The St. Cloud journal. [volume] (St. Cloud, Minn.) 1866-1876, 1873-07-24

knew the whole story, and Issaid moth

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knew the whole story, and / said moth
ing w<4A< s*5& 4 y
Bnt .hy : Why did you not speak
oven 70 me I" >..@ |
shrugged my shoulders . little.
Such . question seemed 70 foolish.
"Because I wanted the will siened,"
answered. ="
Then be let 90 my hsnds-suffered
them to drop out Of his clasp a. if he
had no longer need OF care to hold
them. =. ..-
."You acknowledge that r. he said.
"You- such : mere child-to love
money so !! You to plot it ID such
manner as this!"
This charge, from the very bitter
ness of its Injustice, stung me out of
my apathetic calm.
~ thought Of you'll" I cried out
"of you only, Of you all the time! |
wanted the fortune for you, Ross. How
can you think I wanted it for myself?' p
"How can I think otherwise p be |
asked, coldly and hardly. ut is true
you secured the fortune to me, but |
was it not because you could in no
other way secure it to yourself? Do
you fancy I do not understand now
why you only consented to marry me
whom you heard that the will depended
on your doing so, and that, without {.
viii, the property would 90 to the heir.
st:hv1 l was fool enough to think
you cared for me then. did not IN.
derstand who the heir-at. law was, you
see, or how your only hope Of gaining
the estate was to sacrifice yourself to
me. I have thought it ill over until
it has almost maddened me r. he went
on, turning away, and beginning to
pace the floor with quick, restless mo-
tion. ut seems 80 imposslble-and
yet it is so plain Such . child and
with the very face Of an angelic have
learned the lesson Of her sex so soon
and 50 we'll! And l, who should have
known better, to be 50 eutrapped," he
added, with low, unmirthful laugh
~, who had kuown my mother, and
that other woman who looked At me
With eyes almost "a frank as yours, and
jilted me to marry another man when
she found that 1 was poor. Unhappi-
y, you cannot do that p he said, stop
Ipiog again before me.
"Ross!" said I, hoarsely. My lips
seemed dry and parched. It was like
a horrible nightmare. Ross to believe
that I only married him to secure the
fortune! / could almost have laughed
at the grotesque absurdity Of the
thought.
Glow you shrunk from me" he went
on, "when I first spoke Of our immedi.
ate marriage! l.: cannot forget that
| gesture-it was full Of greater signifi-
oance than ahundred words. Then
sfterward- how you forced yourself to
the sacrifice because it was your only
road to wealth :! And now, with all
your youth and all your beauty, you
are tied to poor mani"
"Ross," I cried, "are you mad p
what do you mean7 The will You
said the will could not be set aside !"
"!E1cept by the hgatee," he answer.
ed, coldly; "but l have already in.
structed your uncle's lawyer to draw up
the necessary papers for making over
the estate to its rightful heir"
Gross |"
"You are shocked, no doubs,". he
said, still more coldly. "But even for
your sake-though I pity you from my
heart II cannot accept bequest
which is so palpably unjust ~
- Shocked :! L was stricken dumb and
motionless, rather. Such a thought as
this had never occurred to me for one
moment. I had fancied tho will to be
final and unalterable, and now-for
Ross to talk Of giving up all that I had
secured to him! could not speak-I
} could scarcely think! My very heart
seemed to stand still.
"set your mind at rest about your
Il own condition" he said, after minute,
}; in kinder toue-pitying, perhaps,
my white, stunned FACET will secure
, = sufficient portion out Of the estate to
make you lndependent-such 4 portion
~ your uncle would no doubt have left
!, lyou-and settle it on yourself: That
, much, At least, I can do for you"
For mel Assif I csted Tor myself
Is if I had thought Of myself in what
, had doaei ST.. .>.,..~s&>. :
"Ross,' cried ont, "de you know
!, that you are killing me BY such orael
words as these! What can [ say tc
make you believe that III thought on.
II Of you1 l don'e pretend to excuse
what I did. Perhaps it was YER,
wicked; but I Was never taught an,
better. I did not Thick there was any
!, harm 10 being silent; but, if there had
been harm, I should have done it fo1
You"
II do not doubt it." he said, bitter
Il, "siuce, in doing it for me, you did
: it for yourself. Nay"-almost fercely
9 el-'do not try to make me believe any
thing else! You have duped ani
I fooled me long enough with your Lowell,
face and you wistfal eyes. My God
) are women always false !" he cried out