Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1923-01-12
WAYS OF FATE
BY MILDRED WHITE
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Copyright, 1922. Western Newspaper Uricn
The girl who walked down the vii
lage street, passed the row Of quaint
old fashioned houses, to turn in at
bungalow door, To this frail girl,
whose health made country living u
present necessity, Janey's home, and
Janey's bright society, were saliva
ton, and indeed without them Rosa
lind could not have stayed out her
designated time. The new quiet life
was very strange to the city-bred
young woman, whose natural gayeties,
perhaps, had been her disaster.
"WhO lives In the bungalow with
the sun dial In the garden?' Rosa
lind had asked her aunt the second
day Of her stay.
"Oh you mean Janey Peppers place.
We always call her Janey Pepper"
Rosallnd met the mistress of the
pretty bungalow soon after. Passing
the garden Of the sun dial when its
mistress was there picking roses, that
sweet-faced little lady invited her in.
Rosallnd became Immediately inter-
ested in Janey Pepper.
Fate Is the strangest thing" re-
marked Rosalind one day, there am l,
lonely stranger In strange place.
carelessly passing rose garden, l
find you-and am lonely no more"
Janey Pepper bent over the silk cur
tain she was sewing.
There's no understanding the ways
Of fate" she said, and laughed.
Nov take me- my dear, and the
way l came to be married; had just
settled down cheerfully to single bless
edness when a bit Of misfortune led
me straight to my husband and hap
piness. That sounds contradictory
know, but let me tell you about 1t.
was living, at the time, in the little
home my folks left to me. Then came
the hard winter when my collie dog
died and Black Beauty had to be sold,
and fell off tall stool and twisted
my back. was standing on the stool
to take down Uncle Silas' old photo
graph that I'd got pretty tired of see
Ing there, and after ! fell there was
no Black Beauty to carry me over to
Doctor Hastings. SO l put on u loose
cape and walked, all twisted with pain,
all the way to the Doctors Office.
The doctor, himself, who had dis
charged an impertlnent chauffeur that
morning and didn't know how he was
to be driven around, was not very
sympathetic, being troubled with his
own problem. Then into the waiting
room, where / was waiting to see how
/ was to get back to my home, came
James N. Hodges of the grand hous'
on the hill. Every one spoke of hin
as James N. Hodges, thinking Away
of the mans aloof Importance. ] re
patience, that his lovely butterfly wifi
had died last spring. | don't remember
that James N. Hodges had ever no
ticed me before; he spoke now
gruffly
'When will the doctor be at llber
typ
And, impatient with my pain, re-
piled, II don't know anything about
the doctor"
james N. Hodges looked In sudden
displeasure at person so rude. His
fine eyes were reprOachfully ques
tioning.
The doctor opened the door and he
was as crusty as either of us. "Janey
Pepper" he said, 81 can't take you
home as / hoped to do. Don't know
how I'm going to make the rounds
myself; but If you had used little
with lame back. Better have left
your Uncle Silas picture hanging on
the wall"
81 can stand the lame back better
than | could stand Uncle Sllas' pic.
ture," | retorted, and In a minute we
were all three laughing together.
James N. Hodges jumped to his feet.
my car Is at the door" he offered
pleasantly. II will be glad to drive you
home. | can send It back for your
use later, Doctor Hastings"
Janey smOothed thoughtfully the
rose silk.
That's how fate gave me my hus-
band" she said. though Jim says his
Is the gift. do try to make him
happy. That's why we left the gloomy
old ancestral home on the hill for
this lovely sunny place, For soon
learned that my Jim was not self i'm
portant nor aloof, as we supposed, but
Just man, plain, lonesome for com
mon happiness and-love." Janey
laughed.
"Ill be bound If he expected TO find
those blessings in old Doctor Has
tIngs' office any more than I expected
to find them-falIing OFF stool"