Show one christmas eve by aard 1 jordan garth 1 T if 1 ill 11 alta 1 I 1 a N 0 V par UW HE girt girl with ath sad ud es at gazing mournfully out 1 alil upon the e brightly rig ty illume 11 ml bated street abstractedly gedly taking akin in the christmas trooping crowd crowds the man sombre as a well ho had bad j just stepped stopped upon the front platform of 0 the caa ani remained there crisp and biting as a wai the yuletide yule tlde air there come the call of an intersection anti and ada at the lat moment caught the namo an and hurried to the rear ae As she alighted I 1 randall started stared m n d 0 a movement am if to hasten after her but the door clanged close and he fie siw the figure of the only woman be he had ever loved swallowed up in the fast receding wave waves of alternate bigit bed and darkness of what avail she would scarcely welcome me he spoke under him breath I 1 we are parted by her will she must have meant it to be final he lie entered the car and eat down in the seat the girl had bad just vacated it was an old s ry to his wen weary the one love romance of his life lit tic had met ada wilton at her moth ers tes home in the quiet little village of brocton bad all but confessed his love A de clolie understanding to his proposal was stayed by an interruption the next morning petrie was suddenly summoned by i i relative in another town toan lie bad expected to be gone only a few days but bis his sojourn ran into month months TN twice lee he v wrote rote ada there came no reply A third letter was returned to him marked ke ile fused I 1 lie ile hod bad lat later ermade made inquiries regarding her to learn that she and her mother had removed to the and he gave I 1 er up as lost to him As the car stopped for new I 1 etrie moed to make room tor for one of thea lie ile jostled something com ething in the feat eat A mall hand bag his ills quick amali en ps d discerned corned its ouner ownership ship he ile left loft the car at the firt stop like soini nili tr greedy of a treasure in estimable petrie hurried into a pul put lie restaurant and sought its iti re mott 1 corier lie told 1 eld something that had belonged to abin I 1 A titling fitting excuse wis given to return it to her its contents would surely give some clew to her place of work her rest deuce he ile opened the hand bag A purse showed shoed the edge of a card in a little pocket petrie drew it out she remembered abe he has apt that all this time timet he exulted then cords failed him ills heart bent beat he ile had brought to light a photograph of himself he bad had once given to ada lie ile fingered over several little packages and christmas card then an ene envelope ope unstamped and un sealed pealed addressed to miss anum I 1 aura deane brocton nr octon petrie re a close friend of da it was no loing instinct that cau caceil ed him to withdraw the enclosure one line perked bla his dazzled eyes refused to bope pe the tho written I 1 your discovery tl ti at nt it was not bandall petrie but a relative of his name who ho led euch such a wild abl evil life the report of which caused me to serl e to forget comes too late to bri ige lie the rat vast hut but ohl oh I 1 I 1 aura I 1 how enn 1 ever repair the injustice done 7 4 some nay ny some way be he must know of my fateful error for I 1 love him more than ever because of the cruel I 1 have doue done him 1 I 1 had bad hoped td be able to save up enough tu to make a present of a tins this christmas ran one paragraph but I 1 find and I 1 must watt alt until her birthday you know bow se she loves the old songs mono randall pressed his lipa to the big naturi to him the dearest name on in e eartle rth tho th address writ bolow ten below it and left the restaurant in a glow of hf ht perno and faith two three flos Ilor iter ilter street he fevered alij as a if it boro borni on wine ains nw new n beuning to christ ma mas ave VP had orme to him 1 I 1 have drought brought a lot lost hand bag hf he edke as his summons sujo mons at the door of he the house he sought was opened and then he h paused there stood before him ada ad she wavered overcome by the unexpected encounter impulsively his hand steadied her tier she did not draw from its it protecting touch la a tn arnt tr t nt of words be he could not cot control without evasion or attempted tempted nt apology randall told of the content contents in the handbag that haq hall awl him back te to her wa was he welcome V x ith a low tender cry like to that of a 1 tired child finding 9 sore sure haven of riet riot at t lest last absil ada e soak to bis shoulder and th for mother I 1 randall ard ar doati faill it U tah be b br ber tle tk 91 bat st throe thing lero taz all the wet sweet id ax he she love nj MY anu B MIL axy I 1 bl ohad tb tha mactor |