McCormick messenger. (McCormick, S.C.) 1902-current, March 17, 1932, Image 3
Thursday, March 17, 1932
McCORMICK MESSENGER, McCORMICK, SOUTH CAROLINA
PAGE NUMBER THR1
mTOWN
4/RUBY M. AYRES
FIRST INSTALMENT “I’m not really ill. I feel rather steadily.
——— a humbug coming here at all, but “Do you like plain speaking? he
It was intensely hot. my aunt insisted. I’ve got rather asked abruptly.
In the big, somberly furnished thin, you see—but then, I was al- She raised her eyes, very blue
consulting room, its blinds drawn ways thin. It’s the hot weather, against the pallor of her face,
closely against the midday sun I think, and I don’t sleep very well. “Why, of course,
which poured down on Harley London’s always rather trying at “Very well, then I am going to
^Street, there seemed hartily a this time of the year, don’t you tell you that you are very ill, very
breath of air. think? We generally go away, ill indeed, and that if you wish to
A girl sitting at the table, idly but this summer ” get better you must do exactly
what I tell you—and at once.”
. “Yes. Yes, of course.”
“Well—for the present I am not
going to worry you with anything
but just the simplest prescription,
and in a week’s time I will see you
again. First of all, you go away
into the country.”
Her eyes dilated, and her hands
grippled the cushions on either side
of her.
“The country?—when?”
“At once. Tomorrow—if pos
sible today, and when I say coun
try I mean the very heart of the
country—a cottage on Dartmoor or
in the Surrey hills, where there are
mm SAVING FOB
turning the pages of an illustrated She broke off, feeling suddenly
paper, pushed her chair back with very young and foolish and hating
sudden impatience. herself for it. It seemed so long
“How much longer is he going to since she had felt either young or
keep us waiting, I wonder? It’s dis- foolish, and because the experience
graceful, asking anyone to wait in was strange she also hated this
grave-faced man who was respon
sible for it and who looked at her
a lethal chamber like this.”
The large overdressed woman in
the armchair on the other side of i so searchingly.
the room roused herself with a sigh After a moment she rattled on.
of regret from a doze which the “I thought if you could give me
heat and too large and too late a a tonic ... I fainted last night—
breakfast had brought upon her. i not that that’s anything, is it? But
“I’m sure it’s a very nice room,” ’ my aunt was nervous.” The little
she said vaguely.
“Nice!” the girl flashed her a
contemptuous look. “Any place is
nice to you as long as you can
sleep in it,” she said rudely.
The large woman sighed again;
her only protest against life was a
sigh, and she had long since grown
accustomed to her niece’s disres
pect.
“The furniture must be most
valuable,” she said again in the
same vague way.
The girl glanced round the room
with a frown. ,
* “Furniture which fools like us
have paid for,” she said irritably.
‘T don’t know why we’re here at
all. There’s nothing in the world
the matter with me.”
Mrs. Gladwyn began fanning her
plump flushed face with a daily
paper which had been lying disre
garded on her lap.
“Six months ago you weighed
"nearly a hundred and twenty-five,”
she said without much interest.
“Today you weigh—ninety-eight, is
it? At any t rate, you have only to
look at yourself in the glass to see
that you’re ^wasting away to a com
plete shadow without any adequate
reason for it, unless—” she paused,
and a faintly malicious smile lit
her sleepy eyes—“unless you’re in
love again,” she added.
The girl turned another page of
the magazine before her with an
angry little flick.
“I don’t believe in love,” she said
sharply.
Diana’s further answer was
checked by the opening of the door
and the appearance of a maid.
“If you will please come this
way, Miss ”
Bodily weakness, ipental unhap
piness, and a never ending fear
that she was about to lose the only
thing she had ever really wapted
in life.
It was these things that had kept
her obstinately in London when
everyone else was away at the sea,
or on the moors, or down in the
country.
At twenty-two the only thing in
the world which Diana really desir
ed was another woman’s husband.
Diana, a little nervous in spite of
herself, entered the “top man’s”
consulting room.
He was big and rather clumsy
looking, with grave steady eyes and
a mouth that looked as if it rarely
smiled.
It did not smile now, but his eyes
seemed to pierce through all the
bravery of her carefully reddened
lips and make-up, right down
through her artificiality to the
trembling weakness of her.
Diana said nothing—she felt as
if an ordinary greeting would be
wasted on this man. She just stood
and looked at him with an uncon
scious appeal in her eyes, till he
said quietly:
“Won’t you sit down?”
He indicated a chair close to his
own and facing the window, so that
the light fell full on her face.
Diana obeyed, her ha^ids clasped
in her lap, and her heart beating
in a queer, frightened manner.
He seemed to realize this, for he
said more gently:
“Don’t be frightened. I am not
going to eat you.”
She flushed scarlet through all
her pallor, and her eyes grew angry.
Speaking to her as if she were a
silly child with a cut thumb.
She gave a little high-pitched
laugh.
highpitched laugh came again. “As
if fainting is anything important.”
He spoke then.
“It depends entirely on the cause no theatres or night clubs or pic-
of the faint. Will you take off your
hat?”
She obeyed, holding it on her lap,
and for a moment there was sil
ence.
In Diana’s mind she was saying
to herself dully:
“I wonder what he is thinking. I
wish he would tell .me what he is
ture houses. You will go to bed
early—seven o’clock—and you will
stay in bed till lunch-time every
day till I see you again. You will
be allowed no visitors—except your
aunt, of.course—and you are to do
nothing except read and sleep. You
will not write letters or receive
any—and you will sleep with your
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“If you would care to come and see me again later on,” he said.
thinking of me. Why doesn’t he
tell me? I hate being looked at
like that—as if he were driving
gimlets right through me. Why
doesn’t he say something?”
He said something then.
“How old are you?”
“Twenty-two.”
His eyes said plainly, “Is that
all?” and Diana blanched.
Her glass had told her often
enough that she looked worn and
ill and older than the hated Lifida,
who could not be more than twen
ty-six, seeing that Aunt Florence
had been present at her chirsten-
ing.
But Linda was happy and heal
thy and care-free and had always
enjoyed her life, while she ....
Suddenly the room began to
grow dark and to swim about her,
and though she clenched her teeth
and pressed her feet hard upon the
floor she could not control it or
herself, and then for a little while
everything was blank ....
“Lie still. You’ll be all right in a
moment. Just drink this. No, lie
still and keep your eyes shut.”
She was glad enough to obey.
She felt as weak as if she had just
struggled through a long illness,
weaker than she had felt last night
when she fainted so suddenly in
the middle of a crowded ballroom.
Even the attempt to raise her head
left her so exhausted that she felt
almost dead.
But the potent drink this man
gave her was wonderful—it seemed
to open fresh life and energy into
her body, and presently she opened
her eyes and smiled.
He ignored that.
“Better?” he asked.
“Yes. Quite well, thank you. It
was silly. I’m sorry. It must have
been the heat.” She tried to
laugh. “Your consulting room was
very hot,” she said.
“That was brandy, I suppose.”
“No.”
He kept away from her a mom
ent, then seeing that she had raised
herself and was half sitting, half
leaning against the cushions of the
couch where he had placed her, he
came back and looked down at her
windows wide open. You will have
the very simplest food and no
alcohol at all except what I order.
As I said before, if you carry out
my instructions you will get well
again, but if not”—He broke off,
for Diana had risen shakily to her
feet.
“I can’t do that. I can’t go
away from London yet—not just
yet. I will later on—perhaps next
month, I promise. Can’t you give
ine some medicine just to go on
with? I promise to take it reg
ularly.”
“It’s not medicine you want. It’s
rest and sleep and quiet. Why can’t
you leave London? Surely it’s not
such an attractive place • in this
scorching heat? I only wish I were
free to leave it. I do for every
moment I can snatch. It’s a pois
onous place this weather, and to
anyone in your nervous state ”
“I hate the country?’
“You hate the country?”
He moved suddenly, laying a
hand on her shoulder,.
“Be a sensible child,” he said
gently. “Do as I tell you. Go right
away for three months, and you’ll
come back a different being, able
to enjoy life and laugh again.”
She raised passionate eyes to his
face.
“I’d rather die,” she said, and he
answered, suddenly grave:
“You may even do that if you re
fuse to take my advice.”
Diana picked up her hat, which
had fallen to the floor, and be
gan to put it on, by force of habit
hunting in her handbag first for a
little mirror and the inevitable lip
stick.
“It’s very kind of you, Dr. Selfe,”
she began with a return of her art
ificial air—the lipstick was giving
her back her poise. “But ”
He interrupted bluntly.
“I am not Dr. Selfe. I thought
the secretary had made that plan
to you. Dr. Selfe is away ill—I am
taking his place for the time being.
My name is Rathbone.”
“Oh!” So this was not the “top
man”; how annoyed Aunt Florence
would be, arid yet Diana herself
was conscious of relief. If he was
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You’ll be surprised how quickly the
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Start your savings account here now
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THE PEOPLES BANK
McCORMICK, S. C.
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There are seventy species of lup
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not the “top man” it would account
for the nonsense he had talked, of
the way in which he had almost
succeeded in frightening her; it
had been most unprofessional when
one came to think of it. - She look
ed at him with different eyes.
A big clumsy man, not a bit the
orthodox Harley Street specialist;
even his hair was rough, as if he
had forgotten to brush it . . . she
looked away from him quickly,
meeting once again his piercing
regard.
The country! Ugh! Spiders and*
other nasty crawling things, and no
hot water or soft beds.
She .drew on a glove.
Rathbone said, “I hope very earn
estly, Miss Gladwyn, that you will
take my advice.”
“You are very kind.” But she did
not look up, and it was he who held
out his hand.
She took it after the barest hes
itation; a strong, kind hand—cap
able and secure. A little sigh es
caped her—she had never known
what it was to feel really secure,
life had always been such a hectic
scramble.
“If you would care to come and
see me again, later on ... he said,
and his voice was kind—the voice
of a friend.
Diana said with a sense of help
lessness, “But I can’t go to the
country I hate it, and surely
it cannot be good to do a thing one
hates very much.”
“It’s not possible to hate a thing
you’ve never tried,” this strange
man said quietly, and then, “Do
you know that line—
“ ‘ God made the country, and
man made the town’?”
“No.”
He released her hand.
“Well, that’s just the difference,”
he said.
In the car Mrs. Gladwyn woke up
sufficiently to ask questions.
(CONTINUED NEXT WEEK)
PRESCRIPTIONS FILLED RIGHT j
STROMS’ DRUG STORE
MAIN STREET
McCORMICK. S. C.
There is an expert pharmacist in charge here at all
times who can fill your prescriptions quickly and correct
ly. Only the purest and freshest drugs are used and
every detail receives the most careful attention.
When time is an important factor, you will find that
you will not lose a minute at this store, for we use only the
time that is absolutely necessary.
If it is something you are needing for the sick room, we
have it, for we carry a most complete line of all sick room
and first aid supplies.
And if it comes from this store you can rest assured
that it is the very best quality to be had for the money.
SchoofLesso#
International Sunday School Lesson for March 20th.
JESUS DIES ON THE CROSS
Rev. Samuel D. Price, D. D.
On this Palm Sunday we note in the lesson study for the day the
reaction to the “Hail!” of the crowds which accompanied Him from
Bethany to Jerusalem. The friend that counts is the one that holds
steady with us in the time of adversity. Even the disciples failed Jesus
in the early morning hours which followed His arrest in the Garden of
Gethsemane. Read the complete accounts in all four gospels to as
semble the record of that day of supreme tragedy in the world’s history.
There were two series of illegal trials, each of which had three sittings.
Finally Pilate pronounced the sentence of death and the greatest friend
that man ever had was led away for the most ignominious killing on
the cross.
Numerous direct prophecies were fulfilled in the related events. Two
thieves were associated with Him in the agonies of those hours on the
cross. Pilate was nearer truth than he realized when in irony he
wrote the inscription that was carried in advance of the procession and
later nailed at the top of the cross. Jesus of Nazareth was indeed the
King of the Jews, as well as King of kings and Lord of lords. The
writer has walked along the Via Doloroso in Jerusalem and nqted the
various inscriptions which mark the traditional stations en route to the
cross.
Search out the seven statements that Jesus made from the cross and
seek to get their full import. Some of them have great teaching value
for us today. Note how lovingly Jesus makes provision for the com
fort of Mary His mother as He places her in the care of John.
When “It is finished” is pronounced the sacrifice was completed
whereby all sinners can find salvation, “Christ died for our sins ac
cording to the scriptures,” declares the Golden Text, I Cor. 15:3.