Lakeland Evening Telegram Newspaper, June 12, 1913, Page 6

STt x - This shows all that was left of the residence ¢ “The house was the oldest in the town. | BITABSENT-MINDED Amportant Chapter in the Hum- Drum Existence of a Young I Rector. % By MARY MARSHALL. | Being moderately absent-minded east an interesting aura about the personality of the new rector, the Rev. Archibald Demarest, but when carried Ro the extreme this trait had its draw- Packs, and thereby hangs an import: ant chapter in the Rev. Archibald’s hum-drum existence. The fact that he one day forgot to eat his lunch— ma intelligence handed over the back’ Bence of te neat little rectory garden ¥y his faithful housekeeper Maggle to Wolly the Stevenson’s cook, and thus by way of the Stevenson's drawing room through the neighborhood—filled the hearts of his feminine parishion- ers with sympathetic concern. The fact that the cause of the rector's pre- eccupation on this occasion was & good run of trout in the little hillside stream a few miles from the rectory would not have added to the glamor and Maggie, being a woman of discern- ment, did not mention this fact to Molly across the fence. One day, a fresh mild spring day, the rector did not come in to dinner A 8 o'clock, and Maggle always had dinner ready at 6. When she asked ¥m why he was so late as she stood at his side, as he ha®tily ate his soup, — Lakeland News Job Printing OU get your work done by people who know--who will not let some foolish error creep into your work that will make your printed matter ineffective, and perhaps tie Tooked up Tn Burprise at her. Then he drew out his watch and whistled. “By Jove!” he exclaimed, “how the sfternoon flew!” and when Maggle waited for an explanation the rector offered none. After dishes were washed Maggie hastened to the back fence to tell Molly, but Molly had something to say herself. “I don't know what ever is getting into Miss Hortense,” she said. “She never came In to dinner till 8 o’clock, and we always have it at half past six. Aud the funny thing is that she didn’t know she was late. She sald she had been walking but she didn't say who with.” Maggle looked knowingly at Molly. “I bave suspi<'or~d it all along” she said. “I won't sxy unything that isn't my affairs, but I will say that the Rev. Archibald didn’t come in himself till 8 and whistled when I tcld him he was two hours late. You can draw your own conclugions.” Maggle's suspicion was before long making its way through the parish. There was little room for doubt that Hortense and her neighbor, the rector, were much together, and there was no one in the parish who seemed to keep such a good run of church affairs as Miss Hortense who, until the new reo- tor had come, had been Jukewarm, if not a positive backslider. But in spite of Hortense's interest and help Archibald grew even more absent-minded. On one occasion he read morning prayer at Sunday ves- pers, and a week later he announced the hour of the ladies’ missionary so- | | stay “just a while longer,” at least till *. Roltsmeier by the terrible storm th-t swept Seward, Neb ° AP AAANAPAr IS clety as 3 o’clock Tn the mornfng In the rector’s study. But such slips could de overlcoked It was thre. hours before vespers on the following Sunday afternoon. Archibald was lazing in his comfort- able little study and Maggie was out for the afternoon. A emall boy from the country came breathless to the rectory door and vetween gasps ex- plained: “Mamma sent me tor the doctor and he {8 away for the day. Baby’s got a fit and papa has gone up the river. But T guess you can help if you hur ry." Archibald stopped loag enough to reflect that vespers was not till 5 and that it was about 3 o'cluck then, and that he could go straight from his visit to church. He put the notes for his address in his coat pocket and with admirable forethought remem- bered a first-aid-to-the-injured kit from his study desk—one tha. he used when taking his choir boys camping. ' He did not know much about fits, but still he might need it eo he put it with a roll of bandaging and a medicine cage into 2 neat black leather bag that he used to carry his vestments in to | weddings and funerals. About fifteen minutes later when Archibald had reached the small two- room ccttage by the riverside about a mile from the rectory he found a ! gcene of confusion. There were four peevish children, a smoky fire, a tired worn mother and a vigorous-lunged baby whose “fits” proved to be merely a case of bad temper. Archibald fixed the fire, humored the children, con- the baby g ething. minutes before church time he made a ‘ ”"_l !;::-dly kgnew whether to expect break to leave. He could imagine you or mot,” she sald with a fo what confusion his absence from Teugh calculated to freeze 8 much church would cause, and yet as the | more daring heart than that of Archl- poor mother begged him tearfully to ! BN atest = » gaid Archibald, feeling the baby’s father got back from the 4 cuflr?:;“:;'ome“' as he drew up to river where he was fishing, Archibald | the idol of his dreams. He had never didn't bave the beart to leavs | geen her in this mood, and he was Archibald knew that it was not a | quite unprepared for it “1 couldn’t case of life and death, but still the | a8 this, no matter how busy my day mother’s tears made l; lmgos;l::efl?: ‘:‘n;'been"' im to go. He remembered w R o :‘el:‘:e sievenson had told him the day | No? m.d Hortense with a fln::u: inflection. “It would perhaps be Jeus e :'id"fi !: tl;idp:o;lg: ‘to your credit if you felt 4s much de- @ of his parish. a e - | {:s feeling of doing something of | ;otllorn t(‘!n ;tspen as you profess you which she would approve as he decid- i e?'OI;”that.'l it 1s 1t? Do you know, cdita ":y : i :::np:o 4 éfi:’;fig ‘I coul‘dr't make out what made you 1 husband re ed. | i ::; Archibald the father did return in seem 80 !tam!-ofl'lsh whe: :r::g: “l‘é bout a half an hour, and after a few That's all, isn't it, dear—de: aordl of advice and good cheer and a | was rather hard in the face of Hor fi'm. difficulty in collecting his ecat. tense's prolonged trigidness to come tered belongings, the young eclergy- out with the newly-permitted terms of man hastened toward church. | endearment. but Archibald was ma;‘- His lay reader, of course, would | Ing & great effort. “I never :nls': th have begun the service, and he would | two hours before ve"lpel'l an still be there in time for che address.: to get back in time. Archibald felt an exhilarating sense of t Hortense’s eyes were bright with being nefessary as he hastened to-ianger. “You needn’t make any ex- ward the church. He would sp Into | cuses,” she said, drawing from his out, the vestry, quickly don his vestments | stretched hand. “You could have been and slip through the side entrance t0; man enough—" the chancel. The eyes of his faithful | «Man enough! Why. Hortense, 1 congregation would be turned tovurdi thought 1 did the manly thing. I him—he knew that—and of them all | thought it was just the sort of thing it would be the questioning, anxious —* eyes of Hortense that would count.| “Manly thing to come in balt an Then after service he would hurry ' hour late to vespers! A little absent away from church, and not stay to ! mindedness lsn’t inexcusable — What, answer any of the curious question-|yon didn't forget? You did it on pur thgs as to what had caused his delay. ' pose? Wat till you explain? You He would go back to the rectory and need meke Do explanations, Mr, then after supper he would slip over Demarest.” to' Hortense. Hortense would be ex-, “It was a small matter,” sald Archt- pecting him, for it was only two days pald, helplessly. before that he had told her of his love | “A gmall matter to go fishing on for her, and that she had given him a Sunday afternoon and not to get back properly reticent answer. He had til] vespers was half over! That was been allowed to hope. Archibald cal- g gmall matter, was it?” culated the probable effect that his | Archibald dropped to his knees be- | story of the afternoon’s experience fore Hortense. “Why on earth do you | would have upon her. He would not think I was fishing?" 'm:zke too much of it—that would be “Because you weren't clever enough i boastful—but when she asked, as of o conceal the fact, I suppose.” course sha wounld, what had detained | «portense, Hortense,” pleaded the him, he would in an off-hand way let | rector. “Won't you think better of her know what he had done. ‘me? 1 went out to help a poor wom- Up to the time of slipping over to gn whose baby was having fits and—" Hortense after supper things happen- | «yeg, and stopped to fish on the way ed as Archibald had expected. In fact ' home and forgot all about vespers. 1 he found Hortense dressed in the €oft am gorry, Mr. Demarest, but I would pink and white dress he liked 8o well, rather end our friendship here.” sitting by a low electrolier reading as| Fortense suddenly regained her he entered the drawing room, which composure and Archibald jumped to the rest of the Stevensons had. With his feet as Molly came into the draw- their usual considerateness, seen fit to ing room. abandon at the time for his call. | «Please, sir,” she sald, with a smile, Archibald hurried to her with out- “Maggle just asked me over the stretched hands, but Hortense greeted | gance, could you stp back to the ree- :1:“,“;::! ?o(‘l((w:\lmtl:mihd the e;’{e- | tory a minute. There is a little boy ok his breath away. He ' there says st have took his nulled a_chair to the side of the table ;r{;".:fifl,cfl O?Uf_'flh.lw.me. g e e ———em—to take. He's got your black the bandages In it, and says It please accept three of the trouts in the catch and leave hin the rest?” As a light of understandip, over Archibald’s face Molly adty an aside to Hortense, “It’s 4 about Mr. Demarest. He wagy 4 ing at all. You see, Mr. Dep turning to the clergyman wit , J fidential alr, “Maggle was gy, | you brought home the bag of iy you had been off fishing, anq s, me and I told Miss Hortense” (Copyright, 1913, by the McCluny p § paper Syndicate) BELOW WE GIVE A FEW o1 % PRICES WITH = MANY (p GOODS OF EQUAL QUALIY( PRICE. QUALITY OF GOODS 1§ ; FIRST THING WE LOOK 4§ AND THEN THE PRICE 10 i@ YOUR APPROVAL WITH 4 o ANTEE THAT EVERYR WILL BE AS REPRESENN § THESE PRICES FOR CASK (] % : NI 18 pounds Sugar for....... Eest Butter, per 1b. ........ Cottolene, 10 pound can Cottolene, 6 pound .......... Snowdrift, 10 pounds ....... Snowdrift, 6 pounds ......... ¢ cans Baby Size Cream..... 'Ocmgon Soap, 6 for.......... Ground Coffee, per pound ..... Sweet Corn, 3 for ......... Best White Meat, per 1b. ... 6 gal. Kerosene ............ Compound Lard, per 1b. ..... Feed Stuff is our specialty. T out on South Florida avenue call us. We deliver the goods D. H. CUMBIES Phone 337 Laki ;»yond Power to Overcoms s :1f-consciousness just | a young drummer on by Your Printing to the subject it to the amused comment of discriminating people. papers of state-wide circulation; but this does not mean that we do not also give the Our plant turns out ten newspapers every week--two of them being sixteen-page s .#_ closest attention to the small work. An order for visiting cards, or for printing a rib- bon badge, or a hundred circulars, is given the same careful consideration that enables us to secure and successfully carry out our large contracts. And, having had to fit up for the bigger work naturally enables us to do the smaller work better. THE LAKELAND NEWS JOB OFFICE KENTUCKY BUILDING For Printing--a Line or a Volume--We Are At Your Serbice S 28 Ha - ] )