The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1879-06-21

NC ouIo uo Ulaue no eIOrl 10 set things
right; but, with the persistency of his
Scottish race, he fitted his back to bear
the burden; and when the three years
cruise was over, he made no visit to his
home at all, but got another term of sea
service, much to the relief of some one
else who wished to stay ashore.
AS for Emily, she had not been sure
that night that she was not beside
| herself. talking to the young naval
officer who was going to marry S0phy-a
secret she had kept at Sophy's require
ment, and concerning which she had
| often drawn on her fancy for Norman's
pleasure and surprise when she should
be allowed to tell him-addressing him
afectionately, as she felt toward one SO
soon to be her brother, and answering
his threat of taking Sophy away by
begging him not to part her from
her sister, suddenly white maniac
with blazing eyes had appeared in the
window, and an uphfted arm had fallen,
the shrieking Sophy had run to lift the
head of her senseless lover, and Norman
was gone. What it all meant she could
not conjecture, and she was too stunned
to make the effort. She went about las
If she were moving statue; everything
seemed to go on long, long way beyond
her view; she was waiting for a word
that did not come; and when day after
day and week after week crept by, and
no explanation came from Norman, and
she knew nothing of his whereabouts,
except the official statement, she realized
that her world had collapsed like q
pricked bubble, and she collapsed with it,
When Emily came up from that sick
ness 1t was like one emerging from the
dark valley of the shadow of death, and
some of the shadow still chung to her;
there was look on her pale face as if
she were gazing into land beyond.
Sophy was married, and went away; ;
her mother closed the house, and took
Emily to Europe, sitting down at last in
a little town on the Mediterranean
shores, where they could pick up their
scattered threads, and see if they were
still Americans; and the. days went by
SO quietly, with the slow rising and fall
ing OF the blue water of the tideless sea
like an indOlent breath beside them, that
they hardly knew how many of them
passed. If they were not happy days to
Emily, neither were they entirely I'M
happy; only there seemed to be nothing
to look forward to, and, except her
mother, nothing to live for. She use to
go among the people little, to take long
walks along the sea-wall at sunrise and
at sunset, to watch the white wings of
the ships as they went in and out; and
one day was just as monotonous as an
other, and she did not care whether they
staid in this place or went On toward
another; she simply felt that she could
not go home to that hateful house where
all the misery happened.
Nor was there any very giddy variety
in Norman's days-out of sight of shore,
the sun coming up and going down as if
by machinery, and he only glad to be in
harb Dor for the sake of putting to sea
again. Indeed, it sometimes made him
furious to see the eagerness of the young
men for the pleasures Of the shore, and
it was SO seldom that he joined them
that he earned mention with the COM
mander as the most morose man afioat
One day, being in Asiatic waters, the
officers Of the Attaseck, that had paused
on her way from a more southerly har-
Dor, came on board, and as they stepped
on the deck, almost the first person that
Norman saw was tall, dark, handsome
fellow with scar across his forehead.
In an instant he had turned upon his
heel and was striding upon to another
part of the ship, before he knew what ne
was doing, or could make up his bewil-
dered mind to action in relation to this
man, who must long since have been
Emily's husband, as he reasoned. But
he was not so quick that another foot
did not come stridirg after, and hand
was laid upon his shoulder in a manner
that made him wheel about at once.
.'EWen, Mr.. Macpherson" said the
stranger, IL great honest voice, SAC
cording to all the laws of society, I be-
lieve you owe me some satisfaction, and
| have cone to claim it."
'tBy all means, sir" said Mr.. Mac
pherson, mechanically, with bow.
And then the stranger broke into a
hearty laugh. "And | won't say any
thing" he exclaimed, "about your out
rage to your superior officer, but, by
Jove," he cried, with another peal of
laughter, cit serves you right. Did you
suppose all the world wanted to marry
your Emily, your conceited monkey?
Sophy was girl much more to my
mind, let me tell you. Sophy has been
my wife this many a month. And it
was of Sophy that Emily was speaking
when you took the law into your hands
| suppose sir" ran on the stranger, "that
| ought to give you a good thrashing;
but all the satisfaction l want is to hear
you say that you are ashamed of your
self" And you may be sure he had it.
| But there was no time for converse
ton before they were joined by others,
and the courtesies of the exceedingly
brief occasion occupied the time of hosts
and guests till the boat put off again, and
the Attaseck received her own. But a
letter to the department, requesting q
leave of absence from his ship, went into
the mail from the next harbor they en-
tered, and the time that passed before
an answer came and the request was
granted was longer than all the rest of
Norman Macpherson's life. And al
though he travelled homeward as fast as
steam could carry him, to his frame of
mind electricity would have seemed
slow.
With what citation he saw at last, the
long, long miles having raveled out be-
hind him like the clearing of tangled
skein, the lights of the city stretching
on all the radiation of its avenuesl How
gladly and eagerly, two hours after that,
he hurried up the street of the little
suburban town, picturing to himself the
sight of Emily, the sparkle of her sur
prise, the next moment when he should
feel her arms around him, the way in
which she would forgive him, hardly
daring to look up, his heart was beating