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"'WEDNESDAY MORNING, SEPTEMBER 11
orners
THE MILLET ( EVIi
RXIEVILLE, GEORGIA.
SYNOPSIS.
CHAPTER I—Her father and mother
reported lost when the Dunraven was
destroyed by a submarine, Carolyn May
goes to live with her bachelor uncle, Jo-
Bepli Stagg. at The Corners. The recep
tion of herself and her mongrel cur by
her uncle and his housekeeper, Aunty
Rose Kennedy, Is not very enthusiastic.
CHAPTER II—Aunty Rose rules the
home with an Iron hand, but Is not un
kind to the child.
CHAPTER III—stags learns from a
letter from a New York lawyer that the
child has been left practically penniless.
Carolyn’B sunny disposition begins to
make an Impression on the stern house
keeper.
CHAPTER IV—Carolyn makes the ac
quaintance of Jedldlah Parlow, with
whom her uncle has not been on speak
ing terms for years.
CHAPTER V—She learns of the
trangement between her uncle and his
one-time sweetheart, Amanda Parlow,
and the cause of the bitterness between
the two families.
CHAPTER VI—The mongrel wins the
approval of the entire population by rout
ing a tramp In the act of robbing the
school teacher.
CHAPTER VII—While Carolyn and her
uncle are taking a Sunday walk In the
•woods they encounter Amanda Parlow.
The dog kills a snake about to strike
Amanda and Stagg and Amanda speak
to each other for the first time In years.
CHAPTER VIII—Carolyn is told by
Chet Gonnley, her uncle’s clerk, of the
destitute condition In which she was left
*y her parents. She learns that she Is
really loved by her uncle and Aunty Rose.
CHAPTER IX—Carolyn finds an old
■allor In a snow drift He had been bad
ly Injured In a fall and Is taken In and
cared for by Amanda.
CHAPTER X—It turns out that the sail
or was on board the Dunraven when It
was sunk.
CHAPTER XI—Amanda calls Stagg In
to her house to hear the sailor’s story. It
leaves little hope for his sister and her
husband.
CHAPTER XII—Chet Gormley takes
Carolyn out skating. The spring freshet
comes and breaks up the Ice, putting them
In great peril.
lety, is comforted by Amanda who ring*
the chapel bell while rescuing part|es set
out In search 'Of the lost ones.
CHAPTER XIV—They are finally ro*.
cued. Chet Gormley proves himself a
‘‘You know very well that’s so. And
I don’t know what to do about It. It
just seems too awful that they should
hardly speak, and yet be so fond of
each other deep down.”
“How d’you know they’re so fond of
each other—deep down?” Mr. Parlow
demanded.
“I know my Uncle Joe likes Miss
’Mandy, ’cause he always speaks so—
so respectful of her. And I can see
she likes him, In her eyes,” replied the
CHAPTER XV.
The Awakening.
With the opening of spring and the
close of the sledding season, work had
stopped at Adams' camp. Rather, the
entire plant hud been shipped twenty
miles deeper into the forest—mill,
bunkhouse, cook shed and such corru
gated-iron shucks ns were worth cart
ing away.
All thut was left on the site of the
busy camp were huge heaps of suw-
dust, plies of slabs, discarded timbers
and the half-burned bricks into which
had been built Uic portable boiler and
engine.
And old Judy Mason. She was not
considered worth moving to the new
elte of the camp. She \vas bedridden
with rheumatism. Tills was the report
Tim. the hackmun, had brought in.
The old woman's husband bad gone
with the outfit to the new camp, for be
could not afford to give up bis work.
Judy bad not been so bad when the
camp was broken up. but when Tim
went over for a loud of slabs for
summer fire vend lie discovered h
Iquite lielpless In her blink and utmost business man like Joe Stagg
starving. The rheumatic attack had
become serious. I
Amanda Parlow had at once riddea
over with Doctor Nugent.
“How brave und helpful It Is of Miss
Amanda!” Carolyn May e r ied. “Dear
me, when I grow up I hope I can be a
gradjerute nurse like Miss Mandy."
“1 reckon that's some spell ahead,”
chuckled . r. i.arw, to whom she
said this when he nicked her up for a
drive after taking bis daughter to the
comp,
"Mr Parlow,” the girl ventured after
a time, “uon’t you think r.ow thut Miss
Aeihiniu ought to be happy?”
“Happy!” exclaimed the carpenter,
Atr.rrled, "What about, child?"
"Why, about everything. You know,
once 1 asked you about her being hap
py, and—and you didn’t seem fa-
% 'ruble. You said ‘Rub !’ ”
The old man made no reply for a
minute and Carolyn May had the pn-
tience to wait for her suggestion to
“sink In." Finally be said:
“I dunno but you’re right, Carlyn
May, Not thut it matters much, I
guess, whether n body a happy or not
In this world," he udded grudgingly.
“Ob, yes. It does, Mr. Parlow! It
mutlers a great deal, I am sure—to
us and to other people. If we’re not
happy Inside of us, how can we be
eheerful outside, und so make other
people happy? And that is what I
mean about Miss Amanda."
“What about Mandy?"
“She Isn’t happy," sighed Carolyn
May. “Not really. She’s just ns good
ns good can be. She Is always doing
for folks and helping. But she can't
be real happy."
“Why not?” growled Mr. Parlow, his
fnce turned away.
“\\ by—'cause— Well, you know,
Mr. Parlow, she enn’t be happy ns long
as she and my Uncle Joe are mad nt
,each other."
Mr. Parlow uttered another grunt,
hlld went bravely on.
M ! Know My Uncle Joe Likes Mice
Amanda."
observant Caroiyn May. "Oh, yes, Mr.
Parlow, they ought to be happy again,
and we ought to make ’em so."
"Huh 1 Who ought to?”
“You and me. We ought to Und some
way of doing It. I’m sure we can, If
we Just think hard about It.”
“Huh 1" grunted the carpenter again,
turning Cherry Into the dootyard.
“Huh I"
This was not a very encouraging re
sponse. Yet he did think of it. The
little girl had started n train of
thought in Mr. Parlow’s mind that he
could not sidetrack.
He knew very well that what she
hnd said about his daughter and Jo
seph Stag:; was oqlte true, in his self
ishness he had been glad all these
years that the hardware merchant was
balked of hnpplness.
The carpenter had always been
self-centered Individual, desirous of
his own comfort, and rather miserly
He hnd not approved, In the first place,
of the Intimacy between Joseph Stagg
und his daughter Amanda.
“No good’ll come o’ that,” he had
told himself.
That Is, no good to Jedldlah Parlow.
He foresaw at the start the loss of the
girl's help about the house, for his
wife was then u helpless invalid.
■Then Mrs. Parlow died. This death
made plainer still to the carpenter
thut Mundy’s marriage was bound to
bring inconvenience to him. Especial
ly If she married a close-fisted young
would
“Why
Mr. Par
ns she
Mr.
but the
this be true. For, at the rending of his
wife's will Mr. Parlow discovered that
the property they occupied, even the
shop In which he worked, which bad
been given to Mrs. Parlow by her par
ents, was to be the sole property of
hep daughter. Mandy was the heir.
Mr. Parlow (ltd not possess even a life
Interest In the estate.
It was a blow to the carpenter, lie
made a good Income and hud money
In bank, hut he loved money too well
to ivlsli to spend it ufter he had made
It. lie did not want to give up tin*
place. If Mandy remained unmarried
there would never he any question be
tween them of rent or the like.
Therefore, If he was not actually the
cause of the (inference thut arose be
tween the two young people, he seized
and enlarged upon it and did all In
his iiower to make a mere ntlsnnder-
Grove's Tasteless chill Tonic
destroys the malarial (terms which are transmitted
to the blood by the Malaria Mosquito. Price 60c.
standing grow Into a quarrel that nei
ther of the proud, high-spirited lovers
would bridge.
Jedldlah Parlow knew why Joe
Stagg had taken tluit other girl ti.
Faith camp meeting. The young mat
hail stopped nt the Parlow place wine
Amanda was absent nnd explained to
the girl's father. But the latter hnd
never mentioned this fnct to his daugh
ter.
Instead he had made Joe’s supposed
offense the greater by suggestion nnd
innuendo. And It was he, too, who
had urged the hurt’Mnndy to retaliate
by going to the dance with nnother
young ntan. Meeting Joe Stagg later,
the carpenter had said bitter things
to hint, purporting to come from
Mandy. It was all mean nnd vile; the
old man knew It now—as he had
known It then.
All these years he had tried to add
fuel to the fire of his daughter’s anger
against Joe Stagg. And he believed
he hnd benefited thereby. But, some
how, during the past few months, he
hnd begun to wonder If, after all, “the
gnme was worth the candle.”
Suddenly he hnd gained a vision ol
what Amanda Parlow’s empty life
meant to her.
Carolyn May, Interested only In see
ing her friends made happy, had no
Idea of the turmoil she had created In
Mr. Parlow’s mind.
During the time that the nurse wns
at the abandoned lumber camp caring
for Judy Mnson, Carolyn May hoped
that something might take Uncle Joe
there.
The next Friday, after school was
out, Miss Amanda appeared at the
Stagg home and suggested taking Caro
lyn May Into the woods with her, “for
the week-end,” as she laughingly said.
Tim, the hnckman, had brought the
nurse home for a few hours and would
take her back to Judy’s cabin.
“Poor old Judy Is much better, but
she is still suffering tmd cannot be left
alone for long,” Miss Amanda said.
"Carolyn May will cheer her up.”
Mr. Parlow would drive over on Sun
day afternoon and bring the little girl
home. Of course, Prince had to go
along. t
That Friday evening at supper mat
ters In the big kitchen of the Stagg
house were really at a serious pass, Jo
seph Stagg sat down to the table visi
bly without appetite. Aunty Rose
drank one cup of tea after another
without putting a crumb between her
lips.
“Say, Aunty Rose,” demanded Mr.
Stagg, “what under the sun did we do
before Hannah’s Car’lyn came here,
anyway? Seems to me we didn’t really
live, did we?"
Aunty Rose hnd no answer to make
to these questions.
In the morning there was a smoky
fog over everything—a fog that the
sun did not dissipate, and behind
which It looked like an enormous saf
fron ball.
Mr. Stngg went down to the store as
usual. News came over the long-dis
tance wires that thousands of acres
of woodland were burning, that the for
est reserves were out, and that the farm
ers of an entire township on the fnr
side of the mountain were engaged In
trying to make a barrier over which
the flames would not leap. It was the
consensus of opinion, however, that
the Are would not cross the range.
“Scarcely any chnnce of Its swoop
ing down on us,” decided Mr. Stagg.
“Reckon I won’t have to go home to
plow Are furrows.”
At the usual hour he stnrted for The
Corners for dinner. Having remained
in the store all the morning, he had
not realized how much stronger the
smell of smoke wns thnn it had been
at breakfast time. Quite involuntarily
he quickened his pace.
The fog nnd smoke overenst the sky
thickly nnd made It of a brassy color,
just as though n huge copper pot had
been overturned over the enrth. Wom
en stood at their doors, talking hack
and forth In subdued tones. There
wns a spirit of expeetaney in the air.
The hardware merehnnt wns striding
along nt n quick pace when he came to
the Parlow place; hut he wns not go
ing so fast that he did not henr the
carpenter hailing hint In his cracked
voice. •
“Hey, you, .Toe Stngg! Hey, you!”
Atnuzed, Mr. Stagg turned to look.
Parlow was hobbling from the rear
premises, groaning at every step
scarcely able to walk.
"That sciatica’s got me ng’ln," he
snarled. “I'm a’most doubled up.
Couldn’t climb into a carriage to save
my soul.”
“What d’you want to climb Into u
carriage for?" demanded Mr. Stngg.
“’Cause somebody’s got to go for
tlint gal of mine—nnd little Car’lyn
May. Ain’t you heard—or is your mind
so sot on niakin’ money down there to
your store that you don’t know nothin
else?”
"Haven’t I henrd what?” returned
the other with fine restraint, for he
saw the old nmn was In pain.
•■The fire’s come over to this side. I
saw the flames myself. And Aaron
Crummit drove through nnd says that
.•cm can't git by on the main road. The
fire's followed the West Brook right
down and Is betwixt us and Adums’
old ramp.”
"Bless me!" gnsped the hardware
dealer, paling under his tan.
“Wal?” snarled Parlow. “Coin’ to
stand there chatterin' all day, or he
you gain' to do something?"
“Somebody must get over to thnt
cabin nnd bring them out,” Joseph
Stagg said, without taking offense at
the crabbed old enrpenter.
••Wal!" exclaimed Parlow, “glad tor
see you’re awake.”
"till. I’m awake,” the other returned
shortly. “I was Just figuring on who’s
got the best horse.”
“1 have,” snapped Parlow.
“Yes. And I’d decided on taking
Cherry, too," the hardware denier add
ed, und swung into the lane toward the
carpenter’s Imrn.
“Hey, you! Needn't be so brash
about it,” growled the carpeuter. “He’s
my boss, I s’pose?"
Joseph Stagg went straight ahead.
SI8H25
One cup or three
No harm in
INSTANT
POSTUM
writhing, flaming snake—a burning The mongrel was UeUghtedT and
branch—plunged down through the showed It as plainly as a dumb brute
smoke directly ahead. ’ J
Go on!” shouted Joseph Stagg, with
could.
But he was anxious, too. Re leiqea
a sharpness that would ordinarily have back do the ground, ran a little ahead,
He Plunged Forward Leaped the Bias
ing Brand and Galloped Djown the
Road.
and without answering. Having once
decided on his course, he wasted no
time.
He rolled back the big door and snw
Cherry alrendy harnessed In his box-
stall.
Together they backed the animal be
tween the shafts, fastened the traces,
and Mr. Stagg leaped quiekly to the
seat and gathered up the reins.
“You’ll hnfter tnke the Fallow road,”
the carpenter shouted after him, “And
have a care drlvln’ Cherry—"
Horse nnd buckbonrd whirled out of
the yard and his voice was lost to the
hardware merchant.
Cherry stepped out splendidly, nnd
they left a cloud of dust behind them
ns they rolled up the pike, not in the
direction of the abandoned camp. Fore
warned, he did not seek to take the
shortest way to the cabin where
Amanda Parlow und Carolyn May were
perhaps even now threatened by the
forest fire. The Fallow road turned
north from the pike three miles from
The Corners.
Flecks of foam hegnn to nppear on
Cherry’s glossy coat almost nt once.
The air wns very oppressive, nnd there
wns no breeze.
The streak of flame that had fol
lowed down the banks of West
brook moved mysteriously. He could
see the sntoke of It now.
Amanda Parlow and Ills niece might
even now he threatened by the flumes 1
Now tluit danger threatened the
woman he hnd loved all these years, U
seemed us though his mind nnd heart
were numbed. He was terrified be
yond expression—terrified for her safe
ty, and terrified for fear that some
body, even Jedldlah I’nrlow, should
suspect just how he felt about It.
The horse’s hoofs rung sharply over
the stony pnlh. Presently they capped
a little ridge and started down Into a
hollow. Not until they were over the
ridge wns Mr. Stngg aware that the
hollow was filled, chokingly filled, with
billowy white smoke.
Another man—one ns cautious ns
the hardware merchant notoriously
was—would have pulled the horse
down to it walk. But Joseph Stagg’s
cautiousness had been filing to the
winds. Instead, he shouted to Cherry,
and the beast Increased his stride.
Ten rods further on the horse suort-
| ed, stumbled, nnd tried to stop. A
set Cherry off at a gallop.
But, ns the snorting creature still
shied, the mnn seized the whip and
lashed poor Cherry cruelly along his
liank.
At that the horse went mad. He
plunged forward, leaped the blazing
brnn<^ and galloped down the road at
a perilous gait. The man tried neither
to soothe him nor to retard the pace.
The smoke swirled around them.
The driver could not see ten feet be
yond the horse’s nose. Ten minutes
later they rattled down Into the
straight road, and then, very soon,
indeed, were at the abandoned camp.
The fire was near, but It hnd not
reached this place. There was no sign
of life about.
The man knew which was Judy's
cabin. He leaped from the vehicle,
leaving the panting Cherry unhitched,
and ran to the hut.
The door swung open. The poor
furniture wns in place. Kven the bed
clothing was rumpled In the old wom
an’s bunk. But neither she nor Aman
da Parlow nor little Carolyn May was
there.
CHAPTER XVI.
The Laurel to the Brave.
The heart of the man was like a
weight In his bosom. With so many
hundred acres of forest on fire, and
that, too, between the abandoned camp
and The Corners nnd Sunrise Cove,
how would Amnnda Parlow nnd Caro
lyn May know where to go?
Certainly the place roust hnve been
deserted In haste. There was Carolyn
May’s coat. The mnn caught It up nnd
stared around, ns though expecting the
child to be within sight.
The old woman’s clothing wns scat
tered about, too. It did not look ns
though anything hnd been removed
front the hut. Coming out, he found
another article on the threshold—one
of Amnndn’s cloves.
Joseph Stagg lifted the crumpled
glove to his lips.
“Oh, God, spnre her!” he burst forth.
“Spare them both!”
Then he kissed the glove again nnd
hid it away In the inner pocket of his
vest.
The hardware dealer tried to think
of just what the fugitives might, have
done when they escaped from the
cabin.
if It were true thnt Amanda would
not run toward the fire, then she more
thnn likely hnd taken the opposite di
rection on leaving the cabin. There
fore, Joseph Stngg went that way—set
ting off down the tote road, leading
Cherry by his birdie.
Suddenly he remembered calling
Prince the (lay Carolyn May had been
lost on the Ice. He raised his voice in
a mighty shout for the dog now.
“Prince 1 Princey, old hoy! where
are you?”
Again nnd again he called, but there
was no reply. The smoke was more
stifling and the bent more Intense
every minute. Mr. Stngg realized thnt
he must get out quiekly if he would
save himself nnd the horse.
He hnd just stepped Into the buck-
hoard again, when there was an ex
cited scrambling In the underbrush,
nnd n welcoming bark was given
lOtyt*
"Prince! Good hoy!” the nmn sho 1
ed. “Where are^hoy.
The excited dog flew at hint, leaping
on the buckbonrd so as to reach him.
nnd then looked back to see If the man
was following. The hardware dealer
shouted to him again:
“Go ahead, Princey! We’re coming r
He picked up the reins nnd Cherry
started. The dog, barking his satisfac
tion, ran on ahead nnd struck into a
side path which led down n glade. Jo
seph Stngg knew Immediately where
this pnth led to. There wns a spring
and n small morass In the bottom of
the hollow.
“Go on! Good dog!” cried Mr.
Stngg. “Lead the way to Hannah’*/
Car’lyn!”
He heard the little girl screaming:
"Oh, Uncle Joel Oh, Uncle Joel Here
we nre!”
Cherry rattled the buckbonrd down
to the bottom of the hollow and
stopped. There was some smoke here,
but not much. The man leaped to the
ground when he saw a figure rise up
from the foot of a tree by the spring-
a figure in brown.
“Joseph 1 Thank God!” murmured
Amanda.
The hardware dealer strode to her.
She hnd put out both her hands to
him, and he saw that they were trem
bling, and that tears filled her great
brown eyes.
“Oh, Joel” she snld, “I feared you
would come too late!”
“But I’nt here, Manrly, nnd I’m not
too late!” he cried; nnd, somehow—
neither of them could, perhaps, hnve
evplained just Bow—his arms went
around her nnd her hands rested oa
his shoulders, while she looked earn
estly Into his fnce.
“Oh, Joe! Joe!” It wns like a sur
rendering sob.
“It’s not too late, Is it, Mandy? Say
It Isn’t too late!” he pleaded.
“No, It’s not too late," she whis
pered. “If—If we’re not too old.”
“Old!" almost shouted Joseph Stagg.
“I don’t remember of ever feeling so
young as I do right now!” and sud
denly ho stooped nnd kissed her.
"Bless mo! what fools we’ve been all
this time!”
“Oh, Uncle Joe! Oh, Miss Amanda:’’
cried Cnroyln May, standing before
them, and pointing with n rather grimy
index finger. “You aren’t mad nt each
other any more, are you? Oh, I am so
glad! so glnd!” and her face showed
her pleasure.
But Hie situation wns too difficult to
allow of much hut practical thoughts.
"Where’s the old woman?" asked Jo
seph Stagg quickly.
“Her husband came with n horse
and buggy late lust night and took her
over to the new camp.” was the reply.
"The fire was coming Into the camp
when I loft. *We must get out of here
In a hurry,” declnred Mr. Stagg.
“We uren’t going to he burned up
now, when Uncle Joe Is here, Miss
Mandy,” Carolyn Mny declared with
confidence. “See how nice he and
Prince found us? Why, they are rcg’Inr
heroes, aren’t they?”
“They nre, indeed, child,” agreed in*
woman. She turned t:o Joseph Stags,
happiness shining in her eyes, nc
looking prettier thnn ever before u
her life, he thought.
The hollow wns rapidly becoming
filled with smoke. The man did not
understand this, but it foreboded
trouble. He turned Cherry and t»
buckboard around, and then lie help
Amnnda into the sent. M .
“Up you go, too, Car’lyn May,
snld, lifting the little girl into the refl
of the buckboard. .
Joseph Stags felt very serious " s
(Continued on next page 1