Whig and tribune. [volume] (Jackson, Tenn.) 1870-1877, 1874-04-25

somehow, failed to be, lay on hin
and gave his face wistful look, Whie
was sadder far IN its mute endurane
than any wall of speech could hav
been.
4 Music was to him now sOmethin
akin to the sound of "sweet bell
tangled, out of tune and harsh"
One day IN early spring he went t
the church for the first times leanin
on Hestcr's arm. The old, famiia
look of the place struck him f0rcibl
and reused his dormant wits He sa
down to the organ and glided hi
hands over the keys; q few langllnl
discordaat chords followed, wander
ing and disconnected; then his fac
changed, and, with terrible cry, b
flung his head down on his arms.
.sOh Hesser2 ten me what is it
have lostl Sometimes almost reacl
it-it is in my mind, something beau
/ tiful which I almost grasp, and theI
it eludes me and fades away. have
lost If now. Hesterl Hesterl take m'
home!'
She kissed him and sOothed hin
with sweet womAnly words, and wheI
he was more composed she led hin
away.
Soon after that they were married
In vain Hester's. friends threatened
and opposed her. She was quietly
determined.
"He loved me when friends and for.
tune smiled on him." she answered
them. seHe would have given me
every great gift which the world was
ready to bestow On him for love of his
beautiful genius, and shall l desert
him now when misfortune has over
taken him? Perhaps-Oh, perhaps
some time God may restore TO him
his lost mind" Tears filed her love
ly soft pathetic eyes. ''If / dared to
hope it-oh, If I but might hope for
it, how willingly would I give my
life to have it So"
The day before her wedding she re
ceived visit from Conrad Charteris.
cit shall not bel" he cried out We
hemently. ''Do you realize what you
are doing? Why, you had better fal
die at once, for Robert Field Is but
little better than an idiot"
"And if he were an idiot, return
ed Hester, bravely hiding her hurt at
the brutal words, "even then I would
marry him. I love him, and if not
one vestige of his glorious intellect
remained l Would be Robert Field s
wife, and a proud one, tool"
"And, by God, 1 believe you
would" answered Conrad, looking
with a fond, mad longing into the
small pale face, lifted so undaunted-
ly to his dark gaze. ''Hester, you
win drive me mad. would to heav-
en- that Robert Field was dead. Why
did he not die that night last winter?"
and he struck his hand furiously on
the table in a blind frenzy of despair.
"God knows it was from no lack of
purpose in you that he did not die, Z"
retOrted Hester spiritedly.
She spoke at random, but Conrad
shrank away with white face. The
idle words evidently hit him hard
They cut close and sharp In their un-
expected decent, and wheeling ab-
rubtly about he left her and did not
seek her again.
They were married quietly, and af-
ter that, in the tender security OF his
modest home, under the fond and
cherishing care of his wife, health
and strength came slowly back to the
shattered frame of Robert Field.
Slowly, too, out of the darkness he
begun to wrench, one by one, the Sc
crets of his prisoned mind Old
melodies began to shape themselves
under his touch, discordant and frag-
mentary at first but gradually assum-
ing Symmetry and power.
mot quite a wreck" he would sigh
wistfully. "Some day some good ge-
Mi viii unlock my prison door and
set me free"
In the child that was born to them
a beautiful boy who sang sweet mu-
sic in every tone of his childish voice,
his pride was great. He talked of
him, listened to him, watched him,
and dreamed of him, predicted fu
ture of which Bertrand was to be the
perfect flower, the very golden rose
of Joy. So the years passed, and
sweet Hester Fields fair face grew
heavenly beautiful to see, with its
tired look of patient waiting. God
only knows how her heart failed her
now at times; or with what fierce
power she with her growing doubts,
and prayed for strength to help her
bear this cross whose shadow fell even
darker and deeper on her young life.
Had her love, then, been a sacrifice
in vain?
But one day the answer came!
Returning one afternoon from q
long walk, Robert Field stopped In
the hall, spell-bound by the triumph
ant strains of some new and beautiful
melody floating through the rooms.
His WORN face flashed with the light
of inspired thought; his eyes dilated;
his whole form shook with mysteri-
Gus emotion.
'eWhat is it? what is it?" he asked
of his wife who came to meet him.
sfBertrand's music ~ answered
proud mother Hester. 'tHe has been
engaged with it a long time. He
meant it to be a surprise for you"
Robert Field threw up his arms
with joyful cry.
1t is minel-minel Ny lost nlusicl
the music I played for you that long
forgotten day! Hark, Hesterl dO-you
not recognize it now? OH to think
that it has slept SO long and now
comes back to me so fresh and fair.
This is what / have missed out of my
life. This is my treasure which was
lost to me and now is returned to me
after many years. Brought back by
little child Our child, HesterI oh,
thank God for that ]" .
Rushing into the parlor he swept
Bertrand from the stool, and, seating
himself at the organ, with one power
full sweep of his hands over the keen
he summoned his God-given giusys
from the tomb of his youth and bade
it stand resurrectionized in new life
before him. On and on the music
swept: not a note was lost; not a
chord dropped out of the splendid
work. ShOutingly, exultantly the
tones leaped forth, ''and their name
was called Wonderful" ON on! Up
and upl -.
At last, from sheer exhaustion, the
musician dropped to the floor, and
living there at Hester's feet he wept
tears which were no shame to him.
cit IS the very same!' he cried
Bertrand has written it out note for
note, a counterpart of my own work.
Is it not an awful thing to think of
Ny own work, and yet his! Who bat
God can explain it, And oh, Hesteri
The darkness is all gone nowl Let
me thank God for that. F"
Then, wrapping his arms about her,
Robert Field kissed his wife's pale
face and kissed her tender mouth, her
wavy hair, and her slim, pale faithful
hands.
MY wifei my wifeI Oh, what if
your love had failed you, Hester? If,
in those terrible first hours of my
misfortune your true heart had been
one whit less true, then 1 should have
been lying in my grave to-day, bro
ken and forgotten man."
So fame and success in the later
days Of his life came, not unwelcOme-
", TO Robert Field. The world vel
coined his famous piece with none the
less acclaim for its long delay, and
for the strange story which accompa-