Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1878-05-02

| have said you fully Endorsed my own
thoughtful opinion, that we belonged to
each other by the divine right of love,
that ours would be the true marriage,
while the tie that binds you to Adam
Leith is, from Its very responsiveness and
unsatisfyingness, the tie that should be
severed. My darling, you babe me
meet YOU here to hear you tell me you
were ready to go with me? I am wait
ing for the answer that shall make US
both the happiest lovers in all this wide
world"
She liked his authori atively tender
way. She thrilled to the smallest nerve
in her frame as she heard his quiet, pas
sionful tones. She looked up, and met
the binding glance of his blue eyes, the
smile on his parted lips that disclosed
his perfect teeth.
Then, it seemed as if everything else
was blotted from sight, or thought, or
memory. She loved him, sinful or
not His was the only hand ever
powerful enough to unseal the foun-
dation of her heart; his the only mind
and will that could hold dominion over
her-oh, she worshipped him as it was
given to but few men to be lOved-yet
yet
Her fancies, her fears were running
away with her. He saw by her face,
her eyes, that conscience and passion
were locked in their death-struggle; and
he lent his aid.
"Love-my love, it is only to say one
little word p
He reached out his arms for her, his
handsome face smiling, eager.
She bent forward, her gesture one of
infinite imploration.
"Dare | trust you? Oh, can [ trust
you? If | can"
1t was enough. He caught her to his
heart-conqueror.
"My darling! My darling!'
A full moon was shining fitfully be-
tween heavy cloud-rifts. Heavy gusts
of wind tore over the chill ocean
waves, and shook to their very foun-
dations the houses a distance inland
in a window of one of which-Amy
Leith's bedroom Window bright,
steady light glowed out into the windy
night
1t was a pleasant room, cheerful and
thoroughly comfortable, and never in
all the days since Amy had come as q
bride to the seaside village cottage had
this room looked so touchingly COM
Portable as now-to-night when she was
gathering together her few little treas
ures, never again to enter it or possess
the right to enter it.
All that day Amy had been white
faced, and sad-eyed beyond her usual
pale usefulness, and more than once,
in his bluff, hearty fashion, her husband
had asked if anything was troubling
her-if anything was going wrong?
Anything going wrong" His inno-
cent words had stabbed her like a
knife. Wrong? Was not everything
wrong?
Her life since the sunsetting of the
day before when she had seen Eustace
Florestan on the sands and had prom
ised-oh, what? oh, Whdt?-had been q
succession of battles with herself, first
against love and its crown of gold and
Jewels and Eustace FlOrestan. then
against the horror of it all, the diadem
of scourging thorns, the ceaseless re-
mOnstrance of her outraged conscience.
All day she had gone about her duties,
now excited into recklessness as she
thought of her lover; now PROSTATE
with vague repentings and bitter pity
as she thought of herself.
now, when night had come, bringing
the hour at which she was to go to be
met by her love, it seemed to-Amy that
all the desperate struggles of the day
had been child's play compared with
the raging seas of temptation to go,
that she could not conquer, and frantic,
frenzied prayers that she might not go.
All that was good and evil in her nature
uprose for that final fight for her soul,
and she was tossed like a leaf in a wild
wind-storm.
Her love and her sin. her love that
itself was sin-Amy could not separate
them. To give Eustace Florestan up,
to never see him again, to know he was
gone forever from her-she never,
never could endure it-she knew that.
To go with him, away forever from
the light of innocence and purity, into
the rayleSs moral and spiritual dark
ness that awaited her-ah what Won
der was it that she was driven to frenzy
as she paced the floor of her room.
white to the lips, with wildly-shining
eyes, as. at the same moment she
prayed for mercy and pity, and yet
listened eagerly for the roll of the car
riage-wheels which was to be the signal
that Mr. Florestan awaited her near by.
Then, in silence between surges OF
wind, she heard what she listened for,
and then, as if never until this mo-
ment she had realized what it all actu-
ally meant, she sunk to her knees be-
side a chair, her face buried in her cold
hands, her frame shivering with an
agony of maddening pain.
ooh, my God, my God-don't let ne
do this thing-let me die-anything
but suffer this agony of yearning love p
Anything? Anything but to suffer
the uncomfortable yearning after a pas
sion that was the very essence OF
wrong? She had prayed her frantic
prayer, in that moment of frenzied re-
pentance and struggling through the
maze into which her feet, willing or
unwillieg had been led. Like a sup
plant she waited, breathless, half para
lyzed, spiritually, with vague wonder
what she would do, after all; and then
l-then-Adam Leith came abruptly
into the room, somewhat agitated and
excited
81 thought L find you here, little
woman. We want you down stairs
hot water, and blankets, and bathings
and things are wanted; there's some
body been near about killed right at
our door-chucked out of carriage
FORESTER. or FOrrestan. or some Such