Plentywood herald. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1908-current, 1927-01-21

"Do not my lips say so ~.
But your heart? How can I read its
secret" y
'You can read 1t wherever you go You
can read its secret In the n~ightingale'a cry,
In the blowing of the south wind, and in
the throhbing, winglike call of all the un-
born children of the world"
And still | do not know IL you really
love me-"
why not?"
orous-because 1t deafens the song of
yours"
"Ah'-she whispered-"there was never
greater love than mine And | am ashamed
that | must say 1t to you with words"
ASHAMED? Allah! Is the queen bee
ashamed of her honey-the jasmine Of Its
scent?"
"You have loved before. Musa 2"
LET me tell you how 1t is with me- He
smiled. "In the past 1t was always the
way my fancy w~ent--went the one way or
the other. And at times my fancy wandered
alone; and at times 1t sought a fine, march
ing company with men OF hard daring and
Mt lines 1t danced down the road with a
woman's subtle feet echoing alongside.
But"-he lowered his voice took her hands
In his-"it Is now the final way my fancy
has gone-straight to your soul, child-to
fresh, sweet wilderness there-and the
birds In 1t Ginning and warbling-and the
sun above 1t shining polished and hearty"
so they kissed.
So 1t was day after day. ~Ae,
Habeebah knew. But she never spoke of
1t to her master. Perhaps she did not want
to make him unhappy. Perhaps she mag
ined that thus, because Of her love for
Musa, umteyra would step out Of Uzbek
Khan Haydar's life. Perhaps her gnarled,
tough old heart softened at the sight of
the lovers happiness. Not that she ceased
from her grumbling and storming.
Often and vociferously she berated the
Afghan as a v%agabond, a tramp, a ne'er-do-
well, and the father of seventeen pigs; and
one day, seeing Umteyra come from Musa's-
presence with shining eyes and heightened
color, she said to her: "Wahi The dinner
over, an ungrateful dog values not the
spoon! Have you already forgotten how
my master picked you. a scrawny and most
disgusting child, from the cutters OF no
where"-a slight exaggeration, since Um-
teyra's parents had been rich and noble
Tartars-" and raised you to a high seat
of dignity In his own castle2 And here
like a shameless Persian bazaar goat-you
come from your lover and"
mo. no, mol" exclaimed the girl, blush
ing a deep. even rose. II did not"
"You did The tale OF 1t is in your eyesl
Do not lie to mep' And, with a sudden
change of manner and accent; "Child |! A
drop Of peach perfume on the back Of your
your ear! 1t Is that a lover
likes. ! know. !, too, was once desired In
the hills and the fine houses-'
But never a word did she say to Uzbek
Khan Haydar, and 1t IL a debatable point
whether. Mt least at first, he knew what
was going on. II he did, he was willfully
blind-because, in the great, simple, Indie
rous gentleness of his soul, he did not
want Umteyra to know that he knew. for
fear Of hurting her fluttering young heart.
There was, of course, gliding, malicious
gossip in the village below the castle.
But there was also his own ancient, ra-
cial pride: and one day, when q peasant
made slurring, malicious a~llusion, he re-
piled 81 am of the Ghilzai Tartar lords.
We are the sons of Rings. The tree is not
more old than We, nor yet the mountain,
nor yet the sky. | am fat-yes-and | am
old. But ! am still md always of the
Ghikai lords. If sorrow must happen TO
me, let II happen with banners and steel
and the roll of drums-not with the twist
ing of u~nclean, whispered wordsi"
And he smote the peasant heavily
across the face, and hereafter there
was little gossipipg In the village.
So the long winter months passed, and
spring came-suddenly, almost overnight,
as 1t does In this northern land.
sand what sort of & heart is IT," said
Musa to himself, looking one night from
the window, "that would not lift and soar
to see the fresh, moist green blown upon
the gray onks-to see the hedges burst
white and pink-to see the young firs
prick up proudly and insolently among the
slower, elder pinesf"
And, the next morning, to Umteyra, who