Evening star., 1924-02-22

low over the forehead, the chin round
withal. Here even the long lashcs of
her eyes ~ere visible just as in life.
Yes, it was her face.
! And now he read the letter, which
lcoverrd many closely written sheets:
! Ieriwcther Lewis. ] said to you
! that my face should com" to YOU.
wherever You might be. This time it
has been long-l cannot tell how long.
: That is for my messenger 10 deter
! mine. not for you ur nl". Eut that il
! has tt,'. loEg shalt know, else l"nA.
Sin". th.:r.' would hav,. be. II az nerd
t"f my adding this letter To The others.
Not one o: them has ser> ed to
J bring E"u back. Sine" yen now hlN"
: this out, let Il advise You that She
| who Wrot" il is griCvcd ihat you gazc
+. upon this little portrait and not upon
! the face % her whom i. represents,
IT'S Il mon&trous good likeness. they
ttell me; nut would you not rather il
were myself?
! "Whore arc you? cannot tell.
What adversities have been yours? I
cannot tell that. You cannot know
! what grief YOU hav.. caused by your
! long absence. fou cannot know how
many hearts you have laIe sad. You
cannot know how you have delayed -
destroyed--planS mad" for YOU. We
arc in ignorance. each of the other.
! now. | Go not know where YOU are
t YOU do not know whore I may be. y
great wall rises between us. \ great
gulf is fixed. ". caauot touch hands
across il.
"As know, this Will rot move you;
but ! cannot restrain this rrpro3l"it.
. have made m" suffer by Your silence.
: by your absence. y" | make you
suffer by looking at YOU win re-
preach in my. eyes-as do nov:
You have forgotten your childhood
! friend: | may be dead a.. you read -
would you care? | hav" been in need,
! Yet you have not come TO comfort
! me and 10 dry my tears.
! "t'igura t. yourself what has hap
: pened to all my plans and dreams for
: YOU. Even ! cannot TIL Of that, be-
cause, as I write. ii all lies in the
futur.-that future which is the pres
ent for you as you sit reading this.
All know j. that as you read il my
! appeal has failed.
! Il can but CUES! how o. where
! these presents may find you: for how
shall know how wis: or ho" faith
| Lewis? Is it winter: Does the SNOW
! lie deep? Are The winds keen and
! biting? Are you well fed" Are you
| warm? Have you bodily comforts ?
! Have YOU physical well being?
! How can / answer all these ques-
! GonS? They come t. my mind aa |
" rite.
! Are you in the mountains" Were
there. after all, those great stony
/ mountains O. which men told fables? ?
Have. YOU found the great unicorn
! or the mammoth or the mastodon
. which Mr.. Jefferson said YOU were
! likely 70 meet" Have You found the
! dinosaur or the dragon or the great
! Serpents Of Il fVregonc day? sup
! pose You hav-. What do they weigh
, with me-with YOU: Are they so
! much TO ,;yoV as you thought they
triumphs So sweet as You have
i dreamed, Meriwethcr Lewis
"Havc you grown savage. my
! friend-havc YOU come to be just a
! man like the others? Tell mc-no.
, will not ask you, Ii I thought you
could descend to the lawless Standard
! OF the wilderness-but no. I cannot
; think of that! In any case. it's too
! late now. You have not come back
! to me.
| to implore You TO return as TO re
proach you for not returning. BY the
| time this reaches you it will be too
late in our plans. We could not
afford to wait months-three months.
| four. siA-has it been so long that
! since YOU left us? If SO. it is too la &c
| now. If We have failed, why did we
! fail:
! They told me--my father and his
| friends-and ] told you plainly, that
! if your expedition went on. then our
/ plan must fail. But now l must pre-
| sumo that YOU have succeeded or by
this time arc beyond the feeling Of
either success or failure. If you have
failed, it is too late for us to succeed.
II you have succeeded. then certainly
We have failed. AS you read this
You may be doing so with hope. J.