Show IFOR OR M 0 N E a Y by P copyrighted I 1 4 tae author compani norma hildreth 1111 dreth sat up in the ham mock and looked with increasing won der at the open letter in her hand bears k ears ago she did not stop to think how many she and the writer of thia this letter had been college classmates and his fiance had been a friend of b hers era that the engagement was broken she had long known though who had taken the first step she was ignorant but dut and she turned to the signature and read it again K E langford tt it looked as his writing did when for a few brief months at af ter graduation they had carried on a desultory sort of correspondence but and she caught her breath with a little gasp hadn haan t she heard that he was dead killed by a landslide or an explosion or something in the tar far away state where she knew that he had gone after his graduation from the law school this was his writing and that was his name he was in the land of the living he wanted to come to see her she read it all over again slowly as she sometimes used to do her latin in the hope that it would soak in here was this fortune the figures danced before her fantastically into which he was to come it if by the first of next year he was married he wis asking he to help him ask ing her noima noi ma hildreth to be his wife in the eye of the law that a for tune n night ight be realized that done the mone once firmly in her possession hall half of it and a dh orce should be hers such was the situation as he had submitted it to her why should she consider it for a here with her aunt she had a home but some time it would be broken up the little property propel prop eity ty would go and ought to go to her cousins hera and what would become of then there theres s lena longing for a chance for her boy and carol with her music oh t it be lovely to do she leaned back in the hammock and closed her eyes all of her lito she hid had coveted money and figured what it would do tor for her dear ones well sha she would write to him tell him to come and see her he might have changed so that the plan he proposed would be utterly impossible to her it would soon be time to get supper and she must write to mr langfort I 1 engfor rl 1 now while what she sho wanted to say was clearly in her mind she would consider it as a business tion and would see him at her aunt a home whenever he might find it con to call she read the short note hurriedly and decided that it was formal and non committal enough then she sealed it hastily that fhe might not be tempted to change it she had put her hand to the plow and would not look back at supper that evening she was so j preoccupied that she scarcely noticed S her uncle uncles s troubled look until elsie asked does your head ache no but you haven t bated your toast I 1 0 al af t looked with increasing hondr at the letter in her hand bald said toddles who for some time had had eyes on the cream toast that norma had prepared tor for her A uncle mr williams pushed the plato plate toward the eager little handa hands with a brief there toddles eat it I 1 don dont t want it are you not feeling well asked mrs williams as she peered anxiously around the tea pot oh yes well enough things got I 1 ind of mixed at the store norma new how her uncle had been straining every nerve to meet the interest which fell due in septem ter and then there would be more interest in march and in september again and some aime ime would come the notes rhems ives ves uncle rube baa has been so good to me she said to herself as she wiped the dishes that elsie washed eisie what would you do if you had a thousand dollars oh more than that all the money you vou wanted me oh I 1 id d study tudy music and tal e the whole family to the mountains she felt half s ck with the fear of what this ride might mean and pay off papas papa a debts and hire a girl to do the dish washing that m would be pretty nice we ilan t if it boj d better guess it would norma felt the letter in her apron poc acet and decided that she would mail it vo weel afterward itt erward a tall broad shouldered man with mith a firm chin and steady gray eyes was helping norma into the carriage that the boy from the livery stable had bad just driven up mr I 1 engford bad come the day b foie foi e and that evening had been spent ditl the will ams who all abreu agreed d that norn as a s class mate was a very interesting man As norma orma held out her cold fremb unhand she half sick with mith the fear of what this ride might mean this man was so big and strong so deferential and so masterful she mas glad that she had known him as she had and thankful for the honest honet respect she had always felt tor for his unsullied manhood or r the smooth road they sped norma sought wildly for something to say but found no middle ground be tween the platitudes that her lips would mould not itter and the purpose of this drive and that she could not first firt touch upon but the man beside her wis was talking talling he might be saying that she ought to hear ery cry quit his oice noice was as he told her al out his life in the west about the practice he had tried to build up about wha thir class mates had done and were doing As norma orma felt the quiver of her excited nerea throbbing into quiet she relaxed her rense tense muscles and leaned back thank fill that this man was giving her a little time yo i I 1 new about bessie be he was saying bessie had been his fiancee in those college das I 1 never knew which one ot of you did it we both did I 1 guess he answer cd and his oice ha I 1 a far off sound imas I 1 a as a long way off and worl ing bard hard it tales ta es a long time foi fol a soung oung 3 fellow to build up a paying practice an honest one and then she began to go with johnson and that Had ringham anu and I 1 dont don t know who else yes it was the inflection more than he the word that helped h in ont on well I 1 heard of it I 1 was angry with her and angry with myself it didn dian t seem just fa r she had waited tor for me a long time but there were the college debts and when they were paid I 1 couldn coulden t her to come out to that far away country to noth ing better than I 1 could offer her but it if you loved each other norma began and then the purpose of this drive struck her dumb yes he went on with what nor ma almost felt to be ominous quiet but we grew apart instead of to gether people talked you know I 1 was proud and so was she and well the bubble burst some way norma a vision began to clear sie slie clutched at the bows of the buggy and clasping one of them tight she in A d k air arr langford Lang furd 1 it seems this way to me t bessie the first right to a share of this money moneys 9 haar you aid the matt matter r before her per naps haps his qu et voice interrupted her aliss miss hildreth it Is of no use to tall of bessie or of any one else when I 1 knew of tho the provisions of roger rogers s will I 1 did not hesitate in my choice do vou suppose there are no girls in the town where I 1 live I 1 t need to come a thousand miles to get a irl but I 1 wanted ou dont don t you understand 9 in jn college I 1 liked you nett nelt to bessie my love for her is dead bu but norma don dont t you under standa I 1 love you I 1 take bac the proposition I 1 made mado when I 1 m wrote rote that letter I 1 knew that you were the only girl I 1 v wish to share in the arrangement suggested but until 1 I came I 1 did not know that I 1 was real rear ly in love bink sink the business part in the depths of the sea try to love me a little norma rma for I 1 want you to be my wife for good and true norma normas s heart gave a bound lang f ford 0 rd a arm v her close as she s sobbed out her answer |