Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1882-11-16

the King would take an esthetic pleasure
in watching the course of events.
which would determine whether or not
the young man had done wrong in al
lowing himself to love the Princess.
THE APPOINTED DAY ARRIVED.
From far and near the people gathered
and thronged the great galleries of the
arena, and crowds unable to gain adj
mittance. massed themselves against
its outside walls. The King and his
court were in their places opposite the
twin doors-those fateful portals, so
terrible in their similarity.
All was ready. The signal was given.
A door beneath the royal party opened,
and the lover Of the Princess walked
into the arena. Tall, beautiful, fair,
his appearance was greeted with low
hum of admiration and anxiety. Half
the audience had not known so grand q
youth had lived among them. No won
der the Princess loved him. What a
terrible thing for him to be there.
As the youth advanced into the arena
he turned, as the custom was, to bow to
the King, but he did not think at all
OF that royal parsonage. His eyes were
Fixed upon the Princess. who sat to the
right OF her father. Had it not been for
The moiety of barbarism in her nature
il is probable that lady would not have
been there, but her intense and fervid
soul would not allow her to be absent
on an occasion in which she was so ter
ribly interested. From the moment
that the decree had gone forth that her
lover should decide his fate in the Kings
arena, she had thought of nothing,
night or day. but this great event and
the various subjects connected with it.
Possessed of more power, influence,
and force of character than any one who
had ever before been interested in such
q case. she had done what no other per-
son had done-she had possessed herself
Of the secret of the doors. She knew in
which of the two rooms that lay behind
those doors stood the cage of the tiger
with its open front, and in which waited
the lady. Through these thick doors,
heavily curtained with skins on the in
side, it was impossible that any noise
or suggestion should come from within
to the person who should approach to
raise the latch of one of them. But
gold, and the power of woman's will,
had
BROUGHT THE SECRET TO THE PRINCESS.
And not only did she know in which
room stood the lady ready to emerge,
all blushing and radiant, should her
door be opened, but she knew who the
lady was. 1t was one of the fairest and
loveliest of the damsels of the court who
had been selected as the reward of the
accused youth should he be proved in
nocent of the crime of aspiring to one so
far above him; and the Princess hated
her. Often had she seen, or imagined
that she had seen, this fair creature
throwing glances of admiration upon
the person of her lover, and sometimes
she thought these chances were perceiv-
ed, and even returned. Now and then
she had seen them talking together; it
was but for moment or two, but much
can be said in brief space; it may have
been on most important topics, but how
could she know that? The girl was
lovely, but she had dared to raise her
eyes to the loved one of the Princess;
and, with all the intensity of the savage
bAtOAl u iiA9iIlblCAi W ilGl Univ 1OI2
lines Of wholly barbaric ancestors,
SHE HATED THE WOMAN
who blushed and trembled behind that
silent door.
When her lover turned and looked
at her, and his eyes met hers as she
sat there, paler and whittier than any one
in the vast ocean of anxious faces about
her, he saw, by that power of quick
perception which is given to those whose
souls are one, that she knew behind
which door crouched the tiger, and be-
hind which stood the lady. He had ex-
pected her to know it He understood
her nature, and his soul was assured
that she would never rest until she had
made plain to herself this thing, hidden
to all other lookers-on, even to the king
The only hope for the youth in which
there was any element of certainty was
based upon the success of the Princess
in discovering this mystery; and the mo-
ment he looked upon her he saw she had
succeeded, rs in his soul he knew she
would succeed
Then it was that his quick and anxi-
Gus glance asked the question:
''wHICHP'
1t was rs plain to her as if he shouted
it from where he stood. There was not
an instant to be lost. The question was
asked in a flash; it must DO answered in
Her right arm lay on the cushioned
parapet before her. She raised her
hand and made slight, quick move
ment toward the right. No one but her
lover saw her Every eye but his was
fixed on the man in the arena.
He turned, and with firm and rapid
step he walked across the empty space.
Every heart stopped beating, every
breath was held, every eye was fixed
upon that man. Without
the slightest hesitation he went to the
door on the right and opened it.
Now, the point of the story is this:
Did the tiger come out of that door or
did the lady?
The more we reflect upon this question
the harder it is to answer. 1t involves
a study of the human heart which leads
us through devious mazes Of passion,
out of which it is difficult to find our
way. Think of it, fair reader, not as if
the decision of the question depended
upon yourself, but upon that hot-blood-
ed, semi-barbaric Princess, her soul at
q white heat beneath the
COMBINED FIRES OF DESPAIR AND
JEALOUSY.
She had lost him, but who should have
him? How often, in her waking hours
and in her dreams. has she started in
wild horror, and covered her face with
her hands as she thought of her lover
opening the door on the other side of
which waited the cruel fangs of the
tiger!
But how much oftener had she seen
him at the other door! How in her
grievouS reveries had she CRASHED her
teeth and torn her hair when she saw
his start of rapturous delight rs he
opered the door of the lady! How her
soul had burned in agony when she had
seen him rush to meet that woman, with
her flushed cheek and sparkling eve of
triumph; when she had seen him lead
her forth. his whole frame kindled with
the JOY Of recovered life; when she had
heard the glad shouts from the multi
tude and the wild ringing of the happy
bells; when she had seen the priest, with
Ills Joyous followers.
MAKE THEM MAN AND WIFE
before her very eyes; and when she had
seen them walk away together upon
L ,ir path IF flowers. followed by the
tremendous shouts OF the hilarious null
tjuude mwhich heroine despairing shrek