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Show aM " ' "m'm mmm " " ' - I - .--. THAT GIRL of JOHNSON'S I Author "At Girl'i Mercy," Etc. Entered Aecordlnr to Act of Contr... In tha Year 18-X) br Street 4 Smith. In the OHice of tha Librarian of Concrwj. at Waihlnston. Q. C, I CHAPTER XXII. Continued. "Yea." ho said, gently, "I know ho Is dead, Dolores, but after doatli nil -things are made strnlKht. Ho knows 1 now better than he over could have J ,. known from your tolling, and I know .he has forgotten us." Thero were sweetness and solemnity solemn-ity in the young man's voice as he bent above the beautiful cold face that caused Dora to catch her breath In. 1 sudden comprehending of the depth I of tho kindly hoart, as lio slowly re peated, tho touch on tho girl's hands very tender, the light in tho loving jyes entering Into her very soul: . , " 'Thens In nj death. What seems so Is tratiHltlon; Thl Ufo (if mortal breath Is but a suburb of the life elyslan, "i Whoso portal wo call death.' CHAPTER XXIII. 'That Girl of .Johnson's." Dora was standing at tho woll at Dolores' old home with her husband, waiting for Dolores and Charlie Green, who had gone at tho girl's request to tho opposite mountain. It wis a strange freak of Dolores', but with the usual simple acquiescence In any wish of hers they had gone, and here Dora I and her husband were waiting for their k roturn at tho girl's old home. Dora was standing at the well - t. watching her husband as he swung - - .tho bucket down among tho cool shadows, her sweet face, grown more womanly and holding a deeper mean- ing in every delicate line. She stood "" , on tiptoo to look down and follow tho flight of tho bucket, but oven standing so she scarcely reached to his shoulder. shoul-der. She turned her pretty head on one side as a bird might do, and said, -. -with an air that convulsed her hus band, though thero was a deeper and J more tender meaning to her words that ho would not let her know ho un- ' " derstood. "Tho course of true love novor did run smooth and look at, that poor bucket, Hal. You are fairly beating j . the lifo out of It against tho sides of tho woll." "Poor thing!" said tho big fellow, in 1a tone that Implied scant sympathy for tho luckless bucket. "You had bettor rWK ' ' .lyr-fiat. Charlie. Is eating bls.J)oart put. because yourcouslnnwlllnotnl0vo, him, 'Dot. Is sho never goIhgTto' b'o good. to him for his faithfulness, dear? Ho deserves a good life and a good ' -woman, Dora; evon your-cousin cannot j deny that." "Don't talk of Lurfo as though sho ' wore hoartless, Harry," Dora said, J eolftly, with ono of her swift wistful glancos up to his faco. "Lorle is not liko other girl's." The othertwo having pnssed down ' out of tho sottiomont, followed by tho i ) half scoraiul oyes of the men at tho tavern, crossed tho rotten bridge over JJ tho rlvor and ascended tho opposite I"' " mountain, slowly among the bent hushes and mysterious mists that hold In thoir hiding tho snaros of death and tho pitfalls that lay in wait- I "Thar goes thet gal o' Johnsing's," " I Tom Smith said, with a rough break "Lorle Is not like other girls." ' of laughter In his doop voice. "Whnt en tber world sho's goin' ower yander ,--va fer boata mo holler," fl'"" "Coin' tor say her prayers ower her I foythor'u gravo, I rockon," Joined in I . Hiram Sadler, toarsoly, but tho an- I sworlng laughter on Smith's lips never ' paosod thom as Jones turned his indig nant oyos upon thom, romoving his plpo from his lips to make roply, "IBt 'poors to mo," ho said, slowly, with an omphasls that hushed thoir mirth, "thet yo might hoy gained a mJto o' roapec' an' kindly feelin' nrftor all those yonr3 souco Johnsing died, j Et do 'pear tor mo 't yo might koep yer mouth shot of yo ken only say sech spltofui thongs. Iso only got those tor say ter yo, aadleran' tor' ye,' too, Smith ef ye kyan't say kind thengs o' the gal o Johnsing's arfter. all she's dono an 's still doln fer us yo ain't so welcome ter this'tav'n as yo were. An' ye ken take et as ye will. Thot's all I'vo got tor speak, an' now my mind's hottor'n when I sot hynr llst'nln' ter yer men talk." A flush came eveiuthrough tho tan of rough SadleHMfaceandf, Smith shuffled his feeTtiponiqjgravej- and knocked the ashes frourhls pipe as ho 3aid, slowly: tfg , "Thanke 'ee, JonPsr'W'es- been frien's nigh outer fo'ty year, nn' fer my part "I am sure I want you." I ain't a-goin' ter 'low sech triflin words ter kem atween wo. Hyar's my hand on 't. I ain't mebby so onfrlen'l to'rd D'lores es ye 'pear tor thenk. Wc3 all say thengs 't wes don't moan, an mebby thet's thor way of us. Eh, Sadler?" Sadler nodder his grisly head slowly. slow-ly. He , wasn't so frank spoken as Smith nor perhaps so kind-hearted under un-der his rough speech. Smith said many rough things, but ho would have dono much also. And young Grcon, holding Dolores' warm, hand closely in his to assist her UP, thorough. Moldoni troy don pnthmi. cr&iabQnuVnsrbousliff. nnd' ghastly' mists; was thinking of tho many years sho had lived there In tho stolid settlement set-tlement with not ono friend in all tho world save, It might be, tho rough, unspoken un-spoken kindliness of Jim Lodlo and CInthy. And with his kindly oyos upon up-on tho grave, beautiful faco ho could but wonder how suph a Ufo could ylold such "a marvol of womanliness and tenderness. It was a strange freak of hers, no doubt, this wish to onco again stand upon tho brink of her father's death, but how could lie, loving her, dissuado , her from a deslro-so intonso as this I was shown by the pleading of tho dark oyos? And so thoy had come, and, standing in tho very placo whoro she stood years before, with tho misty, mysterious gulf nt her feot and tho broken glimpses of bluo heaven through the floating mist, a touch of grief and pleading and tendornoss camo ovor tho pure, palo faco that caused this man, loving her, to bow his head as ono involuntarily bows tho head beforo tho chancel with tho touch of an lndoscrlbablo holiness brooding nbove. And ho romovod his hat, staudlng so, with his hand upon her round nrm as sho stood immovable immova-ble searching tho terrlblo death below her, as though for tho solving of tho bitterness of her Ufo, as though for tho solving of hor own harsh heart-lossness heart-lossness in accusing hor father whon nono other save tho man at her Bido and others with wicked intent, charged him with crime. And thero was an agony dawning over tho pallid faco and wide eyes that hushed all othor thought for tho timo in tho hoart of hor friond all thought save an intonso dcslro and longing to tako her into his arms and sootho this agony of bitterness bit-terness and shield hor all her lifo long from any touch of pair, any touch of life's harshness. But ho wnitr.,. i. lontly with bont hoad, his hand upon hor arm. whilo sho fought and won perhaps a struggle that fow aro called upon to fight, that fow would con-quer. con-quer. Then tho oyos, widonod with agony, were lifted from tho dopths of horror and mystory Booking tho broken brok-en bits of bluo hoavon through tho mist of tho tangled pines upon tho holght, and an indoscrihablo grandour and boauty gradually grow upon tho lifted face and In tho dopths of tho gravo oyos. All hor Ufo passed hor In roviow as she stood thero conscious oven though tho bitterness of this warm, kindly friond at hor side all tho bitterness and pain and humiliation and struggle of her life, all tho thoughts and cor-Towa cor-Towa and struggles, and whon at Uet aho turned facing this frlund, tho change upon her faco was as though an angel had touchod her standing thero, and life's Buffering had passed from her, life's struggles and pain, and left only tho touch of heavenly fingers upon tho eyes and mouth. Ono of her slow, radiant smile broke tho Badness of her faco as sho laid her hand upon the hand on her arm as she said softly, a.now intonation intona-tion oven in the low voice: "You mustn't be so "good to me, Charlie; I ought to Buffer alone some times. You cannot realize how much I deserve it." Ho laid his other hand warmly over this soft hand on his arm, a new light on his face, and In his eyes that caused a sudden ilroopingjof the facu in Iho light of tho sunset. "(You deserve to suffer!" there was anjjlntenslty in his voice born from watching tho suffering onher face, and from tho sufforlng in hls.nwn soul, "You deserve to suffer, Dolores John son! If thoro Is need for your suffering suffer-ing how much more should I suffer who was equal with you in thinking tho unkind thoughts? Come away from thin terrible place, Dolores-leave Dolores-leave all these old bitter memories hero In tho wolrd shadows, and .mists only fit for them, and glvoyour lifo to my keeping, tell mo you love mo as l 1qv;o you give me the answer to tho question I asked so long ago, Lorle, under tho light of your heavens, under un-der tho tender light of your stars ere you left mo for your now lifo and possible pos-sible forgetfulness." Sho mot his oyes gravely and Rquaro-ly, Rquaro-ly, though tho now light of tenderness, was still in thom as sho said, slowly, with almost her old alownoss: "Tho happiness of n man's life does not altogether depend on tho lovo of a woman, Charlie." "To n groat extent, darling." "Hut oven if I should tell you 'no,' you would be happy after a while, Charlie. Timo heals everything." "Not everything, Lorle." "Yes, everything," sho said, decidedly. decid-edly. "You know that time heals cv-' erythlng, Charlie oven tho old pain ' of unforglve.ness." I "Hush!" he said, swiftly, and his I hands on both hor nrms Mho held her facing him, wcrbV4wnJ7nur-v!th I tho wish to hold hor free from pain. I "You are never to say-, such things ' again, dearest. Lot those' "things pass. ' You have suffered enough for them, and God will lay His great tenderness over thom." Sho was silent a moment, as though reading his inmost thought, tho lifted eyes grave and, searching and tender. Then sho turned fronrthe gniesomo clmnm burled, iir fnJJ.....--.. orolMlirou.Tjot liftrcr iFSluSolU jr with a tenderness tlt touched him deeply: fA "God Is very good, Charlie. I cannot can-not doubt his tenderness. All my Ufo I will leavo in his hands as you say-nil say-nil my Ufo, past as well as future." Then presontly sho added: "Lot us go,. Charlie. I loavo hero burled in tho heart of His mountains the oitternoss that has shadowed not only my Ufo but thrives of thoso who lovo mo. Tho mowuTumTaTo His and my Ufo Is His." But aB they paused for an Instant on the rotten bridge with tho waters aobblng. at thoir feet, black 'with tho sllmo and smoko of tho town, sho laid hor hand earnestly upon his arm, nnd lifting hor gravo fnco to his, flushing with its now tondornoss, sho added, softly: "You have boon so good to mo always. al-ways. Charllo! Aro you suro suro you do want nobody hut that girl of Johnson's? I come with empty hands, you know." Ho smiled into tho quivering faco and wide, searching eyes and he answered an-swered her, taking her two hands in his closely as though ho would never again lot thom go from him: "I am sure, suro that I want you, Dolores Johnson, more than any woman wom-an In God's beautiful world. Your hands may bo empty hands, but thoy aro beautiful in tho work thoy. do and havo dono for others," for evon thoso cruol peoplo hero who wolild havo ruined your sweet lifo, and tho woman who, now your uncle's wlfo, would havo stained her hands forever for tho darkoning of your heart." And what could sho say? And tho lights of tho sunset wcro very tender ovor thom as ( thoy crossed tho bridge and passed up along the road through tha settlement whoro tho changes of her working had given an air of neat- noss and homo Ufo and widening of view, with Its school and church and kindly touch of noighborllness; nnd an thoy passed tho tavern whero Jones and his comrades' still sat with thoir pipes In .lazy on joymont the men gavo greotlng -with a now touch of kindliness kindli-ness that went to tho heart of tho girl who had livod her twenty years among thom unenrod for and unloved. And tho oyos of her lover wero brilliant bril-liant with tho depth of bis thought for hor, and his arm was strong to guldo and guard her through any pain tho future might bring, and nover again could this palo, beautiful girl of Johnson's suffer alone or bear hor life's burdens outsldo of the palo of tendoro8t"'love.M mm. (The End.) ' '' '' |