Coulee City dispatch. [volume] (Coulee City, Wash.) 19??-19??, 1939-11-23

about her. She means nothing to
me, seriously, and never will. She
plays the game, and so do I, but
it's only game"
He looked tired and old. "Tl go
abroad tomorrow. When come
back, perhaps you'll change your
mind"
"I shall never change it," she
said, "never."
He stood up. "Jane, could make
you happy" He held her hand as
she stood beside him.
She looked at him and knew that
he could not. Her dreams had come
back to her-of Galahad-of Robin
Hood the world of romance
had again flung wide it's gates :.
After. Towne had gone she sat for
a long time thinking it over. She
blamed herself. She had broken
her promise. Yet, he, too, had bro
ken promise.
She finished mending the stock
ings, and rolled them into compact
balls. The little cats were asleep
the shadows were stretched out and
the sun slanted through the pines.
She had dinner to get, for her re-
turn had been unexpected, and So
ply had not been notified.
She might have brought to the
thought of her tasks some faint feel
ing of regret. But she had none.
She was glad to go into make an
omelette-and cream the potatoes
and have hot biscuits and berries
and honey.
Planning thus, competently, she
raised her eyes-to see coming
along the path the two boys who
had of late been Evans close COM
panions. She spoke to them as they
reached her. Cant you stay a
minute? I'll make you some lem
onade."
They stopped and looked at her
in way that startled her. ''We
can't" Arthur said; ''we're going
over to the F'ollettes. We thought
we might help"
She stared at them. "Help? What
do you mean?"
Sandy gasped. ooh, didn't you
know? Mrs. Toilette died this morn
ing :"
Evans had found his mother at
noon, lying on the couch at the foot
of her bed. He had stayed at home
in the morning to help her, and at
ten o'clock she had gone upstairs to
rest a bit before lunch. Old Mary
had called her, and she had not
answered. So Evans had entered
her room to find that she had slipped
away peacefully from the world in
which she exaggerated her own i'm
portance. It would 60 on without
her. She had not been neighborly
but the neighbors would all come
and sympathize with her son. And
they would miss her, because she
had added to the community some
measure of stateliness, which they
admired even as they resented it.
Evans had tried to get Badly on
the telephone, but could not. Jane
was at Grass Hills. He would call
up at long distance later. There
was no reason why he should spoil
for them this day of days.
So he had done the things that
had to be done in the Swallowed
house. DR.. Hallam came, and 9TH
ers. Evans saw them and they went
away. He moved in a dream. He
had no one to share intimately his
sorrow-no sister, no brother, no
one, except his little dog, who trailed
after him, wistful-eyed, and with
limping steps.
The full force of the thing that
had happened did not come to him
at once. He had a feeling that at
any moment his mother might sweep
in from the out-of-doors, in her white
linen and flat black hat, and sit at
the head of the table, and tell him
the news of the morning.
He had had no lunch, so old Mary
fixed tray for him. He did not
eat, but drank some milk. Then he
and Rusty took up their restless
wandering through the silent rooms.
Old Mary, true to tradition, had
drawn all the blinds and shut many
of the windows, so that the house
was filled with a sort of golden
gloom. Evans went into his moth
er's little office on the first floor,
and sat down at her desk. 1t was in
perfect order, and laid out on the
blotter was the writing paper with
the golden crest, and the box of
golden seals. And he had laughed
at her! He remembered with pang
that they would never again laugh
together. He was alone.
He wondered why such things hap
pened. Was all of life as sinister
as this? Must one always find trag-
edy at every turn of the road? He
had lost his youth, had lost Jane.
And now his mother. Was every
thing to be taken away? Would there
be nothing left but strength to en-
dure?
Well, God helping him, he would
endure to the end
He closed the desk gently and
went out into the darkened hall.
AS he followed its length, a door