, 1884-12-28

all-all-aul In dreams it has come to me-
the whitened road-the dull dead face-the
whirliiig snowi IN dreams have stood
bcf, Basil. my love, my husband, I thought
1t was but a dream / drove il away. l
said, 1t must be a dream / hated him, and
so / dreamed that | killed him Basil, dear
itr
Her voice sank into ncconts of piteous en-
treaty. She looked at me ~yearuingly AA.'
Dearest, 10 must have been-a-draam."l
said.
She threw out her arms wildly. No, no.
II was no dream Even now ] SEQ myself
standing in the night over that motionleas
.orm- ! can feel the cold air ON my cheek.
] can see myself flying through the SNOW
Basil, 1 hated that man and l killed himV
The tears were streaming down my checks,
! seized her hands and strove 10 draw her
70 me. Sho tore herself from my grasp, and
throwing herself wildly on the bed, broke
into a parorysm Of soba As I approached
her she turned her head from me.
Il killed himi killed himm she whispered
in nwe-struck tones "Oh, that fearful
night 1t has hauntel mo ever since. !
know not why. Now I know He wronged
me, aud | killed himi killed himfr
l placed my arm around her neck and my
cheek against hers. As she felt my touch
she started up wildly.
ono, nor she cried. Touch me notl
hFAAaAA AANt NNhA AA1A DANAAr 49, "
hear : Do you understand : | have muir
dered a MANI 80
Once moro she threw bcrseif on the bod,
her whole frame quivering with anguishaa n
"a shamed-a ruined womnnf' she NUT
tered. "a Villains forsaken toy, and now a
murdereasi You have chosen your wife
we'll. Basilrn
"Sweetest, I love you" / whispered.
Low mel How can you love mot Such
love IS not holy. II you love me, aid me 70
die, Basill Give mo something that will
kill mel Why did you save my HfeF
now.n HH n
She was silent, and l hoped was growing
calmer. l was but waiting for tho first
shock OF her newly-born knowledge to pass
away, In order TO reason with her. and
shor her that by every moral law she was
g~uiltless Of the fearful crime. Suddenly
How did kill himr' she said, with a
shudder.
Dearest rest We will talk again pres
entity"
vehemence.
He was found shot through the heart" /
answered, reluctantly. H.
'Shot through his heart-his wicked
hearti Shot by mel How could I have
shot him4 with what Basil, tell me all,
or I shall go madl l will not hive thu
smallest thing concealed / will know allfn
'sHe was shot with n pistoL.n IT
"A pistol n pistol How did l come by.
it, Where Is itf'
81 throw II away" .I In
'Youl Then you knewI"
| bowed my head. / felt that conceal
ment was useless. She must know all.
| told her everything. I told her how she
hal promised TO come to me; how, as shedid
not keep that promise, 1 went in sSarch OF
her. | told her how she had swept past me
in the snow storm; howl had overtaken her.
! repeated her wild words, and told her how
the fatal weapon had fallen at my feet and
how ! had, on the impulse of the moment,
hurled IL AWAY into tho niRhtt how ahe had
broken away from me, and fed down the
lonely road how. excited and terrified by
her words, / had gone on TO learn their
meaning; how ! had found the body Of Sir
Mervyn Ferrand; how, without thought OF
conoealing the doed, ! had laid tho dead man
by the roadside; how l had rushed home and
found her, Philippe, waiting for mo. and in
the full haight OF temporary insanity. I
told her all this, aud I swore that from the
moment | discovered that her senses had
gone nstray | held her. although she had
done so dreadful a deed, as Innocent of crime
as when she slept, n babe, on her mothers
breast
Sho listened to me with hxed, ,dilated eyes.
She interrupted mo neither by word nor ges-
ture; but when l had finished speaking she
covered her face with her hands, and great
tears trickled through her fingers. mo
hopel No hoperi she cried- ''Oh, Basil, l
AADA " ~ hRIl NhAh , 80 0'Ae 49,
me would show mo It was not my hand
which did this thingl My love, my own love,
We have been so happy while I could per-
sunde myself all this was a drenml We shall
d happy no more, Basllpn r.r0U.f
AiSTslgh she still shrank from me, by
,ores dr. her TO me, and laid that poor
nen1 on my ss-lder. / stroked the smooth
unS SLY n~l, Used the white forehead,
preston that love such as mine conId vno.
gest. In vaini The moment is,osened mv
hold my wife fed from my side.
"Basil,n she cried, you knew i'll x,rI
knew the blood Of q man was on my hands
Again / say such q love 10 not holyin
"Dearest, again j tell you that in my
eyes-if the truth wore known, in the eyes
Of all-you arc innocent as a baba"
She shook her head hopelessly. saw
that nothing at present could move her.
Perhaps II was more than | had a right to
expect SO for the time l gave up arguing.
begged hcr for my sake TO retire 10 rest. 1
for hours, and held Der hand, until at last
her eyelids fol-. and, worn out BY grief. sho
slept ~ u. NJ
Oh, how right l had boon in choosing
flight Although q eArsed chance had re
ever buried in oblivion, how right l had
boehi Hal the hands o. Justice grasped my
sweet wife. although she might no doubt
have boon found guiltless, the trial, the ex-
posnre, would awe killed her. Thank
AtaNNn NaH aaA1f Ah1 WHY W
the tribunal Of hor own sensitive conscien CO
When l heard her breathing grow regu-
lar and knew that she was In a deep sleep,
pressed my lips gently to her fair check and
loft her 1 went In search Of my mother,
and mnde the hosl tale | could thlnk Of 70
nccount for Philippas indisposition. i
forced myself to wear a milling fnce, and to
listen with a show OF interest TO the account
my mother gave me Of certain difficulties
which had during my absence arisen with
.nr.sa ~ tim nafiva aarwanfa. Rrtf thora ruaa
nothing which could really interest mo
when / thought Of my poor love lying there
sleeping, TO wake, alasi TO sorrow and re-
morse. No wonder that, as soon rs ! had
spont with my mother tho smallest portion
OF time which 6lial duty and gratitude ex-
acted, | fed back to Phiiippa's bedside.
watcheh beside her until she awoke-
until her splendid dark eyes unveiled them
selves / leaned over and Kissed her pas
sionntely. Between sleeping and waking.
while consciousness was yet In allegiance, she
returned hv caresses. Then came back
memory and its terrors AZ.
Leave me- she said; al am a murder
essrp iIIl UItE E7t
Once more l denied it: once more l told
her she was. innocent My only hopo was
that 10y continued argument / might In time
ease her mind. She listened almost apathet-
lcally. I grew eloquent and passiona 70
Was ! not pleading for my own sake as we'll
~ hersl II 1 could but persuade her she
WINS understandable for what she had done.
some remnant OF the happiness which a few
days ago | had promised myself might even
now be left. A I'll
BASIL" she whispered. ~ have been
dreaming horrible things WIN they try
me--nnd hang me r.
1--WE are in Spain, dearest Even II you
werc guilty. the English law could not reach
your
She started. "And it was for this YOU
hurried to Spain : To save me from n fell
on's death =
ITO snve you from what, IN your state at
the time, you could not bear. I say again
you are innocent, but | dare not risk the
trial. NN..| HON "nM INmW ME