Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1882-09-19
PARIS MAINE TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 1882

tage of you-and then he may wish tc
marry some one else."
MARY some one else He cannot !!
exclaimed Miss Bel AMMAN.
The old Judge smiled, and looked fur.
lively at his daughter. She was biting
her lip.
81 merely hazarded the supposition,
said the judge, refolding his newspaper.
"You are aware that his name has been
frequently connected with his cousin,
Miss Hamilton"
Miss Bel Amman made no reply. She
was looking with contracted brows at the
carpet, and masticating lace handker-
chief, which was suffering from her white
teeth. Miss Hamilton was very hand
some young person, and her name had
often been associated with Mr.. Hays.
Did be care for her; 1t would be
shameful Had he not told tr, Bel
AMMAN, hundred times. Then she col
ored, remembering some very interesting
scenes between herself and the young
man.
There's no help for IT," repeated the
Judge, "but | am real sorry the young
fellow is going 10 leave us. There will
be one advantage, neveTthe!ess-you will
be free again. Two years deserlion dis
solves the marriage tie Then both you
foolish people will lie free and he can
marry Miss Hamilton. Until then that
will be impossible, as fear you are le-
gally, my dear, Mrs. Edward Hay -
Everybody could see that Edward Hay
was in an unhappy state Of mind. He
had always been a person of the most
cheerful temperament, and the gayest
fox hunter in the county. Now he had
lost his good spirits and went about mop
ing. He grew thin and white. He did
not eat, which is bad sign. Finally,
in f; OF desperation, he joined a party
of foE- hunters, and rode recklessly in
swimming a stream he was thoroughly
chilled, and in consequence three days af.
,erward he was seized with a fever.
A fever is very bad thing to have.
Mr.. Hay got up one night when his at
tendant friend was doing. and wrote
note which he addressed to Miss Bel
AMMAN.
This reached her on the next day. and,
with little futter at her heart, she read
what follows
81 have been thinking, thinking,
thinking, here in the dreary night, about
what has happened to us and the result
of it is that | ought to neglect no means
of showing YOU that am not the con.
temptible person you must think me.
~ therefore write down, as well as |
can-my head seems little feverish
this. 1t is to be shown to people, and
produced in court if necessary:
II am not your husband, and you are
not my wife.
~ never meant that took you to be
my welded wife.
IL do not wish to be your husband,
and assert that | was deceived into taxi
ing part in mock ceremony which as
long as live shall have in my eyes no
legal significance whatever.
EDWARD HAY.
This was written on the first page of
a sheet of note paper. On the second
portion of the sheet and wholly detached,
were these words:
"Oh, how love you, Bel 1t nearly
breaks me down to think that am going
to leave you. am not well, either, but
hope 10 be soon. II we could only go
back to old times before that cursed pic
nic-I can't help using the word. You
will then, no doubt be married TO some
good fellow, and there will be an end of
me. So be it. You shall be free from
all annoyance. | give you proof of
that in the first part of this note, which
you can show people. They will see
that am not, and never have been your
husband"
The unlucky lover signed his name
again, but as he forgot to add the period
at the end of his sentence, the signature
read, Your husband, Edward Hay
Miss Bel AMMAN who had read the
note throughout. with deep blush in
her cheeks, suddenly burst out laughing.
1t was rather hystcrical, but she was
plainly amused at something. She al
lowed the sheet of note paper to sink in
to her lap, and fixing her eyes upon the
floor murmured:
"Your husband, Edward Hay :"
Then she sighed and said in the same
low tone:
"Poor, dear fellow He is sick and
and suppose ought to be there to
nurse him -
Edward Hay rose suddenly from his
sick bed and abruptly left the country.
Ten days afterward his property was
sold and his attorney transmitted the
proceeds to the young man in Paris. He
remained there three months, went to
Rome and stayed six-then he took a
run TO Russia, and came home, via Eng
land and Scotland, to New York.
1t was quite pleasant evening in au-
tumn when he reached the Millbank
neighborhood again. AS he had no home
/ of his own he had written to friend
that he was coming to see him, and hav-
ing gotten out of the train he set off on
foot in the direction of his friends house.
The pathway which he followed wound
across green fields and passed within
few hundred yards of Judge Annan's.
Seeing this, fact which he had probably
| ln.t sinht nf Mr Ehward Hay made q