J - Community District Library

PEEACHEE'S SWEETHEABT.
\ light shoye from the open door of
the low log structure that answered the
double. purpose, of church-and school-
house. The gleam fell upon the yellow-
ish leaves of a pawpaw tree that stood
close to the p;itJi that led to the door.
Boyond the pawpaw was. an irregular
mass that moved restlessly in the dark*
ness. Observed closely it would have
resolved itself iuto a number of
horses tied to saplings, and stepping-'
about noiselessly as they stretched
their heads toward the tempting leaves
beyond vheir reach.
.Divine service was going' on in the
log building, and the toues of the min-
ister floated out i»to the. darkness in
solemn cadence. Often they were in-
terrupted by a dev;p-grunted "A-a-a-
meu!" or "U-m-m-ahV Yas, Lord!" the
manner in which many worshipers ex-
pressed their approbation of. the
preacher's utterances.' A mounted fig-
ure came close to the shaft of light and
dismounted. As he did so the stamping
of the restless horses reached his; eavs.
Noiselessly he made his horse fast to a
redbud stem, and crept through the
bushes to where the uneasy equines
were tied.
He passed from horse to horse, feel-
ing 1 swiftly over each, as if in the dark-
ness his hands were doing duty for
an 1 offer $200 jist to huve uie a few
Lours! That's reason, ain't it?"
Suddenly a thought, seemed to strike
him, and ht* brought or.e hard fittdenvu
outhe table with a thump.
"I'll do it, 1 will! lie. shall have like
sweetheart., an' that r.-.irrlny quick."
It w;is after midnight when the
preacher returned, and it .seemed to the
other that lie looked paler am) limped
liiorc painfully than usual.
"My friend," the pivaeher wiirt, prei>-
i am glad to ha\e you so nearly
KEWAItl) OF A W
y g y
recovered, for this house ran only .shel-
ter you :i. few day^'longer."
'"\Y'y?" asked the iixvaiid; "a;v ye
get:in' tirec 1 . o' me?"
"('v-rUiir;ly not; but the. owner of this
house'has warned me to leave because
I am uHa Cue lo pay the* rent, and—"
"What'11 ye do now'?"
"I. do iio:. know. Doubtless I'll sec
my way out of it all, but 1 w," said Harris,stonily, "IFrddcn,
give. tlie. parboil hi-s reward. 'WVn the
in Ms Imnd I'll drop this gun.
if's u;i km>w bow sufc your
»--rretolled fur had fallen \i\r.in
hiiii..:T!ien, as be Ml from 1h»> linrw, the
animal kicked tlie nneotiscio'tiN limn be-
fore be bad touched'tin* earth.
An hour after, the pale.-faord preach-
er, limping 1 alcng tlie path. aJmost.
stumbled over the prrwtraU'. figure bt-
nearh the great hack berry. The old
slouch hat had fallen from his head,
and tho blood from a long wound across
Lis forehead hail soaked hi.-:, matted hair.
1'he preacher's slight form staggered
under the ta.sk, but by a series of heroic
effort J? he n:an:rged to convey the uncon-
scious man to the littk? log hut;where
he lived alone. It was tna4iy days be-
fore. tiie.RiiiTerer could do more than sit
like a helpless child in thtfbld splint-
Lottorned rocker and watch The preach-
er as he limped back and forth attend-
ing to the wants of his uneNoected
guest. The stranger had been badly
hurt. The blow on his head, a*s he. caw,
in contact with the low-hanging limb,
hii)CKi'tlx"if>k and tlroMjx'd it si'm in*
in«jii:'v info the leader's s.loiii'h hat. As
iiic iiioiicv was ]r*)iir»"d on the table,
Harris 'aid the pistol beside it.
"Thar," he said, "take mo."
Then, as handcuffs were quickly
Pi>:!pjx*d ii]x>n his wrists, he. f.u.rne/1 fo
11n 1 ' young preap,ared."
h v ''ITeroic Jack!" the young wife
^Thit'i ior r "ve! Look at it! Yere, oL.imed. v.he-., theminis^r had told her
Ut workin' himself to death for yer the story.-IVtaluma Courier,
.souls, VR pny him PO lectio that the time
when'he can bring hiw leetie v.T.i"tin'
swectheirl west seems years diT! Yes.
I am. a-do:n' yc no good, an'
"Th
''As
-,v'fr :-
lookiji/T man risked iv:y name, and when
T toid
Jack
lie said: "JV11 the jinrson yc
Karris, nn' tell him T hope
swecthe
an every one o' yer horses I kin
git my hands or.. In my ca-«e. ye
Hub together nn' offer (\ reward iiv
5200 jist to git r.-.e. are my heart-—".
"Ursula,, ihy own! why dirt you rever
v&r.tenn before? I laugh at you! Oh,
my clarlisjr. I liave hungered ta hear
\ ou say B»IC1I words.**
The eyes of the girl were love-steeped,
and her lashes wet, and ^he raised her
head and looked up at the man.
"A!J thT< past y^ar you have made me
happier then I ever dared hope to be,"
she whispered, trembliug—"the hap-
piest woman, in the whole world, I
think."
And the man bent and pressed bis lips
10 hers. "But t want to make you still
happier," be said, passionately. "I
want to 'ak
RTinr'4ins so 4'iirHrss. T!vt*n
now I niri lioidiu,rr you only to psirifroTn
you—1or and lonely prirl
lie.hadleft. and longed formoney to bring
him liis desiro. Ar.d .so absorbisij*" were
these: fhous?:\ts tliat the pi|)c. went out,
and .still .he. paced to and fro, unheeding",
until at last, his elbow being" jo^,?cd ac-
cidentally, he came back to the near
present ii.^am, aiul, takinpf T'IO. cold pipe
fioni ins lips*, lapped it out-on t:ierf5il.
Then, vhile ihc :ishe-s were yet llo:*r.in£
down to tlie -watery., he went below to
his berl !i and slept soundly.
A;*d tliff trirl I'rsiilii sewed ni:d sewed
;:!! the evfiiinp b," the lijr'itof ;!;;• elifiip
011 lamp, and sniiled stifily with her lips,
i'.nd Tru*"! )iot io depress her mother.
And tlieii siic.: went t-,» her nvun avici
;-:vkr(l !ivr box to go a-^ovcrncssi r.'.r on
I lie morrow. And nfier awhile she
went to bed. nr.d th.'rc she lay with wide-
eyes and watoiH'u iL»; inooi;l;^l,t..;;, t!i,-;
window; and her heart feit widowed,
hopeless, and wonid not be cheered.
"Your lettcis are so friendly, dearest,
so alximinably friendly; they verily
starve my heart. Oh, why am T not rich
enough to throw up this drudgery arid
come, home to you and hold you in iny
arms again, and make you s,iy yoi. love
me? I have to #o over our parting
Jif»Tiin ar.d again to make myself l>o-
licvo that nil you said then is really
true. SVrits m« a real love letter nc-xt
time, dnrling, i help me hear up."
•"irl's checks wore
her eyes held happiness, as she sat by
ihe schoolroom table, with the piled-
up work bucket neglected before her,
and read the words a^ain and again.
A::d flu- day;-; and the weeks and the
niontiif; ;I:H1 the years pa-sscd on, and
tiie pile of love letters .which came to
the ^ill grew in bulk. Sometimct; they
were despondent, sometimes cheerful,
•fsomctimes iiunied, sometimes tender
jind rsoinef imes the treasured space was
overfull of descriptions of new friends
or strange places. ]!ut the letters never
failed to come, nud the man never failed
to long- for the riches which could brir.£"
him to the girl's side and make life
hr.ijpy for them.
And the. fjirl longed and longed that
::he jnijLrht iiieet !ier lover, if only for a
day; t hat they might, look in.ro each oth-
er's i'aco, and, renewing hope, might
start afresh. Some cynic told her tiiat
love was flettinjr, a C[iiesti6n merely of
propinquity; but that cynic had not
really meant to bruise the g-irP;; endear-
ing ln;art. I*eside.s. the cynicism ~vas
not always true, for this girl's love*
was strong: as ever—stronger. Why
should not the man's be the same? He
was better equipped for fighting*doubts
and feurs. But the waiting was bitter-
ly long.
At last, when, endurance was becom-
ing a habit, there came a shock—a shock
of joy. Just a business matter, ju&t
money, just repentance to tlie amount
of five hundred a year out of an erst-
while unforgiving uncle. But £500 a
year to a little governess, to a waiting
lover! It was ecstasy.
The schoolroom was as paradise that
morning; the vo;ces of the children as
angels' so-ngs. For the waiting, the
drudgery, the anxiety were orcr. Bliss
lay within a blue envelope; joy was in-
scribed in straight lines of copper-
plate* ealigraphy. But the girl utterwl
no word of happiness; it seemed too
wonderful, and she wanted to realize 5t,
and think.
A deed of gift. An anonymous deed
of gift—that would be the thing, the
girl decided. She would not keep one
penny of it back. There seemed some-
thing calculating aiid mercenary in set-
ting aside part for herself; besides, it
would be all the same in. the end. A
deed of gift oi £500 a year to Bertie!
It was worth all the waiting and the
pain and the work. This wt»s her re-
ward.
So the girl carried out her secrrt
plans witii a light heart and a happy
brow, and the. joyful message went
across tho sea to the road, in the copper-
plate caiigrapby of the lawyer's clerk;
while the; girl herself—in the willful-
ness of i\ear blisfi—sent over thn SAT
niso just a scr^>py little letter, tin:
most nintt-er-of-faet she had over .turous an-
gnif-i., ::s «Ue })kturet( lier lover's plc:!:;-
tire jiU'.l endun'd all the ininutes whu'h
were boun-.l to jiiiss before she would
•receiw a sign^
"What will bo say? Will it lw WD:I-
der?. Will it be only happiness? Will
it be--him.*ielf?"'
At la^t it cany—the first sign of her
sacrifice. It \v.is a better, rather short,
because written in a ...hurry by a busy
m:in; and the girl was able to read it in
the ton minutes which tvere hers hofo'iv
morning lessons:
"Drarest t*rs*a(.;it T2t!3 Setter wi!l be only
a scrr..!), 1'zn afraid, but I kiiow that you
will forjjlvo that, and I will make it up
r.
mo, I suppose. "(You can understand that,
oari'l you?) So I am going off on a »TO0(J,
lor.g tour, to see all the places I've wanted
so Ion? to see—Italy, Greece, and I don't
know Where else. It's jelly to have a
little money at last. Rather a large party
of u» are going—the Gleesoris, thu mother
and daughter I've written about sometimes
—and some friends of ihoirs I know fairly
wi'll; so I expeet WP shall enjoy ourselves.
SJ frlad you are having* such a good time,
n\y dear. Picnics and concerts are pleas-
ures which seldom eor.ie my *cv;iy. I will
write again as soon as 1 can, but am un-
certain when and where wo halt. Yours,
in haste, IJERTIE."
*'A 1 itt!«windfall!" "Amllhuveac-
c-ejitetl it!"
The woman's limbs shook and her
face bcx-ame awful as she -read. Then
she shivered; and then the children
eaiiK' in to lessons.
Or.c more letter crossed the sea fro.TT:
the v.oraan to the man on bis wandev-
iriffp. The word "good-by" w:us writ-
tcn across a bare sheet of paper, and
the man considered (hat he had been
uncivilly trentod, and he felt very sor-
ry' for himself: but he never looked on
the woman's face n^ain.
The. silly talc leaked out. in time,
and the world laughed fit tlie eenieut the woman foiled to seethe
humor, and it was tho tragedy which
lav at the back of her ryes in all tho
!o'n" ve:irs till she. died.—Tho Sketch.
; ARMORY DEDICATfED,
• Not;] I) It' >!itiri»:> i:v»-n( nt Uruntt
! l}>:;\m\ lxiii)id:i. May 2i\— j'lie armory
: filled up for 111-.' tlii-:'i.- t.'oi'n|t;inil's o!' 'be
M;ciii^>'an .natioiiai i^uard, .const iujtinj;*
tin' (Jrand l!:*i|)ids l.*»aUalion, was for*
. Gov..I'uij>ree. accompanied by hi.swiiV
) and dauft-litt'i\ the men.hiM-.s o: tl.ie mi!i-
j tary staiV. most of the regimental o*i".i-
j ccrs of the stale and ji;-:uiy ooni;):i.)y >>i-
! fic.ers, attended, (iov. Pingrcc am!
i party arrived i,i one o'clock, and wen;
; greeted by i;iusic'"and. tha bootning' of
j cannon. After luiicii an in formal re-
j ception was held.- At ingh't tin. caiinoa
| boomed another salute, and the iVstiv-
'. ities of the armory \vere O])ened. There
; were addresses by tlie governor and by
; Mayor Stow, followed by dancing. Th; 1
; armory is tlie largest and handsomest
j in the stale, with a di-iilroom 07 by )••>•',
feet, an equipment-room tho same size,
with company offices and lockers an 1
spacious quarters for a military clult.
In the afternoon the Second regiment
elected Charles S. Stewart, of Kalama-
zoo, as lieutenant colonel to fill a vacan-
cy, and Capt. John Mitchell, cf Ionia,
major.
GERMAN PYTHIANS UPHELD.
A
j Our oll'cr wf l:.i- Ai iviii^:i: l-'anner un-
" "•• :-"!ii ,• '• l.'J'...i,.d i..i. i.ui.l A S A
i- i ' f r t ; ; i . , ! y :i I.:, rL;;i i u .
• i ;rcu-
fine acciflvntaHy ;m t*eirs,
riarmtr^iii has parl t (Jd H
teis,
^iii has parlor car to (Jr«nd Havi-o
*»»nto, corin^-tinfe- with slwrp
iriir cur for i be r**t »ui« »vr York f con-
•nw:ts at Duruurt with f who had deciinwl the. honor of bc-
foininjor IH'K father-in-law, and married
tho girl after all. Not satisfied with
this nuKrli 1.0 had tho. skTili of his wife's
father mounted ivt c^oltl ns a drinkinc"-
f-up, and one day. while under the influ-
ence of wine, ordered his spouf-o- to ap-
r»