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Show Seated by the (lowing ember In tho gloomy old llrcllt hull, watching tha lame retreat, advance, flare up In pltndor, nml then die Into n dull llow, wa Jack Ionic Ttilr'.y-nvo reara had elapsed since Jack Aral saw the light ot day, and his life had hern M full ot Joy and misery, ot light and shadows, aa tho ordinary life of mankind. man-kind. , Typical of the ever-burning glow i a love within I.ji lit art which ten Man had not mothered Lfko the fire flame Imping high and linking low, waa tho hupa In his breast As Jack sat tliera atune, gating Into the Ore, thoughts of bygone days came over him, trooping at his memory's tall. Mingled with those memories waa n fair and radiant maiden, with hair ot suasnlne and eyes of autre This Im ge conjured up so vivid and llfcllka u his loving, laughing sweetheart, Queen,e Graham, as sbo looked on that Thanksgiving night so long ago. ilt would be ten )ears on the morrow mor-row slnca he bad last gated upon the dimpled, smiling, rugulsli fuca which h loved so well They were then betrothed, and s-o wore the betrothal ring which ho had placed upon her finger ouly a tow weeks before llow vivid that picture came before his eyes. Ten years semcd to hate rultsu backward, ami lie was a youth f 23 again, and Queenle flraham, his adored one, n blushing maiden of 18. The old-fashioned farmhouse, with white, oaken floor, and the bos with thilr sweethearts, and the Jolly old flddlsr who ptavd half asleep, only awaking to call out In deep, etontor-loas etontor-loas tones' "Swing partners to place " Tho lamps swinging from tho celling Doodad tho scena with the most brilliant bril-liant light. Qay laughter and Jest told of light hiarls, and happy faces glowed to tho loul-stlrrlng music ot the "Irish Washerwoman," Wash-erwoman," sawed oft by tho tiddler. Jack's lovo. Ilka all true love, did not run smooth. In fact, love begets Its own misery. . o was madly Jealous Jeal-ous when sho smiled on Ram Drown, and In swinging partners Sam held ber hand too long and squeezed It too ardently to suit tbo Jealous lover. "Queenle, you'ro n flirt," he declared, de-clared, "1 saw you wink at Bam Brown." She turned on him with proud, flashing eyes, and said: "Don't be aurprlfd If I call you another. an-other. You kissed Builo Hell." "That'a not truo." "Yes, you did; for 1 heard her tell Mary Courlwrlght." "It Is false, Queenle," he cried. In bis Indignation Suite. Hell was a round-faced, ugly country Rlrl with no attractions, and tongue gltuu to mischief mis-chief making. Tho dance went on, and the lovers' quarrel with It. As Jack and Qiwenlo whirled In the giddy mazes of tho dance fiat silly, childish quarrel waxed hot, entrancing ber beauty with every angry word sho uttorcd. At last, ob tho "set wot over," sho suddenly Jerked tho betrothal emblem ' " "qunenie, oh, my iono-u)st i,ovi: , from ber finger, and thrusting It Into v .-. ,m bis band said: "Here Is your ring; you can marry Miss Sue" With a heavy heart the angry Jack Long donned his topcoat and winding his muffler about his neck to keep the chill November air from his throat, went out Into the night never to look upon the face of that adored being again. ' He neard from Queenle occasionally, and at last that she had gone east to live. How far cast or what part ot the east, he did not know, and was too proud to ask. She waa lost to him forever, and he , grew melancholy. He went west, to Ibe as far from her as possible, and engaged en-gaged lu business at a frontier town, with cowboys and ranchmen for his associates. as-sociates. Then came the mutterlngs of war with Spain. He bad always loved the weak, and prang to the first call to arms. Hough riders were wanted, nnd ho had learned to mount the wildest broncho. He enlisted, nnd hurried off to the front At Santiago he landed, and In tho march to tho city was In tha first skirmish. Then came that noble charga on San Juan Inn Ho led tho charge amid dust and heat, fighting Ilka a mad man until struck down, faint and bleeding, bo lay on mother earth to die "Queenle, Queenle, oh, my long-lost loted one, shall I never see you more?" he was beard to murmur, as borne away from the field Somehow thero was something In this piteous cry which touched the hearts of thoso who heard It A newspaper man who wns near sent with nls report tho following brief sentence- "A soldier, wounded and dying, whllo being carried from the field, wns heard lo exclaim with his last breath Queenle, Queenle, oh, my long-lost town one'' No doubt this piteous appeal wrung from a noblo heart was to some faithless sweet- "WIIJ, YOU DAKCi: WITH MB?" heart who had descried him years before." be-fore." This simple little paragraph had been copied and recopled, and discussed. dis-cussed. anJ mnde the theme for countless count-less stories and ballads Hut Jack, who uttcrea It, dldn l die. He lived to return to America, was honorably discharged, and resolved lo pass another Thanksgiving In the old neighborhood where his young days had been spent. So he returned, after I an absence ot nearly ten years, and was at the house of his lather on this evening, gating sadly Into the flro which seemed to reflect his own aching ach-ing heart. What was lite to him now? That chief charm, that only light, to his soul, had gone out, having all gloom and darkness Ho was like, an old man His hair, onco dark as the raven's wing, showed traces of silver In It, nnd bis fare, so handsome, clear nnd fresh, now had tho lines of care upon It Though he sometimes smiled and assumed as-sumed an appearance of gaycty, his mother knew that his heart was sad. Hut that mother had a hope that happiness would ct dawn on her son. Sho had a piece at Intelligence she had not broken to him Quccnla Graham, Gra-ham, after an absonro of ten years, had returned to visit an nunt. Thero wns to bo u great Thanksgiving Thanksgiv-ing party at .uck'a grandmother's, tho oldest lady In the neighborhood, at which sho was to Invite nil the )oung folks, for "Grandma Goodwin" took groat plcnsiiro In joung people. Quecnlo would no doubt bo there, and sho determined that Jack should meet her. The mother know that her son's pride would Kicp him nway If ha knew Quecnlo wns to bo there, so sho kept that surprlso n secret from him She little knew bow lovo had humbled hum-bled Jack'a pride In tho vest pocket of tho veteran, ha carried tha self saino ring 'vlilch Queenlo had thrust hack on him ten years before. It was next his heart when ho stormed San Juan hill, nnd he hoped If ho was slain tha bullet would pass within tho golden circle of his youthful love, and that he might dla with her name mi his lips. Hut fato destined Jack to live, lie Jtui miu ucaillii'U Jai'K to live, lie was once moro homo, nmong friends who had crowded about to hear him tell of tho wild charge and tho storm of death Would ho go to grandmother's next day to tho Thanksgiving dlnncri Yes, ho would. The mother was happy. The old carriage was loaded with Jolly young folks and mlddlo-aged people, peo-ple, and nmong them the veteran of Ban Juan Orandma'a table groaned with plenty, plen-ty, goose, and turkey, pies and caudles, cau-dles, ciuer, nuts and apples In abundance abun-dance Hut what was far moro precious to the ex-rough rider was a radiant face lie bad loved so long In fore. He thought she had suffered as well as be. They were too much surprised at meeting that neither would tall what emotions wero being stirred lo the other's heart. wsMsWi t Quwrale'i 'beauty vru Tnstored u eeemed more heightened by tlma. gas u far more lovely than before. Aft-er Aft-er the first moment's shock ot surjrUe pride assumed control, and p1ltieo other on the guard They longed to break the Ice, but neither wanted to make the "ounce. Alter the feasting was over tt, happy group assembled In the treat parlor lo talk over pleasant rental!. cenres or Indulge in n qui1 tt--teto. ' Then someone, may his trlbt la-crease, la-crease, said' "I brought my violin. 1 '" H nnd call off, let us have a. dancs tonight" to-night" ' The suggestion was greeted with, a hearty shout, and the young IHoi ruahed to And their partners. Itlght quickly they all took tbelr places on the floor, when they found that they wnnut Just one conjla more "Come, come. Soldier Jack, secure n partner," cried .je voluntary no- tlclan. Moved by somo uncontrollable In-pulse, In-pulse, Jack arose and went to whtrs Queenle Graham sat, nnd, bcndlsi low, whispered. "Will you como nnd danco 'lUsttto tho Wedding' with mo?" She assented, and all were at tatlr places Then somione on the piano secon. panled tho violin In that sweet til melody, "Haste to tho Wedding" I There Is nlways an opportunity 1 quadrille for n sly word now and th between partners. "All Join bnnds and clrclo to III right" "I want lo ask )ou something. whlspercu, when they wero at th!r 1 places nguln. , "What Is It?" ' Tlrst four forward and back again." J And away they went When next tl.cy ha- nn opportunity ( -e thrust Into his hand an lUn clipped from a newspaper it was of n young soldier carried bleeding and d)lng from Snn Juan hill, murmuring ' "Queenle. Queenle, oh, my long-loit j loved one, shall I ncverseo you more! I "Was that you?" sho asked "Yes," ho answered. Then ho took her nnnd It trimblcd, and her aturc eyes grew dim "Ilalanre nil " It was several minutes before either could speak. The swei t-tuned violin, accompanied by tho piano, poured forth such soul-stirring soul-stirring music as enn be found only In that precious old nlr, "Haste to thi Wedding " He wns about to apeak when tht musician "calling oft" shouted "Gents to places all promenade." It gave him on opportunity lo recover re-cover himself, and when next they glided ncrosa tha room ho whispered: "Say, queenle, .will you kr(p'lhctj promise you made long ago?" She looked up at hlru, tailing through her tears. Ten yiura of misery nnd suffering had passed since he held that band. Oh, It was reward for nil that auZo Ingl "Queenle, I have It yet," he wlls-percd, wlls-percd, taking from hla vest pocket the betrothal ring which tin bad carried all tbise ears. "It has never left me, for I always had 'hoped that n tlmo might come when I could restore It to the Honor wbero It belonged. i was with ma on that dark, gloomy day at San Juan hill, wbcro I saw so many nobis men dlo "I carried It over my heart and prayed that It I fell some Sphinlih bullet might pass through the bind of love lo reach a heart that but for you Oh, Queenle, did you know that you have never " "Swing partners to place " What an abomination wns that old fiddler and tho dnnre to Jack When he next cot an opiortiialty ho whispered - "Never been out of my mind." |