Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1878-11-20

tlilIo sue S6LoIaiiy COItIIN 60 w iiIhhC
fool of herself.
as foolishly as some widows do. She had
neither chosen a little boy nor titled
Italian without money enough to keep
himself in macaroni. Her future hus-
band was older than herself, and too
rich to be suspected of any intention
of being fortune hunter; but, after
all, no one knew him. He came into
the neighborhood without letters of in
PRODUCTION to any one and whether he
won his fortune by trade or came to it
by inheritance remained mystery.
There were those who shrugged their
shoulders, and declared that Mrs. Hall
| font would regret not having chosen
some one of whom more was known
some retired merchant some gentle
man of fortune, whose father had been
known to her friends. Nothing. to be
sure, could be said against this Spaniard
or Cuban with the English name; but
who knew anything in his favor?
! However, no one said this to Mrs.
Halifont and, if any one had, words
never changed woman's fancy yet,
Mrs. Halifont believed in Colonel
Humphries, and meant to marry him.
Indeed, the trousseau was prepared
and the weddine-day fixed, all was
ready, and Ida Halifont believed her
self to be very happy woman. She
once more built castles in the air. Her
old sorrow seemed to fade away in the
distance. She was a girl again.
At last twenty-four hours lay between
her and her Wedding-dav. III.
She was busy in her sewing-r DOM on
this last day, finishing some rutf1es in
lace and ribbon, and singing softly to
herself, when suddenly the house was
filled with cries.
An old man~servant while cutting the
grass upon the lawn, had wounded him.
at once, but he was not at home, mean
while poor Zepedee was bleeding to
death.
Suddenly Ida Halifont remembered
that Mr.. HUMPHREYS had said that he
understood wounds as well as though
he had been bred surgeon. Without
this it would have been natural for her
to call on one who was soon to be her
protector in q moment of anxiety. She
would call him herself, that there might
be no delay, and Selling her garden-hat,
she ran along little path that led from
her grounds to that of Mr.. HUMPHREYS,
climbing low fence to save time
which would have been lost In reaching
a gate, and so gained the rear of the
dwelling of which tomorrow she would
be mistress.
She thought herself terrified and dis
tressed. She felt rather injured in that
such an unpleasant thing as the wound
ing of poor Zepedee should have hap
pened on the eve of her wedding-day.
Ten minutes after she thought of her
self at that moment utterl V at ease
wondrously happy-for as she reached
those windows and peeped half-timidly
through the curtains, thing happened
that made all she had ever suffered ap-
pear as nothing.
The room, the window of which she
had approached, was one that opened
out of a conservatory. She saw Colonel
HUMPHREYS busy with some rare plants
ne had just set out to the warm sum
shine that fell through the glass. He
had taken off his coat and rolled up his
sleeves. Now he left the conservatory,
and coming forward proceeded to wash
his hands in basin Of water that had
been set ready for him. He was close
to Ida Halifont. He did not see her,
but she could have reached out her
hand and touched him.
Why did she not speak, and call him
by name? Why did she sink down
upon her knees and tremble like an
aspen leaf? Alas! the awful reason was
this: Upon that arm to which she was
about to give the right to clasp her in
tenderest embrace she saw terrible
mark-a mark she had seen once be-
fore. She knew it's shape and size and
color. Her eyes had been riveted upon
it as the sinewy hand, at the wrist of
which it ended, grasped her dying hus-
bands throat. She had learned it off
by heart: she could not be deceived
Though years had rolled away, that
horrible marked arm was not to be for
gotten or mistaken by any other.
Suddenly Colonel HUMPHREYS felt
himself grasped by hand that, small
as it was, had the fierce touch of tigers
claw. The fingers closed over that red
mark-a white face came close to his.
| AOu OIL . III y uuSUdIlO ;. IlllIU0IcI!
Kissed a voice in his ear. ,......., 81.
Then the two stood staring at each
other. .......- ...-~,5.|
He made no denial; he only looked
down at the red mark upon his arm and
cursed it aloud 100.
"How dared you to make love to
me?" she gasped. You"
Because [ loved you," he said.
woman, if I had not fallen in love
with you that night I would have killed
you also. It was risking my life to
spare you, with your screams calling
men to hunt me down.
ooh, if you had but killed me then!"
she moaned. a.sam .a' s- IT
swell. [ am at your mercy now," he
said. o: .a5.' -, IL.
She answered.: .-.s.. f.. ......a
"You can kill I wish you would. I
pray you do it. You killed my husband
The murderer of my husband must be