soul. He did
not drop the hand at once, but standing there, as father to son he
spoke:

"I have been a husband. Through all these long years I have walked alone
and lonely, yearning ever for the human presence of my loved one lying
these many years under the churchyard grasses back at old Rockport.
Judson, be good to your wife. Make her happy. You will be blessed
yourself and you will make her a true good woman."

* * * * *

There was a quiet wedding at the Presbyterian parsonage that evening.
The name of only one witness appeared on the marriage certificate, the
name in a bold hand of John Baronet.

CHAPTER XXVI

O'MIE'S INHERITANCE

In these cases we still have judgment here.

--SHAKESPEARE.

True to his word, Tell Mapleson's time followed hard on the finishing up
of Judson. My father did not make a step until he was sure of what the
next one would be. That is why the supreme court never reversed his
decisions. When at last he had perfected his plans, Tell Mapleson grew
shy of pushing his claims. But Tell was a shrewd pettifogger, and his
was a different calibre of mind from Judson's. It was not until my
father was about to lay claim in his client's behalf to the valuable
piece of land containing the big cottonwood and the haunted cabin, that
Tell came out of hiding. This happened on the afternoon following the
morning scene with Judson. And aside from the task of the morning, the
news of Bud Anderson's untimely death had come that day. Nobody could
foretell what next this winter's campaign might hold for the Springvale
boys out on the far Southwest Plains, and my father's heart was heavy.

Tell Mapleson was tall and slight. He was a Southern man by birth, and
he always retained something of the Southern air in his manner. Active,
nervous, quick-witted, but not profound, he made a good impression
generally, especially where political trickery or nice turns in the law
count for coin. Professionally he and my father were competitors; and
he might have developed into a man of fine standing, had he not kept
store, become postmaster, run for various offices, and diffused himself
generally, while John Baronet held steadily to his calling.

In the early afternoon Tell courteously informed my father that he
desired an interview with the idea of adjusting differences between the
two. His request was granted, and a battle royal was to mark the second
half of the day. John