Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1874-06-06

Flne, enterpr1slng young telIOW!-
great pity!-totally ruined, so Bees and
McMorken sayl-reckless extravaganza
of his wife"
All these vague fragments I heard,
and then some one said:
"And what is he going to do now p
"What can he do? am sorry YET
he should have calculated his income
and his expenses better" "Or his
wife should. Deuce take these women
they are at the bottom of all mans
troublesp
And they laughed Oh, how could
they? I had yet to learn how easy it is
iu this world to bear other peoples
troubles. .hf -
I rose hurriedly up, with my heart
beating unanimously beneath the pink
azaleas, and went back to the lighted
corridors. Albany Moore was waiting
to claim my hand for the next redowa.
care you ill, Mrs. Glen ?" How pale
you look"
"I-I am not very well. wish you
would have my carriage called, Mr..
Moore" For now 1 felt that home was
the place for me.
Hurried by some unaccountable i'm
pulse, [ sprang out the moment the
carriage wheels touched the curbstone,
and rushed up to my husbands room.
The door was locked, but I could see a
light shining under the threshold.
knocked wildly and persistently.
"Gerald Gerald For Heavens s
sake let me in %
Something fell on the marble hearth
stone within, making a metallic clink,
and my husband opened the door lit
tie way. I had never seen him look so
pale before or so rigid, yet SO deter
mined.
"Who are you?" he demanded wild
ly. "Why can't you leave me in
peace ?"
"It's I, Gerald-your Madeline
your own little wife"
And I caught from his hand the pis-
tol he was striving to conceal in his
breast-its mate lay on the marble
hearth under the mantle-and flung it
out of the window.
Gerald, would you have left me ?"
L would have escaped |" he cried,
still half delirions to all appearance.
"Debt, disgrace-misery-her re-
proaches-I would have escaped them
all p
His head fell like that of weary
child on my shoulder. I drew him
gently to sofa, and soothed him with
thousand murmured words, a thou
| sand mute caresses for had it not
been all my fault And through all the
long weeks of fear that followed
nursed him with unwavering care and
devotion. I had but one thought-one
desire-to redeem myself in his estima-
tion; to prove to him that 1 was some
thing more and higher than the mere
butterfly of fashion I had hitherto
shown myself. Well, the March winds
had howled themselves into their noun
tain Businesses; the bright April rain
drops were dried on the bough and
spray-and now the apple-blossoms
were tossing their fragrant billows of
pinky bloom in the deep blue air of
latter May. Where were we now? 1t
was picturesque little cottage just out
of the city, furnished very like mag
nifed baby house. Gerald sat in a
cushioned easy chair on the piazza, Just
where he could glance through the
open window at me working batch OF
biscuits, with my sleeves rolled up
above my elbows, and the "gold.
thread" hair neatly confined in silken
| net.
"What an industrious fairy it is," he
said, smiling sadly.
swell, you see like it! It's great
deal better than those sonatas on the
piano!"
"Who would ever have thought you
would make such a notable house
keeper? ?"
laughed gleefully-I had child's
delight in being praised.
care you not goingt to Miss Delaney 3
croquet party ?" he pursued.
"No-what do I care for croquet
parties? I'm going to finish your
shirts, and you'll read aloud to me-"
Madeline, want you to answer me
one question.
"What is it?'
had safely deposited my pan OF
biscuits in the oven by this time, and
was dusting the flour off my hands.
"What have you done with your dia-
monds ?"
81 sold them long ago they paid
several heavy bills, besides settling
half years rent here"
"But Madeline, you were SO proud
of your diamonds"
" l was once-now they would be the
bitterest reproaches my eyes could
meet. o, Gerald! had 1 been less vain
and thoughtless and extravagant-"
| checked myself, and robin sing
ing in the perfumed depths of apple
blossoms above the piazza took up the
current of sound.
"That's right, little red-breast," said
my husband, half jokingly, "talk her
down She has forgotten that our pass
is dead, and that we have turned over
a new page in the book of existence.
Madeline, do you know how feel,
sometimes, when I sit and look at
you ?"
"No."
"Well, I feel like widower who
was married again"
Ny heart gave little superstitiouf
jump.
"Like a widower who was married
again, Gerald ?"
"Yes, I can remember my first wife
"a brilliant, thoughtless child, with.
out an idea beyond the qualification Of
present whims-a spoiled plaything
Well, that little Madeline has vanished
away into the past somewhere; she has
gone away to return no more, and il
her stead I behold my second wife-s
thoughtful, tender woman, whose
watchful love surrounds me like On at
mosphere, whose character grows more
noble, and develops itself into new