The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1874-12-03

surprise the door was ajar, and hear,
the baby laughing aud c0OinS ia hi:
pretty way, but stopping only to won
der al his being awaKe, / pushed th,
door back and went in. vas ali up
St by Aiice's sickness, and the worry
and trouble Of the past week, and al
though am not usually q coward, ]
fairly screamed as / saw between ms
aud the window the figure OF q man
SIT Is ouly !" said = well known
Voice. "Mrs Gsthright, could noi
stay away-fOr Gods sake let me see
herp
could not answer for q moment,
but stood in silence, Alice's words
ringing in my ears-''I must see him
] How can you be 50 cruel 1 must ses
him :" and then sentence in tins
Holy Book burned in letters of fire
before me, '5udge not tBSt ye be not
Judged" :" aud tnen answered him.
"Robzrt Newcastle, cauuot refuse
you nUw, the end Is so near. Give
] me the euild aud 20 TO her"
l turned the gas up brightly as
| spoke, and as he surned his face
towards me was fairly frightened At
the change there He looked years old
er, AMI such suffering, aud such utter
misery rs was shown by the hard, SET
lines around his mouth and the dark
shadows Suder his eyes, had never
sev before. Verify he had eaten ol
tine bitter fruit OF repentance Et last,
aud bad fOund that ''the way the
J trAnsgressOr is hard.n
went with him to the door OF the
rocm AMI called Dolly, aud then he
west in u the woman whom he had
wrOnged SO bitterly. ii.
heard one joy full, sobbing cry,
.'Oh, Arthur. Arthur you have Come
at last % and then there came an aw-
ful silence, a.sIiencs that Was broken
only by the plashing of the rain drops
against tine gindOWs, aud then knew
that Alice MOrIOn's sOus Was free, and
that she was at rest forever.
Ali through that dreary night Rob
ert Newcastle kept watch alone in tbt.
chamber of death. The rain poured
steadily, the fierce wind ratified the
windows and doors, but above all the
noise of the tempest heard him walk
ing up and down, Gp and down, up
aud down, IN the room above ONLY
stopping 10 gaze upon the quiet face OF
the dead woman.
What he suffered that night, no one
save himself ever knew, or ever can
know. What agonies OF remorse-ali
the more terrible because so unavail-
ing-tOFtuIed and tOTmented him !;
aud then, at every turn, tnat beautiful
face, so awful in its perfect peace, the
face of the woman who bad given up
everything for him, even life itself (;
the woman who had trusted him, be-
lIeved in him, and loved him to the
very last, the woman whom he had
wrOnged, betrayed aud deceived cruel
ly and deliberately, confronted him,
unmoved by all lis suffering, even as
1t might confront him un that dread-
ful day, when AL the hidden secrets OF
the heart shall b. N de known.
All night he staid with her, but In
the morning be came down tn my
room, stern and quiet, like his old self
81 must go back" ," be said. and then,
as little Arthur crept to his feet, he
stooped and lifted him in his arms.
"POOr baby ~ be said, pityingly, as
the soft little hands patted his face,
"motherless and worse than fatneTl-sS
what VIII become of you p' but
even as he spoke, the child turned
away from bim, and beld out its little
arms to nae. II was as though the spir
it of his mother looked through his
eyes, and I took him from his fathers
arms.
"He shall be my child," I said, "for
bis mothers sake" and then the lit
tie golden head nestled down on my
shoulder aud | felt as though the child
understOud it all.
Years have passed since then. At
first Robert Newca>tle's lawyer sent
me money from time tn time. but /
returned every penny Of it, aud after
u while ali communication ceased be-
tween US. Iifear OF him often through
the papers. He has becOme an active
and successful politician /; his speech
es are copied far and wide, lie gives
brilliant entertain ments, aud is man
much envied and much prl ised, but /,
hearing these things, often think of
that winter night wien he travelled
those weary miles in that little cham
Der, and wonder II, among all the
events Of his life, ne has once forgot
ten il, or lost sight Of Alice MOrtOn's
dead face, even for q moment.
Out IN quiet little graveyard, not
far from here, there is grave which
bears on the white stone at its head
ouly the one word-"Alice." There
Arthur aud I often go, and I talk to
him about his beautiful young moth
er, who was laid there so long ago
my daughter" I al wavs cal ner, and
Arthur never thinks differently.
he is dear, good boy, Ot whom
any one might be proud, gentle aud
loving as MS muther was, but a deal
stronger in every way. love him
dearly, and he loves me-. Dear Gran"
he calls me, and often as he glances At
me, it seems again as though the spir-
it ot his mother is looking through his
eyes, aud that thought makes him
even nearer and deArrr To me.
FLORENCE Percy ALLEN.