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Show $$tr Alt. -at. -Hi. Jjjj. vVt. .Mfr t- Wl, 1 Esther's 1 Wireless S I I By MARY PARRISH h 3 E (Copyright, 1917. by W. G. Chapman.) "Well, she can't go on this way much longer." Mrs. Flint gave her opinion with an nir of finality that was entirely convincing con-vincing to Mrs. Baker on the other side of the fence. In fact, Esther Marvin had for some time furnished a topic of conversation to the inhabitants of the small-New England town. Time was when it was considered quite the fashionable thing to send one's daughter to Miss Marvin's School for Young Ladies; but that was some nine years ago when Miss Marvin's social position as the daughter of the lately deceased judge not only gave her influence in her own circle, but served as a sort of lure to those a trifle lower in the social scale. When the judge died, leaving his wife and daughter daugh-ter nothing after his debts were paid, but the fine old house on the hill, Esther Es-ther decided that the best thing she could do was to convert the big billiard room into a school room, and try to make a living for her mother and herself her-self by utilizing her college education as a teacher. The change in their fortunes for-tunes told heavily on the frail little mother, who two years later drifted on to a less material world leaving her daughter to face the problem alone. The school prospered, but aside from her loneliness, Esther had another problem to face. She was a staunch, couraglous soul, and she did not waver. Before her father's death Esther had become engaged to Howard March. The alliance had been approved of by the judge for March was his old friend's nephew, and he believed he saw in the young man energy and rtrength of character sufficient for him to make an honorable career. Esther loved him as only such a deep, true .nature can. They were to be married In about four months, when March told her of an expedition he had been asked to join to take up land for tea-growing rcgnrded as a mild form of mtmlu. In a small town where the closer contact con-tact with our neighbors, it would sci'tn ought to breed a stronger love and tolerance It more often happens that criticism magnifies their peculiarities and exaggerates their faults. So it was that Esther's stubborn belief that March would return, in the face of all reasonable proof to the contrary grew in the minds of the townspeople from mania to insanity; and when an intimate in-timate friend told another intimate friend that Esther Marvin had said she sent Howard March a "wireless" then it began to be whispered about in confidence that an insane asylum might not be a remote possibility. Careful parents began to withdraw their daughters from the school. The attendance gradually dwindled till one day Esther with a kind of dull despair closed the schoolroom, and sat down to wonder what next she could do, for the little money which had of late been coming in was lessening fast. She could not understand why the school after years of prosperity had failed. Not for one instant did she dream of the real cause. Her faith in the return re-turn of the man she loved, and her belief be-lief that she would yet reach him with her own "wireless" was to her so true and convincing she could not quite understand un-derstand why it should be utterly preposterous pre-posterous to others. But what of Howard March? These are the facts, as they afterward came to the surface. The expedition met with failure on the island where they had expected to start the tea plantation. planta-tion. They were told of better opportunities opportun-ities in the southern Chinese territory, so they went there, secured some laud, and started their project. Not understanding under-standing well the tea culture, again they failed, and all of the men but Howard March decided to return. He had picked up enough of the Chinese language to speak It quite well, and he wished to explore further, and to see something of India, for he had for years been interested In the study of occult things, and the dreamy atmosphere atmos-phere of the Orient had strengthened the desire. But stronger than this was the love of adventure. So passing , from Calcutta he one day found him' self In Darjeeling on the borders of the "Forbidden Land," Tibet, that strange country, whose mysterious, marvelous capital is ruled by the "Dalai Lama," vice-regent of Buddha on earth, upon whose countenance no stranger may look and live. March had been warned that it was not only foolish but fatal to try to penetrate much further into Tibet ; but one day he fell In with two English- . men who had been commissioned by the British government to survey as far as possible Into the Interior. March stirred to enthusiasm by their project, asked to join them, and was gladly accepted. ac-cepted. I They started out disguised as Chinese Chi-nese merchants. Two of their prayer wheel covers concealed surveying instruments, in-struments, which were taken out for use when the coast was clear; and hastily hidden when a native appeared. Meanwhile March Industriously twirled his wheel, piously murmuring his devotions, devo-tions, so that no questions would be asked ; for the Oriental will never interrupt in-terrupt the prayers of the faithful. Nothing but tough physical fiber, and high courage could have taken them over the arid sands, and the almost al-most Inaccessible mountain peaks and gorges, but one day they arrived within with-in sight of the wonderful walled city of Lhasa. Its splendid roofs and turrets tur-rets rose on a series of hills to an enormous height, crowned by the beautiful beau-tiful palace of the grand lama. "Now," said Blake, "we've seen Lhasa, and are still alive, let us turn back at once." But Stirling, the younger man, and1 March were for trying to go nearer. Blake firmly refused, and it was arranged ar-ranged he should wait for them at a point some ten miles back. He took all the records of the survey, and If they did not appear In two weeks, he was to go on to Darjeeling, and again wait. The two men went on, and toward night were within a few rods of the great gate surmounted by Its curious cap-shaped dome, and tapering tower. A band of pilgrims were going In, and they managed to enter with them. But the next instant they were seized and Imprisoned. For two days they were flogged in the public square. The third day Stirling was executed. March knew it was his turn next. He was turning his prayer wheel, having In the-Interval the-Interval put up an earnest prayer in. his own tongue, when a Buddhist monk paused, and spoke to him. He asked If he would like to Join the brotherhood. brother-hood. He said he would, and that day was liberated, and went to live in the-monastery. the-monastery. It seemed a miracle to March, but all he could even find out was that he had been "chosen." lie-soon lie-soon found It would be certain death, to try to escape. And so the day lengthened into years, and the year:)--went on. Esther sat alone In the dreary house. The day was dying, snow flakes had begun to float down, and there was no fire on the hearth. There was scarcely scarce-ly food enough In the house for another an-other day, but she did not mwin that anyone should know. The front door bell rung. She rose slowly and opened the door. A thin, bronzed man stood there whom xhe did not know. Ilo took her in his arms, and cried : "Esther "Es-ther !" Then she knew. After he had told her of his life la China, he added : "That night your voice came to me with such a thrill, I said I will get away yes I will mako a try for It, if they kill me. I heard you say, 'I want you !' " "It was my wireless," she said. "They thought me mad but I Vnew It was true." Flogged in the Public Square. off the coast of China. It meant a great opening for him, and Esther told him ho must go. He urged an Immediate Imme-diate marriage as he must sail In three weeks if he accepted. But her mother strongly opposed the hurried wedding. Judge Marvin had been dead only a few weeks, and she felt that her daughter was now being torn from her. Esther assured her mother she would remain with her, but as she still kept the same attitude, March was for giving up the expedition, when Esther prevailed upon up-on him to go. "We can wait, dear," she said. "It will only be about three months before you are back." "I hope It will not be longer," he answered, an-swered, "but we can never set an exact ex-act time, and sometimes we may get away so far from a post office, you may not hear from me in weeks." "I shall always know you are thinking think-ing of me, and are coming back to me," she said. "Always think that, dearest It will always be true." Howard March did not return In three months, but she heard regularly from him. Sometimes the letters were short, but when they halted, and 'he had more leisure, they were long, filled with accounts of his travels, and always al-ways breathing a devotion which seemed to Increase rather than lessen by absence. After about eight months the letters ceased. The last one had told of starting on a trip Into a wild, unexplored country, and as the weeks went by without any tidings Esther concluded March wns still beyond any means of communication. But 'when the weeks lengthened Into months, and the months into years with never n word from him she knew not what to think. Those who had known him had settled it that either he had been killed by savages, or had chosen to remain away. Esther would not accept either of these conclusions. She was firm in her belief that he would return. Esther's persistent belief In the return re-turn of Howard March began to be |