The Witness by Grace Livingston Hill Lutz (mobi reader android TXT) 📕

     Was All So Hard To Give Him Up,  And He Just Beginning To

     Live His Earthly Life. But Now Since I Can Realize Him Over

     By The Father,  I Would Like To Know It All. Bonnie Says That

     You Saw Stephen Go,  And I Thought Perhaps You Could Spare A

     Little Time To Run Out West And Tell Me.

     Of Course,  If You Are Busy And Have Other Plans You Mustn't

     Let This Bother You. I Can Wait Till Some Time When You Are

     Coming West And Can Stop Over For A Day. But If You Care To

     Come Home To Mother Marshall And Let Her Play You Are Her

     Boy For A Little While,  You Will Make Us All Very Happy.

When Courtland Had Finished Reading The Letter He Put His Head Down On

His Desk And Shed The First Tears His Eyes Had Known Since He Was A

Little Boy. To Have A Home And Mother-Heart Open To Him Like That In The

Midst Of All His Sorrow And Perplexity Fairly Unmanned Him. By And By He

Lifted Up His Head And Wrote A Hearty Acceptance Of The Invitation.

That Was In November.

In The Middle Of December Tennelly And Gila Were Married.

It Was Not Any Of Courtland's Choosing That He Was Best Man. He Shrank

Inexpressibly From Even Attending That Wedding. He Tried To Arrange For

His Western Trip So Early As To Avoid It. Not That He Had Any More

Personal Feeling About Gila,  But Because He Dreaded To See His Friend

Tied Up To Such A Future. It Seemed As If The Wedding Was Tennelly's

Funeral.

But Tennelly Had Driven Up To The Seminary On Three Successive Weeks And

Begged That Courtland Would Stand By Him.

"You're The Only One In The Wide World Who Knows All About It,  And

Understands,  Court," He Pleaded,  And Courtland,  Looking At His Friend's

Wistful Face,  Feeling,  As He Did,  That Tennelly Was Entering A Living

Purgatory,  Could Not Refuse Him.

It Did Not Please Gila To Have Him Take That Place In The Wedding Party.

He Knew Her Shame,  And She Could Not Trail Her Wedding Robes As

Guilelessly Before Him Now,  Nor Lift Her Imperious Little Head,  With Its

Crown Of Costly Blossoms,  Before The Envious World,  Without Realizing

That She Was But A Whited Sepulcher,  Her Little Rotten Heart All Death

Beneath The Spotless Robes. For She Was Keen Enough To Know That She Was

Defiled Forever In Courtland's Eyes. She Might Fool Tennelly By Pleading

Innocence And Deceit,  But Never Courtland. For His Eyes Had Pried Into

Her Very Soul That Night He Had Discovered Her In Sin. She Had A Feeling

That He And His God Were In League Against Her. No,  Gila Did Not Want

Courtland To Be Tennelly's Best Man. But Tennelly Had Insisted. He Had

Given In About Almost Every Other Thing Under Heaven,  And Gila Had Had

Her Way,  But He Would Have Courtland For Best Man.

She Drooped Her Long Lashes Over Her Lovely Cheeks,  And Trailed Her

White Robes Up A Long Aisle Of White Lilies To The Steps Of The Altar;

But When She Lifted Her Miserable Eyes In Front Of The Altar She Could

Not Help Seeing The Face Of The Man Who Had Discovered Her Shame. It Was

A Case Of Her Little Naked,  Sinful Soul Walking In The Garden Again,

With The Voice And The Eyes Of A God Upon It.

Lovely! Composed! Charming! Exquisite! All These And More They Said She

Was As She Stood Before The White-Robed Priest And Went Through The

Ceremony,  Repeating,  Parrot-Like,  The Words: "I,  Gila,  Take Thee,

Llewellyn--" But In Her Heart Was Wrath And Hate,  And No More Repentance

Than A Fallen Angel Feels.

When At Last The Agony Was Over And The Bride And Groom Turned To Walk

Down The Aisle,  Gila Lifted Her Pretty Lips Charmingly To Tennelly For

His Kiss,  And Leaned Lovingly Upon His Arm,  Smiling Saucily At This One

And That As She Pranced Airily Out Into Her Future. Courtland,  Coming

Just Behind With The Maid Of Honor,  One Of Gila's Feather-Brained

Friends,  Lolling On His Arm,  Felt That He Ought To Be Inexpressibly

Thankful To God That He Was Only Best Man In This Procession,  And Not

Bridegroom.

When At Last The Bride And Groom Were Departed,  And Courtland Had Shaken

Off The Kind But Curious Attentions Of Bill Ward,  Who Persisted In

Thinking That Tennelly Had Cut Him Out With Gila,  He Turned To Pat And

Whispered,  Softly:

"For The Love Of Mike,  Pat,  Let's Beat It Before They Start Anything

Else!"

Pat,  Anxious And Troubled,  Heaved A Sigh Of Relief,  And Hustled His Old

Friend Out Under The Stars With Almost A Shout Of Joy. Nelly Was Caught

And Bound For A Season. Poor Old Nelly! But Court Was Free! Thank The

Lord!

Courtland Was Almost Glad That He Went Immediately Back To Hard Work

Again And Should Have Little Time To Think. The Past Few Days Had

Wearied Him Inexpressibly. He Had Come To Look On Life As A Passing

Show,  And To Feel Almost Too Utterly Left Out Of Any Pleasure In It.

It Was A Cold,  Snowy Night That Courtland Came Down To The City And Took

The Western Express For His Holiday.

There Was Snow,  Deep,  Vast,  Glistening,  When He Arrived At Sloan's

Station On The Second Morning,  But The Sun Was Out,  And Nothing Could Be

More Dazzling Than The Scene That Stretched On Every Side. They Had Come

Through A Blizzard And Left It Traveling Eastward At A Rapid Rate.

Courtland Was Surprised To Find Father Marshall Waiting For Him On The

Platform,  In A Great Buffalo-Skin Overcoat,  Beaver Cap,  And Gloves. He

Carried A Duplicate Coat Which He Offered To Courtland As Soon As The

Greetings Were Over.

"Here,  Put This On; You'll Need It," He Said,  Heartily,  Holding Out The

Coat. "It Was Steve's. I Guess It'll Fit You. Mother And Bonnie's Over

Here,  Waiting. They Couldn't Stand It Without Coming Along. I Guess You

Won't Mind The Ride,  Will You,  After Them Stuffy Cars? It's A Beauty

Day!"

And There Were Mother Marshall And Bonnie,  Swathed To The Chin In Rugs

And Shawls And Furs,  Looking Like Two Red-Cheeked Cherubs!

Bonnie Was Wearing A Soft Wool Cap And Scarf Of Knitted Gray And White.

Her Cheeks Glowed Like Roses; Her Eyes Were Two Stars For Brightness.

Her Gold Hair Rippled Out Beneath The Cap And Caught The Sunshine All

Around Her Face.

Courtland Stood Still And Gazed At Her In Wonder And Admiration. Was

This The Sad,  Pale Girl He Had Sent West To Save Her Life? Why,  She Was

A Beauty,  And She Looked As If She Had Never Been Ill In Her Life! He

Could Scarcely Bear To Take His Eyes From Her Face Long Enough To Get

Into The Front Seat With Father Marshall.

As For Mother Marshall,  Nothing Could Be More Satisfactory Than The Way

She Looked Like Her Picture,  With Those Calm,  Peaceful Eyes And That

Tendency To A Dimple In Her Cheek Where A Smile Would Naturally Come.

Apple-Cheeked,  Silver-Haired,  And Plump. She Was Just Ideal!

That Was A Gay Ride They Had,  All Talking And Laughing Excitedly In

Their Happiness At Being Together. It Was So Good To Mother Marshall To

See Another Pair Of Strong Young Shoulders There Beside Father On The

Front Seat Again!

It Was Mother Marshall Who Took Him Up To Stephen's Room Herself When

They Reached The Nice Old Rambling Farm-House Set In The Wide,  White,

Snowy Landscape. Father Marshall Had Taken The Car To The Barn,  And

Bonnie Was Hurrying The Dinner On The Table.

Courtland Entered The Room As If It Had Been A Sacred Place,  And Looked

Around On The Plain Comfort: The Home-Made Rugs,  The Fat,  Worsted

Pincushion,  The Quaint Old Pictures On The Walls,  The Bookcase With Its

Rows Of Books; The Big White Bed With Its Quilted Counterpane Of

Delicate Needlework,  The Neat Marble-Topped Washstand With Its Speckless

Appointments And Its Wealth Of Large Old-Fashioned Towels.

"It Isn't Very Fancy," Said Mother Marshall,  Deprecatingly. "We Fixed Up

Bonnie's Room As Modern As We Could When We Knew She Was Coming"--She

Waved An Indicating Hand Toward The Open Door Across The Hall,  Where The

Rosy Glow Of Pink Curtains And Cherry-Blossomed Wall Gave Forth A

Pleasant Sense Of Light And Joy--"And We Had Meant To Fix This All Over

For Steve The First Christmas When He Came Home,  As A Surprise; But Now

You? It Is Fine Of You To Put Me In It. I Feel As If It Was Almost A

Desecration,  Because,  You See,  I Didn't Know Him Very Well; I Wasn't The

Friend To Him I Might Have Been. I Thought I Ought To Tell You That

Right At The Start. Perhaps You Wouldn't Want Me If You Knew All About

It."

"You Would Have Been His Friend If You Had Had A Chance To Know Him,"

Beamed The Brave Little Mother. "He Was A Reavements (The

Superior Schools Had Already Ceased To Function At This Time) As Well As

The Theatrical Artistes: A Talented Artist,  Silotti,  Was Arrested; He

Declared That Even In The Time Of Czarism Nobody Was Ever Uneasy On

Account Of His Political Opinions.

Iv

_The Bolsheviki And The Constituent Assembly_

At The Time Of The Accomplishment Of Their _Coup D'état_,  The Bolsheviki

Cried Aloud That The Ministry Of Kerensky Put Off A Long Time The

Convocation Of The Constituante (Which Was A Patent Lie),  That They Would

Never Call The Assembly,  And That They Alone,  The Bolsheviki,  Would Do It.

But According As The Results Of The Elections Became Known Their Opinions

Changed.

In The Beginning They Boasted Of Their Electoral Victories At Petrograd And

Moscow. Then They Kept Silent,  As If The Elections Had No Existence

Whatever. But The _Pravda_ And The _Izvestya_ Of The Soviet Of Workmen's

And Soldiers' Delegates Continued To Treat As Caluminators Those Who

Exposed The Danger That Was Threatening The Constituent Assembly At The

Hands Of The Bolsheviki. They Did Not Yet Dare To Assert Themselves Openly.

They Had To Gain Time To Strengthen Their Power. They Hastily Followed Up

Peace Pourparlers,  To Place Russia And The Constituent Assembly,  If This

Met,  Before An Accomplished Fact.

They Hastened To Attract The Peasants To Themselves. That Was The Reason

Which Motived The "Decree" Of Lenine On The Socialization Of The Soil,

Which Decree Appeared Immediately After The _Coup D'état_. This Decree Was

Simply A Reproduction Of A Revolutionary Socialists' Resolution Adopted At

A Peasants' Congress. What Could The Socialization Of The Soil Be To Lenine

And All The Bolsheviki In General? They Had Been,  But A Short Time Before,

Profoundly Indifferent With Regard To This Socialist-Revolutionist

"Utopia." It Had Been For Them An Object Of Raillery. But They Knew That

Without This "Utopia" They Would Have No Peasants. And They Threw Them

This Mouthful,  This "Decree," Which Astonished The Peasants. "Is It A Law?

Is It Not A Law? Nobody Knows," They Said.

It Is The Same Desire To Have,  Cost What It May,  The Sympathy Of The

Peasants That Explains The Union Of The Bolsheviki With Those Who Are

Called The "Socialist-Revolutionists Of The Left" (For The Name

Socialist-Revolutionist Spoke To The Heart Of The Peasant),  Who