New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1884-04-27

and him would have seemed. together win the
loud rumble and oiangor maintained by the move
nent of the car TO secure the privacy OF their con
versatiOn yet il quite clearly TO hlhi' ~ ITO
leaned faded against the box; 1t wou!.. na,1
reached his ear tie more distinctly had ne a'lehucu
through the effort of the ladies to make theToyes
audible tn each other above the noise oil W. .'S
1t was, their talk was only sou uIoh' III Ms
ear t .,
Soon Miss Virginia Bailey,s voice came alone 10
him Ii was of that sweet and mellow qudltA,
peculiar to refined EnglIshwomen. ana sci ioii
heard from lips 80 uncOmpIomsingly American.
Yet it possessed lncslvc business OF gnu'r Si
that made it unusually pcnctIatihe;c IN MIN
il sounded no less firm Tor 10 Sol'ur?s, &c -,
Fletcher was not thn6ng ol Jue NoCoV VI ~ ~
owner but It's harmony reached and Sootheu MN
as he painfully supported himself IN MS CoInUUI-
suddenly two words stood ont to HIM from her tax
" Robert Wentworth" The words reached his ear
with an electric shock. The girl paused LOT q mo
ment and the young man started nom ms IaneuIIi
and waitcd-waitcl unconsG"usly' lVr W w"
have hated himself had he known that he listened
for what should follow. She said something W4llcI
he did not hear. and then as # IN repetition anu
emphasis of this went on more loudly. ana az
though II were the most natural thlhg III liF ""Iu
to speak % III - hpTsc-C2T:
" Yes loved HIM truly.-pa 'sionatelF perhaps.
Her companion broke IN now. StlahEt' sue STU
and then there was . blalh h1uo!H'v ihui"'"i'
Give him up she added. ., 90
Dr Fletcher rccoilrd. lie had almost strained 10
hear tins last sentence in his absorption; ne mus
have been listening. lie had not done IL WITH M
tent, but it would haze that aIihC ielt ~ Hl NV
seii-accusaton to an observer lio '"u srct from
these women ignoran; that tnclr talk was reaching
interested ears. or indeed, d0uUtieNS' Via. ~ va
heard at all thin the past ie" m9n1 , 10 ho
ever the car had boon tightly hlICrl' '.ilu ~ II
looked he found hm4cl. hciulnrd III i"Ii' w III
front platform and he tried the ,lo"l. \ NIou, ~.
gent lcman leaned against II outside anu "iIc" tiD
w1v: even I'll little coop. ordinarily occupied 10y
the driver alone, had been taken possession oi ~
for Quebec. The young girl continued ana N"it'h
Fletcher could not help hearing her. .,
Waited for a year. she wa SAYING iull year,
There was movement of her lips that couNeyed
no sound useless she concluded lhtn after
mcdItatvc pause shc spoke again. ana TINS time me
young mans unwilling ears received AL Inc
sentence. " ,
We might have married then. perhaps, If had
been willing tn accept poor narrow NE. She
paused once NOR aud when after Hoihen' ,9Iis
cont nued Norton Fletcher heard nothing she had
modified her voice ana lac was deeply glad. 10
hear his friends most intimate concern, proc .alnei
to a hor.o-car audience IS wei rs pay Il2 u',e
eavcsdroppcr periOTC" had become something Nei9
like torture. lie would have perceived mad he been
more calm that the girls talk was heard ny no one
bnt himself. though the knowledge Womb nov nave
lent her advertising ot the matter q more N''''to
air. -,
She either raised her voice or the noise OF the car
lcsscucd, tor as sire cDnthucl 10 'F'""' ul''oi
nected sentences once moro reached liin. NcEeI
couid marry poor man, You know sac " a. ';ll HIt
f. her con panIOn with emphasis. " brilliant
in.t then poor ma vavcrty's door came 20 him IN
broken siiatches. Even through MS irritation III
stumbling under such conditions upon f'befi
the Girl who had made st. Fletcher was conscious OF
wondering what the world found peculiarly Ill
digent in poycrty'4 door ,,
were some bitter upbTdidlnE' from hm; but let
the poor fellow dOwuqurtil, ana we I'it'L Inc
coarse words struck upon the young mans ear
with wretChcd dIstluctuC-S.
lie was vpry far gone. though how IN
necessarily brutal. Fletcher Thought" Quite q
noble and unusual follow, too. In love vet. DOUBT
less-woud take ne back even now. feel sure II
would let him. The last words were heard by HIM
fragmentanly. The girl companion broke IN now,
and some reply was made which Fletcher, ying
Gerce!y 10 push hls TO the opposite sdt OF the
car did not hear. He succeeded 0hF IN pnttinS
slight space between himself and them. and as NJ RS
Fordham questioned the gr! now, no was forced To
In Dayton. Ohio"
Yes -hc returned. Aftec pause: He still lives
There was an almost horrible fnalty in this He
know now that We had been Juggling with himself
that Inc had held last from the beginning of this
miserable cpj,ode-hc could scarcely remember now
when II had not begun II seemed 10 60 back and
III up all previous tlWC-tO the letOtSt Ntrd" oI
hone that this might not after all be hl1 Robert
Wentworth. But he could mol lurthSI GAl1'G mn
self II was not some vague. hCtiVe Robert went
worth; IT was his familiar Trend whose Shame h.'d
been trumpeted 20 this miscellaneous company
Fletcher exaggerated the fact, IN ms generous
er-whO. carciessly deserted 10y TINS GIRL hau
suffered the crOwnIuz igHOmlny IN her pubic ation
of his Disgrace L was hdeou-, and he could almost
forgive himself for having listened a. ie Thought OF
il He felt for Robert Wentworth III TIE ms AM a'
au been upon MIN lihl ltti9 ih'tiEi'Nf nav
put and he tried TO fancy his own feeling under
similar conditions. But hi- imagination ""4'" IoI
serve him 50 Tar 80 80,
reIui4,ncss in writing him of late He could explain
"a well some things that had seemed strange ana
new in such letters aS n had receiEeG from MN
during the past sIX months. Long before he had
detected something foreign and not altogether
pleaSaut in his wTitIng-0 something not quite eN-
II had increased recently, Int Fletcher had given
no sign Of recognition Of the change. Went worth
would Justify himself IN due time, IL thought. and
meanwhile he could not well lntTude upon IuS st
nTrfS The fast boy friendship that had been between
thcu had grown deeper ana fuller I' they passed
through college into manhood ana "hrn Went
worth had set his face toward the setting sun to
pluck the fortune additionally pendent IRON est
ern bushes. they had parted with mutual promises
TO maintain their warm relation by frequent com
Observation-Disclosures which had been kept
with fidelity and fCryOr uncommon in such cases
Norton Fletcher cherished no resentment toward
Wentworth because he had allowed MN To- %
dropped lightly IN q public conveyance, from the
lips OF Ecr most nearly concerned IN IL. Ills Wralh
was all turned toward The young girl, who sat talk
ing happily with her comphnon,-the{ had turned
the topic now.-quito UNCONSCIOUS OF his angry IT,
gard Of her.
tbrough one of the oyer modern gates replacing tho
battered portals that formerly gave entrance 10 the
town and ROW was lngng through the recently
lighted streets Of the Upper Town. Fietc her looked
up from the abstraction into which this matter had
plunged him. 10 find the carriage quito deserted,
save for himself and the two Americans. III q mo
ment there came over him IN oppressive sense o. the
Latefulncss of the situation. lie rang the bell and
ltopped the car, and took his way Sloomiiy to his
hotel, bordering.
H.
The boat that ieft Quebec ueHt morn,ns for
MaIbaie. and some Intervening summer resting
places whose u,slodion- Names If not parts OF some
1nconmonly sweet poem. have Mt least the ta.rrSt
of title. to such use numbered him among its pass
cngcr,. His departure. though fastened by the III
ciden that had closed his excursion Of the day be-
fore TO one of Qucbec- pretty little outlying supple
mcnts Of Itself had boon meditated for several
days: vet he took this half-iorced leave with 10
i,c+o,ce Frorl IA, first aiiuless issucless stroll