Ashtabula weekly telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1880-1886, 1880-11-19

stark palmetto, over the dusty stretch Of
road, noross the glare, 10 the town. His eyes
blinded and filled.
IL wouldn't have been great WHILE" he
mindD
lie shook the negro gently off, a. II he had
been child. There was nothing more 10 say.
ne would 20 back TO his work As he walked
along, he suddenly said 10 himself
" She did not smile this mOTningl Nor the
lady at the telegraph office, either. Nora
good many other folks. / remember now.
: LordW he added aloud, thought
breaking into one Of his half-unconsciOus
prayers, which had the more pathos because
1t began Wth the rude abruptness OF an ap-
parent oath-"Lord what In the name Of
heaven am going TO do about itW
now as he was coming into the little city,
with bowed head and broken face, he met
Doctor Dare. She was riding on her rounds
upon patient, Southern tackey, and she
was riding fast. But she relned up and con-
| frOnted him.
"Mr. Hopel There is a hateful rumor
brought from New York about you. / am
going to tell you Immediately. II is said
"Wait minute !" he pleaded, holding out
| both hands. "NOw. Go on"
1T Is said that you are an escaped con-
Yict" continued the lady, distinctly.
voice.
The Doctor regarded him for a moment.
" may be wrong. Perhaps It was not 80
bad. was In a cruel hurry, and so was
Doctor Frank. 81, Perhaps they said dis
charged convict"
3" What elsoT' asked zervlah, lifting his
eyes to hers.
"They said you were Just out Of a seven-
years imprisonment tfOrmansaughter. They
said you killed a man-for jealousy, believe;
something about woman"
What elsep repeated the nurse, steadily.
- told them did not belteUe one l0Ord Of
L!. cried Marian Dare.
Thank you, madam" said Zerviah Hope,
after scarcely perceptible pause; "but it
Is true"
He drew one fierce breath.
" She was beautiful" he said. "I loved
her; he ruined her; | stabbed him I"
lie had grown painfully pale. lie wanted
to 80 on speaking TO this woman, not to de-
tend or excuse himself, not TO say any thing
weak or wrong, only to make her UNDER
stand that he did not want to excuse him
self; in some way, Just because she lCdS "A
woman, TO make her feel that he was man
enough to bear the burden of his deed. He
wanted to cry out to her, " You are a wOm-
an! Oh, be gentle, and understand how
sorry man can be for deadly sinW but
his lips were parched. He moved them dri-
ly; he could not talk.
She was silent at first, She was a prudent
woman; she thought before she spoke.
Poor fellow!" she said, suddenly Her
clear blue eyes overflowed. She held out her
hand, lifted his, wrung it, dropped it., and
sStoittly St added, " Well, never mind" much as
II he had been child or a patient-much
as he himself had said, "Neyer mind!" to
Scip.
Then Zerviah Hope broke down.
haven't got a murderer's heart !" he
cried. 'It has been taken away from me.
wanted to do"
"Hush!" she said. "You have and YOU
shall. God ia fair"
"Yes," said the penitent convict, in
dull voice, ..God is fair, and so he let 'em
tell of me. pye got no fault to find with
Hin. So nigh as can understand Almighty
God, lie means well. l guess He'll pull
me. through some way. But / wish Scip
hadn't told just now. / can't help being
sorry. 1t wasn't that 1 wanted to cheat
but"-he choked--''the sick folks used to
like me. Now, do you think I'd ought to
go on nursing, Doctor5 Do you think I'd
ought to stop"
" You are already an hour late" replied
the woman Of science, in her usual business
like voice. "NOur substitute will be sleepy
and restless; that affects the patient. Go
back to your work as fast as you can. Ask
me no more foolish questions"
She drew her veil; there was an unprofes-
siOnal moisture on her long, feminine
lashes. She held out her hearty hand-grasp
to him, touched the tackey, and galloped
away.
''She is a good woman" said Zerviah,
half aloud, looking down at his cold fingers.
"She touched me, and she knewl Lord,
should like to have you bless herw II
He looked after her. She sat her horse
finely; her gray veil drifted in the hot wind.
His sensitive color came. He watched her
as II he had known that he should never
see her again on earth.
A ruined character may be as callous as a
paralyEed limb. A ruined and repentant
4. r. IA. 4 4.
sitive and tortured nerves.
Zeryiah Hope returned to his work,
shrinking under the fOreknowledge Of his
fate. He felt as il he knew what kind of
people would remind him that they had be-
come acquainted with his history, and what
ways they would select to do it.
He was not taken by surprise when men
who had lifted their hats TO the popular
nurse last week, passed him ON the street to-
day with cold nod or curious stare. When
women who had reveTenced the self-sacrifice
and gentleness OF his life as only women do
or can reverence the quality Of tenderness in
Il man, shrank from him as il he were some-
thing infectious, like the plague-he knew
it was just, though he felt 1t hard.
His patients heard Of what had happened,
sometimes, and indicated feeling of recOil
That was the worst, One said;
81 am sorry TO hear you are not the man
we thought YOU" and died in his arms that
night.
Zerviah remembered that these things
must be. He reasoned with himself. He
went into his attic, and prayed it all over.
lie said:
"Lord, can't expect to be treated as If I'd
never been in prison. Pm sorry mind it
so. Perhaps rd ought not to. I'll try not
to care too much"
More than once he was sure of being fol-
lowed again, suspiGiously or curiously. it
occurred to him at last that this was most
likely to happen on pay-days. That puzzled
him. But when he turned, 1t was usually
some idler, and the fellow shrank and took
to his heels as II the nurse had the fever.
In point Of fact, even in that death strick-
en- town, to be alive was to be as able to gos-
sip as well people, andrlmOr, wearied Of the
mOnOtOnOus fever symptom, found divert
ing zest in this shattered reputation.
Zerviah Hope was very much talked about
in Calhoun; so much, that the Relief Com
mittee heard, questioned, and experienced
official anxiety. 1t seemed a mistake to lose
so valuable man. 1t seemed a severity to
disturb so noble n career. Yet who knew
what sinister countenance the murderer
might be capable of shielding beneath his
mask OF pity The official mind was per-
picked. Was it humane to trust the lives of
our pershng citizens to the ministratiOns of
a felOn who had so skillfully deceived the
most intelligent guardians Of the public
veal? There was, in particular, chairman
of subcommittee ION the water supply
who was burdened with uneasiness.
It's clear enough what brought him to
Calhoun" said this man. "What do you
suppose the fellow does with his five dollars
dayW
The Committee on the Water Supply
promptly divided into a Sub Vigilance, and
to the Sub-Yigilance Committee ZerViah
90 H..