on it, they skate around so lively I never can count on landing them without an accident." "That is a form of nervousness you will conquer in time, Margaret." "Well, five months has n't made any difference that you could notice." Margaret sat thinking a long time. "Why could n't we borrow enough on our berry prospects to finish this last semester? Farmers mortgage their wheat crops. Why not a berry crop?" "It is too uncertain. Bankers will not "I had hoped for a scholarship-" began take such risks." Dr. Arnot. "Please don't," interrupted Margaret. "I wish I might get one to please you, but you don't understand, Daddy. Recitations are almost as bad as waiting on table. My lips get so dry I can hardly open them. No amount of swallowing will affect the lump in my throat, and my voice is so low and trembly you would n't think that I had any. That is n't the worst. When Dr. Thompson says, 'Miss Arnot,' my lesson disappears like a mouse into some dark corner of my brain, and the rest is all a blank." Dr. Arnot sighed as he arose and went to the window. He realized too well what his daughter was suffering from abnormal timidity. Looking out over the rows of welltrimmed berry-vines, he recalled his own college days and the agonies he had suffered. Margaret's mother had died three years before they came to Washington. After her death, Dr. Arnot had resigned the chair of history at Lincoln College, and he and his daughter had become wanderers. When Margaret was ready for college he realized that they must find a home near some college town. They chose the university of the State. Their fast diminishing funds made it necessary to invest the remainder in whatever would give them the largest possible income. Dr. Arnot knew nothing of horticulture, but a berry-ranch presented so many attractions in the prospectus that he purchased one of ten acres in a little village a short distance from Seattle. The investment had not proved successful. The early frosts had taken most of the berry crop in the two preceding years, and it had become necessary for Margaret to earn her own way at the university. "The vines look as if we should have a good crop this year. They have never been so full of bloom. If the frosts hold off for a few weeks now, your troubles will be ended." "If the frosts only hold off-they must hold off, for I can't go back to waiting on table. I must find something else to do. Please, Daddy dear, don't set your heart on a scholarship, for I don't want to disappoint you." "I'm going to try, anyway. I have it!" she exclaimed, her eyes bright with enthusiasm. "After supper I'm going to Judge Howard and put it up to him as a business proposition." "It will not be business hours, daughter." "I know, but it will be so much easier than going to the bank and facing all those clerks," she persisted. She hurriedly put away the supper things and started for Judge Howard's before the little god of Fear persuaded her to change her mind. By the time she had reached the banker's gate, the thought of asking him for money frightened her and she turned and fled. The bank would be open in the morning and she would go down and see whatShe stopped suddenly. "That's only an excuse to postpone a disagreeable task," she commented aloud. "Back you go, now." With that she turned and went back to Judge Howard's house. The Perhaps she had not chosen the proper time. It might be well to wait until business hours, as her father had suggested. She hesitated as she reached the steps. god of Fear was gaining control again, but before he could conquer, she rushed up the steps and rang the bell. The maid ushered her into the library, where the judge sat writing. She stated her errand briefly. Her voice had not failed her. Though it trembled at times and was hard to control, she kept resolutely on. "It is an unusual proposition, I know, Judge Howard, but perhaps the bank will be willing to make the loan. The prospects are so good this year." The judge's kind, fatherly eyes were troubled as he looked at the flushed face of the girl before him. "Not so unusual a proposition as you may think. Almost every day now some one comes in to borrow money on their berries. The crop has been such a failure the last few years that the directors have made it an iron-clad rule to loan no money on berries this year." Margaret was stunned with disappointment. She almost ran from the house. "Begging for money is even harder than waiting on table," she declared, as she reached her own gate. The cold wind struck her burning cheeks and she shivered. burning on cool nights during the early spring to keep the frosts from the blossoms. "No, not unless the thermometer drops another degree. The wind may change before "It 's no use, Daddy, our berries have n't midnight and it may be warmer." "You have had a hard day, Daddy, please go to bed. I've some lessons to get, and I can watch the thermometer for a while." Margaret tried to interest herself in her English, but her mind was too full of plans to make any progress with her lessons. She must find a way to raise some money immediately. If the little god of Fear were not holding such danger-signals before her! Then the thought came to her that if she could only find some way to conquer this dragon that was blocking her path to success, perhaps things would be easier. She went to the porch and looked at the thermometer again. It had already dropped below the safety-point. There was no time to be lost. Slipping on an old coat, she took a lantern and went out to light the fires. It was not necessary to call her father, for this was something she could do unaided. The whole valley lay Not a light could be Although the signs now indicated a heavy frost, no one had lighted their fires. Perhaps the other neighbors did not need the berry crop as badly as she. any rate, they were not watching it so closely. She thought of Mrs. Harris and her six children across the road. They, as well as some of the other neighbors, depended on their crop for a living. Margaret determined to awaken as many as she could. "THE DIRECTORS HAVE MADE IT AN IRON-CLAD RULE TO LOAN NO MONEY ON BERRIES THIS YEAR'" any credit with the bankers. We'll have to make the crop safe-that is all we can do." "Don't worry, Margaret; we can do that. Did you look at the thermometer as you came in?" "It is dropping and there is frost in the air. Don't you think we had better light the funeral pyres?" Margaret always referred to the piles of brush and wood placed about the berry-fields as funeral pyres. These were lighted and kept in blue-black darkness. seen anywhere. At Forgetting herself and her usual timidity, she went from house to house, like a watchman giving the alarm of an approaching enemy. White-robed figures came to the doors and windows in answer to her loud knocks. This was a most unusual thing she was doing-no one in the valley had ever thought of such a thing before. Some were inclined to resent being aroused suddenly from their sleep, but as the cold wind swept into their faces, their vexation changed to gratitude and they hastened to their berryfields. In every direction the valley was soon dotted with fires. As the sun rose behind the Cascades, Margaret crept into bed, tired and aching in every muscle. The distances between the neighboring houses was not short, and her mission had carried her a long distance from home. But as she dropped to sleep she was happy in the thought that she had been able to conquer her timidity in the service of the people in the valley. It was late when she awoke that Sunday morning. She had almost forgotten the part she had played in the events the night before, so intent was she upon the thought that was still keeping possession of her mind. She had conquered her timidity by forgetting herself. It was an old remedy that had been told her many times; but to her it was new, for she had never applied it to herself. The sunshine was flooding her room. As she lay half awake, half asleep, the sound of voices drifted up to her. Some neighbors had stopped at the gate to talk to her father about the frost, and to tell him how their berries had been saved. It was the heaviest spring frost in the valley for many years. Late in the afternoon, as she was preparing to go back to the university after spending the week-end with her father, a loud knock sounded on the front door. She hastily left her packing to open it. Judge Howard was calling to congratulate her on her courage and thoughtfulness the night before. As he was leaving he handed her a purse. "It is just a little token of appreciation from your neighbors," he said, smiling. Margaret looked with surprise at the judge and then at the purse. The bright color in her face swept to her temples. The little god of Fear appeared before her, and for a moment held her speechless. Then, with an effort, she banished him from her mind, for she had learned a talisman during the night that would help her all through her life. "It is very kind of them," her voice grew stronger and clearer as she went on bravely, "but I can't accept such a gift for a little neighborly kindness.” "How about your school? Can't you use it there?" asked the judge, casually. "I can get along splendidly now." "Then you were able to borrow money on your crop from some one else?" "No, but I have received really wonderful help from these same people, though it is not the kind you mean. Please take back the purse." "But I could n't take this money back to the people who sent it to you as a gift. Don't you see how embarrassing it would be?" ness. "I have a plan," announced Margaret, her voice trembling, but this time with eager"Last night as I was going about from house to house, I thought if there were a whistle, loud enough to be heard through the valley, installed somewhere in the center of the community, the farmers could hire a watchman during the frost months, and when the thermometer dropped he could arouse the whole valley with a few blasts. Why not take this money and buy such a whistle?" "Capital idea! You are a public benefactor. The farmers could well afford to pay a watchman a good salary during the early spring. The banks would not be afraid to loan money on berry crops then," he commented, with a twinkle in his eyes. "You come over when we get that frost whistle installed and we 'll fix up that loan.” Margaret thanked the judge, but she had other plans which she did not tell him. "I am proud of you, daughter. I think, however, you'd better accept that loan," said her father, when the judge had gone. "No, Daddy, I'm going back to be a waitress until I have conquered this little god of Fear. Why any one ever called him a god is more than I can understand, unless it is because of his strength. I shall conquer him, however." MARGARET'S determination helped her, but she still had difficulty in keeping her hands from trembling that first morning after she had resolved to conquer her timidity. "I must think of some one else besides myself," she murmured under her breath as she passed back and forth from the diningroom to the kitchen. With this thought always before her, she forgot her timidity. "SHE WENT FROM HOUSE TO HOUSE, LIKE A WATCHMAN GIVING THE ALARM OF AN APPROACHING ENEMY" The weeks went by more rapidly than ever before. Recitations became easier; there were fewer accidents and "victims" in the dining-room. Margaret looked forward eagerly to the week-ends that she spent with her father. The frost whistle had been promptly installed and was working out very satisfactorily for the ranchers. Every one was looking forward to a prosperous year. There was talk of building a cannery, now that the crop could be depended upon, which would make an accessible market for the farmers and assure them good prices for all that they raised, The berry-ranch became a pleasant place to visit, and Margaret often brought a friend home with her to spend the week-end. It was a new and delightful experience to feel that she was a part of the class, instead of a shrinking figure on the outside of it. The end of the semester found her a general favorite, for her schoolmates had come to know her real charm and to delight in her friendship. The awarding of the Graham Scholarship was one of the interesting events at the close of the year. It was the largest offered by the university and had always been given to some member of the engineering class. Margaret had gone to the assembly that day little dreaming of the happiness that was awaiting her. Dr. Howard, the president, spoke on the value of the apparently little things of life, that an expedient, simple in itself, might have the merit and value of a real discovery. Then he told the story of the frost whistle, as he had heard it from his farmer-brother living in Sumner, and of the benefit it had proved to the berry-ranchers in the valley, and concluded by saying that the board of regents had awarded the scholarship to Margaret Arnot, the originator of the idea. Margaret listened with astonishment to the conclusion of the address, her eyes filled with happy tears. The applause was deafening, and she was overwhelmed with congratulations. "It was all such a wonderful surprise, Daddy," she said, as she told her father about it, "but I can't see why they gave the scholarship to me. But our troubles will be over for a year, at least. Is n't it a heavenly feeling to know you have nothing to worry about?" "You have accomplished more than you know. Your greatest victory is in yourself, little daughter; for in conquering your timidity, you have gained one of life's greatest rewards the ability to make friends. If I had been able to learn this lesson at your age, life would have been very different." "But, Daddy," she said, smiling, "you did n't have a frost whistle, as I did, to start you on your Friendship Road." |