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Show flflBp. ooooooooooooo flBpflL- ooooooooooooo tm Young Atherley's H 9 Luck. B by A. M. D. OCDEN. jBBfll t i i 1 1 flflflfl OOOOOOOOOOOOO jBB .OOOOOOOOOoooo B lO5. UU morning sun lay wurm IbBbI ' R m V nml cIonr uftcr tllc raln of BIB o ' P O the night before, nnd youug BflV H 1 Atherley, as bis horse fl WOW loped easily along tho wide Bfl ra , ang aloud for very Joy of light Bfl henrtedncss. Out bore, away from BB cities and crowds, bow good life was. flflj The train was In, and Atherley bur- jflflfll rled around the corner, then baited jflflflj suddenly, dazzled by the vision which J confronted biui. On the lower steps of a car near the middle of tho train stood a girl, her fair hair blowing in tho jflflflj . wind, her bauds full of pink roses, her eyes gazing straight into his. For n ABB eeconU neither moved. Then, as n voice flflfl from within called "Marlon," the girl, BB .with a quick Hush, turned up the steps, BB and Atherley, stricken with tbo con- BBB eclousness of bis dusty "chaps," huge flflj spurs and sombrero, slipped back. Ho IB had quite forgotten his letter. The en- BBB' glne gavo a preliminary siiort, the con- BW. Uuctor yelled "All aboard!" but Athcr- Pftm; ley still stood motionless, bis eyes fixed BftB on tho car wherein sho bad dlsap- HHB pearcd. As the slow length of the train IB began to move the girl slipped back to flflflj the platform for u moment, and on the ground almost at Athcrley's feet fell a flflflj pink rose. To spring forward, selzo tho flower, then swing aboard tho last car us It passed was to Atherley but BBf tbc work of another moment Before ho had fairly realized It bo was on the BBJ train and speeding eastward as fust as steam could carry him. BIB Prnctleol thoughts forced a way and BBJ bis ilrst act wus to toko account of flflj "Jim will take the horso back," he reasoned. "It's all right. Luckily I linvo Just about enough for my ticket flflj to New York'." Somehow he had do- flflj elded that sho lived in New York. flflj "And as for meals. Well, who knows what may turn up?" with cheerful op- H timlsm. HB At the next stop he sneaked forward B ito tho smoking car and bat down to think things over. She was certainly a mighty pretty glrll Atherley, feeling Bfl ifor the rose, bidden in bis breast pock. B et, concluded that he would probably B not regret his action. 1 "But I've got to get busy on tbo food .Question." B v There were three or four other men Bi 'In tho car, tho younger oiies chatting ' together, and another, rather older, reading in a corner. All eyed him cu- rlously, but Atherley had an lnsplra tlou. If he worked them right, amused J them, told them queer loxpurlences, I they might supply him wttli food and I drink, and as for cigars, well, lie must J .husband thoso lie had carefully. In J pursuance of this idea he moved near- J cr, and soon held .tho group enthralled H ftvlth his breezy frankness. H "So you really Just Jumped on the I train and came)" usUeil an older man at length, when Hilly had ctowu BJ aweary of bis talk mid movetl uway, M "and for no other reason than that you Bj (wanted to seo the world?" Atherley B laughed rather shamefacedly. "That's wliat I told those follows. J But I don't mind telling j on the truth. J It was It was on account of a girl," J he said, lialllngly. The older mau'x J lips twitched. "A glrll How so?" H "I suw her on the ear step," con- fessed Atherley. "Aiid-aml I liked H her," he ended, lamely, not oven to H himself did he care to mcutlDii the rose. H "I wonder if you have seen her?" he J ndded, eagerly. "Slie had on some J kind of a blue skirt, with a white waist Bl and carried t-omu roses. They called H her 'Marlon,' H "Marlon 1" ho exclaimed, "why. that's my daughter," unthinkingly. Then he I stopped, rather annoyed. A young ? rnnchman, no iniitttT how charming Bf anjl gentlemanly, was baldly n person to tic presented to the carefully guard-H guard-H ed Marion, Hut .Atherley was too ah-H ah-H soi'hcil U) notice tho heiltatiou 1 "'pur jihtrr!'' he cried. "Heall BJ your daughter oh, 1 sny, what lr.6kf That will save rue uu awful lot oftlme and trouble I expected the Ceuco of a Job In locating her. Though -I knew that I should do It In tho end," lie added confidently. -Do you mind telling tell-ing mo your nauioV ' "My name?" divided between Indignation Indig-nation and mirth. "I am James Ar-buthuot," Ar-buthuot," he declared rather pompously. pompous-ly. But Atherley wus clearly unimpressed. unim-pressed. "Better aud better," he cried. "I always al-ways was a lucky. chap," Joyously. Tho cider man leaned back ami staled ut him. "My dear young man," began ho in his most forninl manner, "I think we must undci stand each other. 1 certainly cer-tainly fall to seo where tho tuck comes In." Atherley, staring In his turn, became be-came suddenly enlightened. "Of course. You mean that you don't know me," ho cried. "Oh, that's all right." easily. "I've heard dad speak of you hundreds of times. I'm Billy Atherley, and I've Just been out looking look-ing up komo properties In thu West." The older man's brow cleared borne-bow. borne-bow. "Not William II. Atberlcy's son?" Atherley nodded. ''The biimc. fc'o now won't jou Introduce Intro-duce mo to your daughter?" wistfully. "It would sao such u lot of time." Arbutlinot, his gray eyes twinkling, looked nt the joung man quizzically. "If you are much like jour father, and I think jou are, you would be hardly apt to wait long for my services," serv-ices," he remarked jocosely. "Come along, then. All I ask of you Is please not to get married beforo we reach New York."f Tho tone btrovo to be stern, but young Atherley laughed hap-Idly. hap-Idly. "I make no promises," ho declared wltlt gay dellance. "Oh, here, hold on a uiqmcnt," as u sudden recollection of ills uuinalied letter recurred to liltu. Pulling out tho cn elopo he tore It Into fragments, letting the pieces lloat out of the open window. "It was to say that I wasn't coming home," lie explained. "I will telegraph from Chicago. Now, It you arc ready." San Francisco Call. |