whence she returned in Octo-
Der, looking very brown and golden
hued, but her eyes were always sad
''Fools!" sharp-tongued Aunt EN-
incline said of the Two.
Poor souls" the more gentle
Amanda would murmur, as she saw
them pass haughtily- by each other,
Rose Mary with the slightest inclina-
ton of her fair head and Anthony
with the stiff removal of his hat.
If they. would only look at zach
other Just once" groaned Miss
Amanda that March morning as she
shot a. glance ever toward Rose
Mary's big square white house, which
stood between the two big HARPER
houses on the main street. She was
looking to see if old black Amos was
clearing the snow from Rose Mary's
walks, but the level stretch was un-,
broken Something must have hap
pened to Amos. for he was most faith
full, and it had always happened that
of his own sidewalk, Rose Mary's
would be cleared SO he could proceed
straight On to Aunt Emmeline's and
clean that off. He might have hired
800 n O0N ne really ike the
exercise.
Anthony. booted and n1uffled for
the work, went out with his snow
shovel. AS he shoveled the fleecy
wilderness and the blood went tingling
thru his veins, old dreams came a
| troubling him. II he and Rose Mary
had married, they would have been
living in Rose Mary's house and their
children might have been playing in
this very SnoWi At this moment An
ArYrr rn iCsn eTr {,,%-
that he caught the shovel on the
pickets of the iron fence and split it
badly. His first thought was to go
back for the other shovel, then after
traced his step and went on shoveling,
and that, moment of indecis!on
changed his whole life.
Driven by the anguished memories
and bitter remorse that he had not
humbled himself to the ground to
worked furiously, half blinded by the
mist before his eyes; for an hour he
shoVeled, forgetting that he had not
crossed the stretch between his house
and Rose Mary's
Three women watched him breath
lessly
Miss Amanda saw him when he re-
/ traced his. steps on the cleared walk
and fell to shoveling again. He Is
crazy-he thinks he has passed Rose
Mary's house-and he believes he's
shoveling Emmeline's walk. oh, my!'
Emmeline at her end of the block
saw him finish clearing Rose Mary's
path and come doggedly on to her
| house Land sakesi never knew
him to do that before-if the ladies
hear about it the meeting will be
lively. she chuckled.
Rose Mary watched him with shin
ing eyes. and a face kissed gby the
north wind into rosy bushes. "Ah,
Tony-Tony. you must care a littlei"
she whispered as he~went on toward
his aunt's house.
At last NE stopped. He thought he
was getting cold, for never had he
been so tired after shoveling off the