Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-06-01
MXIJOURNEY,S END
MIN RC Sheyzf07d Vernon Bartlett

Continued From Yesterdays starr

Continued From Yesterdays Starr
81 wouldn't mind a Bit" he assured
her. 'I'l wait all day If you want
me to-"
She gave him a rendezvous in Christ
church for the next afternoon, said he
was not to expect her if she did not
come by 1 O'Clock, and held out her
hand. He shook it warmly, and then,
with sudden boldness, bent down and
kissed her on the wrist.
She snatched her hand away, and
ran up the short garden path to her
billet. But her annoyance-f she had
been annoyed-lasted only few sec
onds for, as she opened the door and
stood with the hall light shining down
on her, she turned, and blew a kiss
at him.
It was not until he was nearly home
that he suddenly realized he did not
even know her name. There had been
the letters IN. l." on the attache case
in which she carried her skates, and
he spent much of the evening inventing
names to fit the initials. He told Madge
he had been to the Westover, and felt
both angry and pleased when she &C
cused him of picking up some girl"
He denied the accusation without much
conviction and then gave himself away
entirely by asking all sorts of questions
about the w. A. A. C.'s at Christchurch.
Before he went to sleep he had long
debate with himself as to whether he
would dare to kiss her wrist again when
they met tomorrow.
But on the next afternoon he waited
IN vain. They were to meet outside q
bookshop, and he had read the title
of every book in the window before
half-past three. Between half-past
three and four he told himself 20 times
that he saw her coming in the distance,
and 20 times Scoffed at himself for
confusing her with such plain creatures
as these 20 girls turned out to be when
they came nearer She had said he
was not to wait after o'clock, but 1t
was not until half-past that he gave
I'D the business of telling himself that
he would go unless she came before he
had counted up to 100. And all the
way back to Alum Green he asked him
self whether she had mistaken the
time or place of meeting, whether she
had not been able to come, whether
she had not wanted to come. having
some one more interesting than he
to meet.
DR.. Raleigh was busy all day with
his hospital work and his regular prac-
tise, which had been considerably en-
1Rrged by the shortage of local doctors.
morning, and returned only after dark.
So Jimmy spent most of the day potter
ing about alone. Part of the time was
given up to riding up and down vari-
Gus side roads in Christchurch, for he
could not be sure where her billet had
been-the roads and houses were so
alike, and he had not worried when he
had come with her. But he did not
succeed in meeting her, and ultimately
he gave it up as bad job. For, in his
slow, unimaginative sort of way he felt
that he had no time to spare, that he
wanted to visit all the spots he knew
well In the New Forest, and to let them
soak into his memory. He bumped
along n1oorland paths on his motor
bike, and recalled the earlier hunting"
with Madge and Dennis on push
bikes that were now relegated in their
rustiness to the potting shed at the
bottom Of the garden. Although most
of the f1owerbeds and little patches Of
lawn had been given up to the cuftiva-
ton of vegetables, the tennis lawn re-
manned, but he had nobody to play
with, and he soon tired of hitting ball
against the side of the house to keep
his eye in. When he could thrust out
Of his mind the thought that If he were
now In Christchurch or at the Westover
rink he might just possibly meet the
girl whose initials were M. L., he was