The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1886-07-09

OtHcC pcoplc saw tuo apprehension
married firt accepting protestations of
love from q gentleman acquaintance.
Not so Miss Cora. This Byronic state
of affairs did not so much shock her
moral sensibilities as it presented a
theme for her muse to portray the ago.
MES of misplaced affection. Viewing
the whole matter simply rs an abstrac-
ton. she surreptitiously drew out her
hymn-book and slyly penciled on the
margin:
let the cold world deride me,
will but love thee more,
Whatever fate betide thee--"
Here she stopped, the only rhyme that
suggested itself being gore" Strug-
Cling with the situation she mad just
gore" to MY heart but can adore"
when she was recalled 10 herself by the
sound of Mr.. Shows voice rs ne finish
ed reading the usual list of notices. IA
most painfulcircumstance having arisen
that seriously affects us as a community
as well as a congregation, since it COM
promises the good anne of two of u
members, | feel it a duty to afford an
opportunity for a full explanation. The
congregation are invited to meet at the
parsonage tomorrow evening at 8
o'clock. l hope that every member of
this congregation will be present"
After that it mattered little whether
the sermon were n marvel of brilliancy
or the dullest dlsquisition that ever
bored a long-suffering audience. No
one paid the slightest attention to it, ex-
cept old Maj. Dorr, who was SO deaf
+bot bo nnly oanrht about nna uord in
ten, and had thus missed the story OF
the love letter that the school-teacher
had written to Mrs. Downs. He always
went regularly to church, however, and
affected to receive great satisfaction
therefrom.
After the conclusion of the services,
Mrs. Cowles, Mrs. Brown, Mrs. Martin,
and Mrs. Jeffrey stopped in the aisle for
a moments conference.
Il shall take Beatrice Cenci out of the
school," said Mrs. Jeffrey. mo child
of mine shall be under the instruction
of a teacher who writes love-let.ers to q
married woman"
"And to think that Mr.. Snow should
attempt to cover it up and excuse it,"
added Mrs. Cowles. II don't know but
we shall be obliged to withdraw from
the church. My husband thinks there
is a great deal of corruption among
ministers themselvos, nowadays"
Certainly no one was better able to
detect corruption anywhere than Mr..
Cowles, if half the stories of his own
immoral escapades could be relied up
on. But Mrs. Cowles' friends remained
discreetly silent on this point.
Il shall not allow Cora to 90 to the
parsonage tomorrow evening"" inter-
posed Mrs. Brown. IL think the dis
cussion of such subjects has a most de-
moralizing effect on young people. 1t
is a deplorable affair all round"
But when the evening came Cora did
go. More than that, to her mothers
great horror. she crossed the room and
sat down by Jack Downs and his wife,
who sat alone together on the long sofa,
although a great many were standing
up all around the large parlors.
This was not SO much from sympathy
with Mrs. Downs as a professional in
stinct such as that which impels a sur
geon to investigate all sorts of patho-
logical m~onstrosities. She wanted to
observe for herself the ravages of re-
morse, humiliation, and unhappy love,
the better to finish her poem.
But Mrs. Downs was as pretty, as gay,
and as nonchalant as ever. Once or
twice she whispered behind her fan TO
her husband, and once she actually
laughed, which SO outraged the sensi-
bilities of the more severely ~virtuous
matrons that they shuddered with hor-
ror at her audacity.
Mr.. Cotton was a romantic looking
young man, with d~isheveled hair, and
a look of general shrewdness. He had
lately come to Pine Falls as a teacher,
and now stood leaning against the a
tie. His romantic appearance, so at
tractive to the ladies, was due to his
hair, which he wore long on account of
his ears, they being enormously large,
and an interesting pallor which was
caused by dyspepsia and not unhappy
love, as the young ladies supposed.
Il have here" said Mr.. Snow, "a let
ter which has been a theme of much
severe comment. The envelope is adj
dressed to Mrs. Downs, and it was pick
ed up in the street by Mrs. Martins lit
tel son, who took it to his fathers gro
Gerry. The contents are in q different
penmanship, with Mr.. Colton's name as
a signature. l will ask MI. Cotton to
make an explanation, which will no
doubt be satisfactory"
Satisfactory" repeated Mr.. Cowles,
with more spirit than politeness. "lt
seems to me that when a man writes in
that style to another mans wife, calling
her husband a base wretch"-here he
cast an indignant glance attack Downs
-'and urging her to run away with him,
a satisfactory explanation is not an easy
matter"
.'You are mistaken, SIR" answered
Mr.. Cotton. "An explanation in this
case is very easily made. l am a men,
Der of an amateur theatrical club. and l
wrote out my part at Mr.. Downs n
evening, copying it out of a book of his.
Mrs. Downs gave me an envelope from
one of her letters that lay on the table to
put the manuscript in, and l uhfortu-
nately lost it on my way home. / will
now read the lines, if Mr.. Cowles will
look over the printed pages and see if l
read them correctly"
Shamefaced, Mr.. Cowles looked on