The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1872-12-28
SELECTED STORY.
The Christmas Of Sir GaIahad.
BY ELIZABETH STUART PHELPS.

top.asm, deinable by no law of contradic-
ton nor OF excluded middle, presents itself
to the public acquaintance nowadays, it is
apt. as we all know, to receive rather sorry
welcome. And when, after the sadly tardy
discovery of the Lady of Shalott, in South
street, one of those remarkable rumors Gre
dence to which is at once a danger and a de-
light, stole about town, it stole on tiptoe,
looking over its shoulder meanwhile at cor
ners with soft shy eye, one on the police and
another on the daily press, and startled
glance at the fashionable churches, and ten
der shudder at the shadow of the Institute"
and its beautiful finger al its lips-makng
thus slow progress, and, for every warm
hearted faith which it shook by the OUT
stretched hand, leaving two doubts to close
ranks behind it.
Had he the right to take a woman into his
swe It and garnished heart, even long enough
to bless ser in Gods name and let her go !?
"It would turn to curses" said Sir Galahad
''up0n us both. / will not bless her." Now
he turned his head, at this, and saw her COM
ing up the court. 81 viii not, will mott p said
Sir Galaha1 But all his soul rose up and
went to meet her, and laid its hands upon her
in henediction. And when Sir Galahad had
felt within himself that this was so, he fell
upon his knees and there remained till mid
night And in the morning he arose with a
love or death or victory, and went away in
his blue overals to work, with his dinner pail
upon his arm, and nodded gravely to Re-
becca but smiled little and spoke less.
And so the lady Rebecca, grieved and puz-
zled in her heart, would have dropped a tear
or two upon her foundation strips, but for a
heat upon her cheeks that burned and dried
them all the day; and so at night, being
feverish and wakefui, and, stepping down IN
t0 tho COur' at n aarlv bo,,x
she came suddenly upon woman Chamber
ing into Sir Galahad's low window.
So she dropped her pail, and, in the lev
swash that fell about her feet, sat down to
catch her breath.
There, in the mud-puddle which the chilly
water made, Sir Galahad found her sitting,
when he had shut his window, had turned
the key in his door, had come out, and had
stopped and stood beside her.
That's ing wife, Rebecca, I've lust locked
her in there" said Sir Galahad, standing in
the starlight. ''Will you come to the win
dow and take look at her?'
''Pd rather not" said Rebecca from her
mud-puddle; but she rose and shook the
spatter from her clothes. -
Every WE'LL" said Sir Galahad.
'You never told me,' said Rebecca pick
ing up her pail, ''that you had wife, Sir
Gaahadp'
81 never thought of it till yesterday" said
Galahad. 81 ought have. Task your par
lon. Miss Rebecca. She's crazy''
'Oh?' said the Lady Rebecca, STRETCHING
out her strong, large hand; but she drew il
back, and hid it in her shawl.
"And> takes opium" said Galahad Holt.
patier thy, ''and is up to pretty much every
thing. It's going on six years now since she
left me. But she keeps coming on me un-
expected. The ground floors saved great
deal Of talk and shame, [ think; don't YOU
/ thought I'd best keep house for her. all
things taken int the count; don't you?
Sometimes I think she'll slick herself up a
little and stay. But in day or two she's
off. She's got the Old I'm in her head To.
night said Galahad.
Its very hard; it's very, very hard p
Rebecca m Janed.
"Rebecca Rock" said Galahad, solempIv.
otis curious time and place to say it.: but
1 think there Il never come better
"Oh! no" said Rebecca.
"And | may as well out with it, nv girl,
first as last, and, once for all, and tell YOU
how, if you'd been my wife, instead of her.
l couldn't have loved you truer or more sim
gle in pay heart than love you in the sight
of God and these here stars this wretched
night. And I'm married manp'
"Oh, yes, yes p said Rebecca.
''But I'm a married man." said he.
'People unmarry," said she.
She looked in frightened way about the
court at the stars, at the pump, at the mud
puddle; she gasped and thrust her hand out.
but drew it back within her shawl. Sir Gal
ahad did not touch it,
81 suppose" said Sir Galahad very slowly.
e'as could get divorced from Merry Ann.
I've thought OF I thought OF yesterday for
a long while. But it seems to me as if Pd
better not. Shed be coming back. We see.
ANY way, she'd be q Twin on this Twin earth.
We might be meeting her face to face most
any day. 1t seems to me, Rebecca, as if it
was agin Natur for me to marry another wo-
man while Merry AIMS living creetur.
How does it seem to you?n
"Galahad Holt" said Rebecca. SIN not so
good as you, and I'm fond of you.''
''For Gods sake, don't tell me o'tr' cried
Sir Galahad.
We'll, WON'T said Rebecca.
"For, fits agin Natur," said Sir Galahad,
lifting his face to the stars above Primrose
Court, cts agin God. And rather than be
agin them two, I'd be ont the safe side. it
seems to me-"
every welP', said Rebesca.
$50 think We'll wait'', said Sir Galabad.
taking Oil his hat and holding out his hand.
SIS the safe side always the right side. Gal.
ahad? ?" asked Rebecca.
81 don't exactly KNOW" said Sir Gaahad,
with puzzled face.
''Nor l. said Rebecca; :'but think we'n
watt
''Some folks wouldn't, said Sir Galabad.
But l don't see as that makes any Odds
NO." SAID Rebecca. SO they shook hands
While Sir Gaiahad stood with his hat off be-
meath the stars; and the Lady Rebecca picked
up her veil from the mud-puddle and went up
stairs; and Sir Galahad went to the grocers TO
get little tea for his wife; and the world ran
on as if nothing had happened.
Now the world had been running on quite
as if nothing ever would happen again for
four years, when Sir Galahad's Christmas
came. And the Lady Rebecca had walked
alone to the neck-tie factory; and Galabad
haG kept house on the ground floor; and Re-
becca aad IAN sex with deadly fever, and
Sir Galahad had lost six months wages in q
strike; and the mans face had grown earnt.
and the woman's old, and his had pinched
and hers had paled; yet their hands had new
er met since they stood by the pump in the
starlight; nor had Sir Galahad's knightly
foot once crossed the croaking stairs
which bore the reg lar, calm feet of the Lady
kenecca to the solitary back corner of 163:
nor hae he said God bless her when she
sung at the little church, lest, indeed, his
Wnoie SOU should rise up per force, and
choose car 81 TOR blessing and death for life.
@A''N AZ - NA'Ailii ldu worked beside Re-
becca az the neck-tie fac DRY, she would have
learned royal lesson. And AbeIard mi@bt
well have sat at the feet of Gaahad n l,ing
organs with his grimy hands. And If F~e ns
Isaac had wandered into the first Gonr az fon u
or the second back corner of 164. on i iona'
some rainy evening, they would have 1yn,,t
for pity, and smiled for blessing, and m "pi
much. 0N
Now, it was on rainy evening, with melt
ing snow upon the ground and melting chis
upon the wind, that the LAZY Rebecca croo-
ing and crouching by her little lamp, sat
dt.arnlng stockings for Sir Galahad-a cues
tionable taste, we must admit. She had not
even offered to embroider him Ebanner. nor
70 net nm silllcn favor, nor to fringe SO
n os scarf for the next ,ourna nenf to
be pc. held at Primrose Court. She had onlv
SAD: IWii it be properqp And he had
sad Ask the Iandlady." And the land md
l "a nag said: Law, yesp And The Tadv
kebecca bad said Bring ali von ba 10y :
AND Sir Galahad said: Il haven't q Oh h,,+
TWO pairs to my name" And so here re- s gus
was, cr0uching and dalning and crooked I, sue h9
ne her little lamp, when a knock S sts,tlo oy
the door OF the second back corner IF lei tn
II shook for friobt on ifa ho2 bll