Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1870-01-28

AlNSA AiV Woo SNAO hto ~ |
CURED to Ward as strange and unpleasant.
I" l believe I'll go after him" he thought,
But dinner was ready, and he turned
back into the dark entry; and, being
feather headed young fellow, forgot the
whole matter speedily.
The pistol was, not charged, Bender
stopped at shop on the way up the street,
and loaded it carefully. 1t was nearly !
dark when he reached his own steps.
4 Mary opened the door before he could
touch It, She wore yet her silk dress and |
her pretty collar offine lace; her hair |
was curled about her face her checks |
were pink aud hot her liquid eyes bril-
liant with o new fire. lie saw it all. |
What was it that Morris had said about |
their hunger for repetition of the old |
love.making days9 She put up her mouth |
to be kissed, as usual, and when he passed
her, hurried in after him, taking his hand.
| "Poor old papa He's tiredl Go in,
Jackey; don't worry father now."
So Skilled in deception already She
was leading him into the dining
where supper was spread but he put her
quietly aside and passed up to his own
rooms She followed him, You are
4 wornout. Why did you stay in the
putting her white hands on his shoulder
as he sat staring into the ire When he
did not answer, she drew his head back
on her breast and kissed his lips.
| That kiss set fire TO the smoldering mad
ness within the man but he was always
Z quiet and grave. He looked her steadily
in the eyes. How beautiful the face was
that bent over himla Some dainty Ariel
of a spirit looked out of it which he had
never conquered or owned. He saw that
clearly now.
She turned away from him at last, and
busted herself about the eroom-went down
and brought him a cup Of tea. The farce
of playing the wife over, she became alb
sent, as was usual with her now; her
thoughts far off He took out the roll of
notes and laid them down on the mantel-
shelf
A "Thero is the mortgage money! '4gg
Y "Yes." She did not brighten and flush
as she would once have done. He remem-
bered how often she had taken out her
pencil and counted up these savings in a
triumphant sum, drawing little frame
work of vines about it, and presenting 1t
to him with her Joyous little chuckle, She
scarcely glanced at the money now. But
he would try her further
at cannot use it for the mortgage.
Stouoh- refuses to pay the back salary. -
"Then the mortgage will be foreclosed
to o.morrow? And you will lose your homer"
She came suddenly close to him, her face
colorless, her dark eyes wet and full OF
pity. Not love. He was not deceived.
No wonder she had some little compass
sion for the man in whose bosom she had
lain years, on this night when she meant
to fly from him. "Poor old Sam"
"The loss of the house matters little to
, us nowW
"Why, thought your heart was bound
: : up in it." She paused suddenly-a keen
=. Suspicion flashing into her face. "What
else have you lost?"
For a moment there was silence, the
husband and wife looking steadily at each
Q other, the oil lamp burning with uncer-
! tain yellow flashes between them. i do
not know" he said at last, in as quiet q
. question, "what there is left to me. There
: is nothing on Gods earth that l can call
+ my ownH
n She did not answer by word; bu,
4 stood motionless, with the same penetrat'
ing, doubtful look fixed on him. Now
Mary was not naturally a reticent woman
= all her emotions bubbled straight to the
:, surface. She had been a gay, giddy girl
. and now, when she was a mother, she kept
= the house alive with what her husband
\ censured as a most unmatronly light
- MISUNDERSTANDING, jesting, laughing
u, most of the time, and washing away any
% trouble in a shower of tears. Her immo
q bility now proved how deep his thrust haC
- wounded her - .tt Ii
"You've nobody in the world No
-. body! Not even me-" she said, slowly, a
l. last. She turned to the window, putting
N her hand, for support, on an old chair tina
! stood there. 1t was worn and shabby
l. chair; but she had nursed both of thu
!, children in it Jackey and little Jenny
- Jenny, who was dead, who would neVe
lie on her breast again. Did she remem
4 lber? She looked at it, and then at hin
70 for q moment and then, without word
y, ~ turned away and left the room.
- - He knew that she would never enter
~ again. 1t was strange how many OF thes
iIituitions, amounting to certainties, cam
70 to him tonight. He thought that pain
10 in this great crisis of his life, had givel
AZ AZ him a spiritual clearness of insight
~ Another person might have suggested
~ that the devil helped him.
NJ. ~ It was only seven o'clock; there wer
two hours yet to psss before the end. II
90 sat by the fire, pushing the poker betwee
" the bars, looking around him. There wa
y nothing in the cheaply- furnished, prett
nr chamber that had not tonight terribl
10 e. meaning for him, He remembered whe
- he had brought that very chair home, tw
- or three weeks after Jack was born
~ and, lifting Mary out of bed, had place
ve her in it, and laid her baby in her arms.
That was only six years ago; yet
,e. thought of himself fthen as but boy. VIII
~ perpetual frolic they made of Afe then
N Hard at work and miserably poor; bt
an Joking away all WEAKNESS or want-tu
|, = of ioy and content the world was; hO
N MANY frfapda thau had then
Sot lie had learned since to see things di
"a ferently. When he set his heart on pa,
for ing off that mortgage, it seemed to su
Ia denly open his eyes to the seriousness
,o1 life. 1t affected his religion. He bega
ha to see faults in the old friends who we
his in the habit of dropping IN every da
ne finding Marys house so pleasant; he b
he gan to fear his own and his wife's spin
,S ual character would suffer from conta
with them, One by one he had dIiv'
ing them off AS he stinted and saved mo
- and more to gather this money, his ide
~ of duty hardened. He had grown old a.
wy grave, while Mary remained the sal
rIv cheerful, happy-tempered girl.
itb Tonight for the first time, d.
doubt came to him whether he had n
II been to blame-her perpetual goo
humor, her eager interest in people abe
>" her, her singing, her noisy ronps wi
md Jack-a1l had seemed giddy and trivial
tin. him he had rebuked her necessarily
the them. at was solemn thing to lv
was who could go dancing over graves ?" h
ger come to be proverb with him. Gov
his 4 he have driven her from him9 Driv
phe her TO man whose temperament suit
sed her ownl ---.--,-..-..--.---;-..--,
ed, he was standing before looking -gla
ard and he Could not help comparing his ol
ola ~ Nit
stubby black beard, 70 the gay, Winni
len countenance that had won her from hi
ght He put his hand up 70 hide thefl
n a from himself
at loved her" hesaid, quietly Think
eet, that If she had known how much,
9Th would have forgiven him. He sat do
the again. Searching again for miserable