The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1923-01-11
CHAPTER TX

AS the nre burned down to Goals
and the stars wheeled through the
sky, Linda told her story. The two
OF them were seated in the soft grass
in front of the cabin, and the moon
light was on Linda's face as she
talked. She talked very low at first.
Indeed there was no need for loud
tones. The whole wilderness world
was heavy with silence, and Il whis-
per carried far. Besides, Bruce was
just beside her. watching her witt
narrowed eyes, ~forEetful of every
thing except her story.
"Tve waited Il long time to tell you
this" she told him. "Of course, when
we We're babies together in the or
phanage, | didn't even know it. II
has taken me II long time since to
learn all the details; most of them !
got from my aunt, old Elmira, whom
you talked to on the way out. Part
of 1t | knew by intuition, and a little
of 1t Is still doubtful.
You ought to know first how hard
/ have tried to reach you. OF course.
! didn't try openly except at first
the first years after | came here, and
before l was old enough to under
stand" She spoke the last word with
a curious depth OF feeling and II per
ceptible hardness about her lips and
eyes. IL remembered just two things.
That the man who had adopted o.
was Newton Duncan; one of the
nurgnS nt tho nSylptn t,JI ,,n th,t
AND l remembered the name Of the
city where he had taken you.
you must understand the Difficult
ties | worked under. There is no
rural free delivery up here, you know.
Bruce. Our mail Is sent from and
delivered to the little post office at
Martins store over fifteen miles
from here. And some one member of
a certain family that lives near here
goes down every week to get the mai.
for the entire district.
"At first-and that was before 7
really Cnderstood-I wrote YOU many
letters and gave them to one OF this
family to mail for me. l was just a
child then, you must know, and l
lived In the same house with these
people. They were just baby let
ters from-from Linda-Tinda to Bwov-
aboo-letters about the deer and the
berries and the squirrels-and all the
wild things that lived up here"
Berries" Bruce cried. II had some
on the way up" His tone wavered,
and he seemed to be speaking far
away. II had some once-long ago"
"Yes. You will understand. soon.
l didn't understand why you didn't
answer my letters. l understand now,
though. You never got them"
No. l never got them. But there
are several Duncans in my city. They
might have gone astray."
"They went ~astray-but 1t was oe-
fore they ever reached the post office.
They WERE never mailed, Bruce. I
was to know why, later. Even then
1t was part of the plan that l should
never get in communication with you
again-that you would be lost to me
forever.
"When I got elder, I tried other
tacks. ! wrote to the asylum, enclos-
ing a letter to you. But those letters
were not mailed. either.
snow we can skip a long time. I
grew up. / knew everything at last
and no longer lived with the family
! mentioned before. I came here, to
this old hOuse-and made II decent
to live in. / cut my own wood for my
fuel except when One Of the men
tried to please me by cutting it for
me. i wouldn't use 1t at first. Oh.
Bruce-I wouldn't touch It'll"
Her face was no longer lovely. 1t
was drawn with terrible passions.
But she quieted at once.
FAT last / saw plainly that ! was a
little fool-that all they would do for
me, the better off I was. At first, I
almost starved to death because !
wouldn't use the food that they sent
me. / tried to grub II out Of the hills.
But \ came to It at last. But. Bruce,
there were many things ! didn't come
to. Since ! learned the truth, I have