Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1884-10-17
all unless there's an alteration" ..Short

ouuS OF Oily ouuS, saIu bHo COuSCaOl0,
turning on him more sharply than .
man usually does on another who is
about to stand treat to him, shat isn't
the sort of talk for us to listen to, so if
you feel it in you, you'd best bottle it
up" As though bottling it up and
corking it close, Mr.. Jow1ary audibly
gulped down something that was ready
for utterance, and set his lips tight to-
gether, and we all three adjourned to
partake of temperate refreshment.
The officer could stay no more than a
few minutes, for he had to get back and
report himself at the station. When he
had taken his departure, said Mr..
Jowlary to me: "Hah! it's all very we'll
to make a man swallow enough to bust
him into bits, and then to advise him to
bottle himself up, isn't it?" Perhaps
that was because he was not aware of
knowed no more than what he stated
l%eastways, not that I'm aware of.
P'r'aps he's been speaking to her
though ''In which case l suppose he
would know more than he stated in
court Do you mean that?" 81 mean
this" replied Mr.. Jowlary d~oggedly,
"only for her sake l would have up and
told 'em all there was to tell from first
to last. Only for her seke!" he re-
peated, trying to laugh, and producing
a sound indescribable instead. Chats
a pretty thing to say of the woman who
has ruined me, and who. though I've
still got a feeling of love for her, hates
me wuss than p'ison, who always did
hate me wuss than p'ison." Scarcely
so" I ventured, cor she would not have
been married to you. I heard you twice
repeat in court that she was your law
full wife, and she did not attempt to con-
tradict you" ..There you cut to the
core of it," said MI. Jowlary, the sud-
den tremor of his voice b~etraving how
much the matter moved him, sand
speaking of prisons there is none so
hateful to me as she is when 1 think of
it. She married me for vengeance, sir.
Married me and ruined me out of dead
ly spite and malice. What do you think
of that?:"
| did not know what answer to make
him on the instant, and he gave me no
time to consider the matter. II know
whatyou would think of it, and l saidno
MORE" saidhe. ''You'dgo away and say
to anybody you met, by andby: 1came
across a man to-day who I'd back for
beng the biggest liar that ever stood
on two legs. He wanted says you, to
guy me with the statement that his wife
had consented to marry him out of
spite and vengeance It's afact, how
somever. You saw her. What do you
think of her-her looks, / mean?" 1 re-
piled that she impressed me as being an
exceedingly good-looking and lady-like
young Woman, not at all the kind of
person to be guilty of the w~ickedness he
had imputed to her. ''Hah! Then you
think it was a wickedness," Nh. Jow-
larry remarked, evidently much gratified
with my answer. "Taking your version
of the affair as being a truthful one,
there can be no doubt it." .And you
can't see, whichever way you twist it
and turn it, that it can be made out to
be virtue and not wickedness?" [
should be better able" said /, ''to Judge
of that if l knew all the particulars. 1
have no desire to pry into your private
affairs, but since you put the matter to
me in that way, as a man of common
sense you must see that l can make you
no other answer" "Ditto to you," re-
torted Mr.. Jowlary, ''as a man of COM
mon II and as a nan of the world as
well, mind you, I amt going to be
weighed up without a equal balance of
both. I'll tell you the particulars, if
you're q mind to hear 'em, and then
you shall pass your verdict for OF
against.
I'm in the rope and yarn line O.
1,,ciynoc 11ro>roo ~ kLo ,oo1r o..l k.,.
paulin way, and I'm doing well-un-
derstand, I'm going back to the time
afore this affair happened, and afore I
was ruined. Well, I'm doing well. I've
got a bit of a factory, and 1 employ say
a dozen hands, and I'm making enough
to pay my way and put away a ten-pun
note every Monday morning as the day
comes round. I'm a widower, been so
ten years and more, and I've got no
children, my home being only an old
woman that keeps house for me. Well,
the hands 1 employ are a mixed lot,
male and female, the girls and women
working at tent-sewing and bag
making. You saw her in the witness
box against me? Ladylike, says you,
and go%od-looking. So she is. So she
was when she came and asked me to find
her work to do. Poorly dressed and
with only an old black silk cape on her
shoulders, though it was middle of
winter and snow half a foot thick on the
ground. 1t isn't work for such as you,'
| says; you haven't got the fingers for
it. I've got the heart for it, says she,
so let me try, please. You would, l am
sure. if you knew how glad l shall be to
be able to arm a few shillings.' Well, 1
didn't ask her any questions--who she
was or what she had been used to. l
think TO myself, you're y brave gal,
anyhow. and though you're sure to give
up before you've had an hours work
with Irvine instead of fine cotton, you
shall have a days pay for it, and that
won't be much hurting the pride of a
genteel 'un like you are. Howsomever
She comes, and she sticks to the work,
and she stands the chatting of the rough
gals in the same room without a MUIR
mur. hears 'em a laughing and go
ing on at a rare rate one day, and 1 goes
up to see, and they are calling her
everything and jeering her because she
is sewing corn-sacks with kid gloves on.
l laughs, too, as who wouldn't. and I