Grand Forks herald., 1922-05-19

-- = W.,
loved him. But she knew she did not.
| love him, and in such an association
! AZ theirs there can be no liking. Her
thoughts rarely rested on him; she
was either thinking of the prunes
that were soaking, the firewood that
was running low, the towels that
wet breeze was blowing on the line;
or she was far away, drifting in vague
realms where feelings entirely strange
to this bare little mining camp and
this hungry, busy, commonplace man.
held sway.
The first time that she quarreled
with Martin she cried for an entire
day, with the old childish feeling that
somehow her crying mattered, so4ne-
how her abandonment would help to
straighten affairs! The cause ,of the
quarrel was trifle; her father ,h1u
sent her a Christmas check and she
Immediately sent to San Francisco
shop for clock that had taken he,
fancy months before.
| Martin, who had CHANGED to be
pressed for money, although she did
not know 1t, was thunderstruck upon
discovering that she had actually dis.
posed of fifty dollars SO lightly For
several days shadow hung over their
intercourse, and when the clock came,
as large as a BANJO gilded and quaint,
he broke her heart afresh by pretend
ing inot to admire it,
layed at the mine and Cherry, smitten
isuddenly with the bitterness of having
I their first Christmas spoiled in this
way, sat up for him, huddled in her
silk wrapper by the air-tight stove.
She was awakened by feeling herself
| lowered tenderly into bed and raised
warm arms to clasp his neck and they
kissed Ieach other.
The next day they laughed at the
clock together, and after that peace
reigned for several weeks. But it was
inevitable that another quarrel should
come and then another; Cherry was
young and undisciplined, perhaps not
more selfish than other girls of her
age, but self-centered and unreason.
able. She had to learn self control
and she hated to control herself She
had to economize when poverty pos
sessed neither picturesqueness nor in
| terest. They were always several
weeks behind in the payment of do
mestic bills, and these recurring re-
| mtnders Of money stringency mad
dened Cherry. Sometimes she summed
It up, with angry tears, reminding
him that she was still wearing her
trousseau dresses, and had no maid
and never went anywhere!
But she developed steadily AS she
grew skillful In managing her little
house, she, also grew in the art of
managing her husband and herself.
She became clever at-avoiding causes
of disagreement; she listened. nodded
agreed, with boiling heart, and had
the satisfaction Of having Martins
viewpoint veer the next day, or the
next hour, to meet her own secret
conviction. Martin seemed satisfied.
and all their little world accepted her
as a matter of course. But under it
young and irresponsible and confident
in her had been killed. She never
liked to think Of the valley Of the
fogs and the spokes of sunlight under
the redwood aisles, OF Alix and the
dogs and the dreamy evenings by the
fire. And especially she did not like
to think Of that eighteenth birthday.
and herself thrilling, and ecstatic be-
cause the strange young man from
Mrs. North's had stared at her. in her
sticky apron, with 80 new and dis
turbtng a smile in hisMeyes s5
CHATTER ".
So winter passed at the mine and
at the brown house under the shout
der Of Tamalpais. Alix still kept her
bedroom windows open, but the rain
tore I'M and Anne protested At the en-
suing stains on the pantry ceiling.
Cherry's wedding, once satisfactory
" over, was 2 cause Of great satisfac-
ton to her sister and cousin. They
had stepped back duly, to give her
the, center # the stage: they had ad-
mired and congratulated: had helped
her In all hearty generosity. And now
that she was gone they enjoyed their
own lives again and cast over hers 80
glamor that novelty and distance ney-
er fail to give. Cherry. married ana
Keeping house and managing affairs.
was an object of romantic interest
The girls surnised that Cherry must
pc making friends; that everyone
must admire her; that Martin wo.iId
be rich some day. without doubt.
5Cherry wrote regularly, now ana
4 them >assurtng them that she was ithe
same old Cherry. She described har
tiny house right at the mine. ana tie
long sheds Of the plant and the bare
plE Duiidln8 that was the mems
| boarding house, Martins associa -.
brought her front ana duck1 shs
wrote; she and Martin had driva,,
three hundred miles in the sunarim'
tendsnt,s tend g car; she was preparing for
Think OF little old Cherr~ .,sn 7.
| e on weekend trips With tSe thrse
men! % Alix would nay proudlv !,
( lninx I O. Cherry gtving q, party,:
Anne perhAps would make no con. I;
mem, but she often felt nanr Z,
ss,.:.: envy.6 cherry seemed to have every.
suddenly. without war,rins /. th.,.
w. ne wcon1er a the circle. q sleeE III. ).
neaaed brown- hatred little msn
l He had been il,tr rodnc. = Il.
party TO Anne ana Alix: M .l.,s9 ,ems
ne MAs presently takdng y Nj ma @s.sa.s s.1'
ssleespfs' Anne nov bssan TO I siaush M =