Show the crippled I 1 lady of T it rc a by james 0 r curwood doran co ine mrs mrs haldan was tte the soul of this cheer twenty five years in america had taken from her the ruggedness of her native mountains but had left the spirit of their beauty she looked at paul with the same eyes that carla had her hair was heavy like carlas Cari aa and almost white paul had a vision of her back in her mountains a quarter of a century before how much she must have looked like carla theal what beauty grew in those out of the way places like flowers lost in rugged rock crevices with ages of history and the struggle of life behind it to give it character A beauty with indestructible memories along with other things memory of love most of nil all ue he knew that carlas father had died twenty years yeara before but one could always see him clearly in the eyes of carlas mother and when she I 1 talked about him it was as though lie be had gone away on a little visit only yesterday carla would be like that one love one man forever there was no pretense la in her mothers gladness that he had come they visited for achour an hour end and carla made tea and served little cakes never had paul seen carla so beautiful as during this wonderful hour houi he spent with her mother when he was wag about to leave and stood with her alone for a few moments it seemed to him he could feel the throbbing of her body near him her fingers igers pressed his hand a little convulsively when he said goodby good by you ton have made me happier than I 1 have been in a long time me she said the words repeated themselves in hla his mind after he bad gone no woman had ever told mm him that he hafl had made her happy except Ms his mother carla and his mother ile he took a long walk in the rain up through the jack pines into the heavier ever evergreen geen timber where the drizzle penetrated rated only in a mist and the two women walked at his side then his wife joined them three wonderful women his mother carla his wife with a fourth waiting for or death back in her chair the world must forever continue to be beautiful with such women la in it it it was claire claere his wife who wha turned him about and took him back to Der wenta home lie he talked about her that evening but he be said nothing about the other three they were locked in his heart and it seemed sacrilege to open tile the door upon them I 1 CHAPTER IV the next day was S saturday and paul started lor for early in the morning with carla bad weather had given ivay way at last to glorious autumnal elins slins int and li sa ita was sg glad dmd the fee r rain aan g soaked aked fa band t n tan anil d clay made a horse and buggy necessary carla was different had grown different overnight tile beauty which had bad come into her face when he be wits was with tier lier mother had not disappeared to leave it so tense and strained gain again she seemed nearer to him infinitely more dependent than yesterday and hali happier it if there could be such a thing as that emotion left in tier her life they crossed the great blueberry baneberry burris burns with nilles miles and miles of flat wild country about them reaching toward the oie labeon lake on one side and the timbered wilderness on the other only at wide intervals was there a habitants home and they met no one ou on the sticky road even this barrenness paul loved ile he talked to carla about the country all nature no matter how bow desolate it might appear to others was beautiful to him he said nature could not make a desolation that was not beautiful and never v was vas as there a jarring note in its ita handiwork because most humans human could not see the beauty and pathos of a fire blackened stub or the en chanting mystery of fk a dormant pond was not proof that nature hart had made an error it was merely evidence that most human eyes were mind blind in a sandy place he got out oui and cut bushes weighted heavily will blueberries and they plucked the luscious fruit from the oe sami same strini str iii and ate it as they rode along it ajl ans almost happiness only flie file still thing shadowing them kept kepi it II ft arnin wi being that and even tills this seemed to fold its wings for flassing moments it grew warm and trilb the habit of her mothers people carla bared tier her head bead to lei flip or stir in her hair paul looked at al it 11 with the restless desire in hill grow crow ing stronger it was alwaes so sint kintli li and soft wit with h its silky colls coils so grac fully fitting her head that it sweed a loss of something precious not to touch ouch its benuta Us je thought thou glit of what lucybelle lucy belle had told her bulhand of the love story in carlas life some man had loved it IL some mat mah had find put his hand band upon it As their road came into green timber and he listened to carlas voice telling him that in her own heart was a love for nature so sc great that she would never live in a city again lie he wondered what it was eliat had spoiled her romance so that slie she would never care for any other man or marry they came to Perl bonka and maria chapdelaine set them a luncheon in the old fashioned little dining room overlooking her garden with its ita luxuriant array of vegetables anc flowers bowers slie she a admired d mired carla and brought in a little girl she had adopted to show her what loveliness one might cone come to possess if one lived right carla was a hit bit embarrassed and paul delimited delighted by such ardent and frankly spoken up samuel chapdelaine tall thin and the main prop of church choir chair joined them a 4 tile the table for a visit and after a time paul toor took him aside and explained his hl mission they went up the street together and when they returned the business was wag over the small square of ground with its wild honeysuckle vines belonged to carla ile be took her to see aee it niter they said goodby good by to the Chapde laines and when they stood over it looking down at the river he saw tears in carlas corlna eyes for the first time since he be had known her she made no mi movement to tn hide them or wipe them away when she smiled her gratitude at af him he held field 0 out u ills his hand and she gave him her own ue he held field it for a few moments and neither broke the silence which fell between them sn they walked down the path and through the picket gate an impulse which neither attempted to voice held them tor for a time in Perl bonka they went down to the rivers edge and strod steed where tile could see the birds splashing water over themselves on the they saw the dumpy little twice n week boat from across the lake tin loading goods for IN lp villagers anil habitants at its dilapidated wharf on the opposite shore close to the wayside was a sadre eh rice they could see its cross from where they stood with the sun shining on it when they were to go paul felt as if he were living leaving something in Perl bonka just ask as the flip warmth of carlas hand had find let lerl something in tits his heart carla Perl honka if I 1 in little plot of ground they would ile he its is nil III forgettable as mrs haldane Hal flut dans me mein orles ile he thought ol in tills this as tile tl rode back through tile hie arleia n lie thought of it inter hiler w irn lie astl in his office again ancl 1 ched flown down tiam I 1 the smash and grind of machinery in the pit it if troubled him and lid ninde him restless arl anu a uneasy dit burned deeply into his big life seemed unreal now that lint it ns lis over it wn haq as it if an experience had turned turne dInto hito H n dream a tiling thing of a few minutes minute in steed stead of hours the friendly faintly smiling sin fling of bis big wife him qt it aln room ile he ansu answered ered tier toti loller r till evening and in ills 1119 pages 14 to lil freshly roused voice lie told ahmit the li it carlas life of their jou jociney illey to pert banha of the littia plot of iri gr imri in n the cemetery writing in III his we with tits his cifes face tonkins ili 1 l ill it was not difficult for him film to let tile lie floods pour out aist as lie lidid un it a abea them ont onnor le in ili airs F six ri years balb ul OL 1111 uin ln r lie was a man ban wanting a woman ile he wanted his wife it II lid not want her in europe or egyid or waiting for him in a prill ice nt hole home ne wanted her with him ile he told her this as tenderly tenil erly its s a 0 man could bild write to n worl ilin tt it was a letter ot of love of aels ii laif fit f vision ings to tits lila wife caria hii its ilif flie of it to be continued |