The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1886-06-12


the house of the Reverend Mr.. Thorburn !''
She was perhaps forty, and had once
been pretty. Even now a certain pathetic
charm attached to her, and the voice and
accent were of that cultivated kind that
established her title to be called lady, in
spite of the extreme plainness of her attire.
YES" said Priscilla, with ready polite
ness; 'just down the road, the first house
to the left. You will have to wait an hour
or two, perhaps though, for Mr.. Thorburn.
He is seldom in before half past six. / am
Mrs. Thorburn, you see," she said, smiling.
The stranger looked at her for a moment
with kind of wide-ey ed horror and throw
ing up her arms in the air, fell prone on
the ground as if she had received a pistol
shot through the heart. Priscilla had
never been brought face to face with any
startling emergencies during her quiet life
She stood for moment frozen with terror
and then ran like deer across to where
Dr.. Forman stood giving some directions
to his man.
70, doctor, come. run as fast as YOU can ~
She pointed to the PROSTATE figure lying in
the muddy road. DR.. Forman gave one
glance, and started at smart pace, Pris-
ella keeping up with him, and telling him
breathlessly what had occurred. The doc
tor bent down, turned the unfortunate
woman over on her face, and said two
words: "Dead faint.n
Cant do something's" said Priscilla,
lowering near.
eyes Go and ten Sam to come here at
once, and then go home yourself. You'll
have another touch of rheumatism if YOU
go out in this weather. l shall speak TO
Thorburn about it."
The doctor was a man of authority; so
Priscilla, after sending Sam over and re-
turning only to be sharply ordered about
her business. went home. Mr. Thorbum
" n 10 ro1 hat ,arl,A A ,1,n
was threatened among the brick-makeIS,
and they had said they would treat with
MN and with no one else. Next morning
he was off bright and early, Priscilla making
no mention of her aching joints. Before
night the doctors promised touch of rheu-
matism had set in. Priscilla made light of
it, but agreed to send for DR.. Forman, and
having two good servants, insisted that
ThorbuTn should attend to the business of
ayertlng the strike Instead of coming
himself, young DR.. Curtis, DR.. Forman's
assistant came. DR.. Forman had a very ill
patient. Mrs. ThorbuIn inquired eagerly
about the woman who had dropped in the
street. DR.. Curtis had he rd Dr. Forman
say something about it, but supposed it
was all right, as he had heard nothing
further on the subject:. Mrs. Thorburn
would be all right too if she would stay in
the house in bad weather, and take care of
herself
The incident made no very particular
impression on Priscilla. But on the night
after it had happened, DR.. Sunbury got a
very pressing message from DR.. Forman
He went at once to the Doctors house,
picking his way through the dark Novem-
Der night; and DR.. Forman opened the
door himself, and led the way into his little
back office, where he told his visitor of the
patient he had found in the street, and who
at that moment lay upstairs in the DOCTORS
spare bedroom, with the doctors house.
keeper in attendance on her
nd-she-is-" Dr. Forman hesitated.
"She is-the first wife of Mr.. Thorburn."
DR.. Sunbury rose from his chair and sat
down again. He raised his hand as if in
denunciation. May God"
''Wait. He is as guiltless as you are
DR.. Forman paused minute or two and
then took up the thread of his discourse
where he had left off describing his sending
with my mans help, into the house and
had her put in bed. 1t was plainly nothing
but faint; but she went from one fanting
spell into another, and when had finally
brought her round, the fainting spell
changed into commissions. For hours
worked with her, At last stopped them
and got her under the influence of an Opt
ate. / was tired myself, and went to bed
to get a few hours sleep, leaving word for
Curtis to be called. In the middle of the
night Twas walked by Jane standing by my
bedside, looking frightened out of her wits
DO, pray, DR.. Forman, come to the strange
LADY, When got. to the room she was
lying in the bed, weak, but perfectly con-
scious She intimated to me that she
Of course tried to induce her to put it off,
but she was determined. So | sent Jane
out of the room. Then she said: Doc
tor, l am the first wife of Edmund
Thorburn.' l was incredulous, and
thought her crazy, the more so that the
been for the last six years in a lunatic asy-
lum. But when she told me her story l saw
that she was at that moment as sane as |
was. 1t is an interesting case" said the
doctor. suddenly falling into his profess
sional tone. mo family taint-violent fe-
yer, followed by more violent insanity, and
likely to result in cure" After moment
he continued: "She, of course, remembered
nothing of her first attack. She called it
insanity; nothing insane in her way of
speaking of it, using just the same terms
you or | would, without evasion, and sup
poses now that from certain faint recollec-
tions her cure had begun about the time of
the asylum fire. She remembers something
of the scene, and the next thing finding
herself shivering and half clad in railway
train. She remembered nothing more until
she became all inmate of the Central Lu-
matte Asylum. There were no means of
identifying her for long time. She had
been supplied with clothes by charitable
people on the train. No Enquiries were made
about her, which she could not understand
until told her of her supposed death She
was called Mrs. March, because it was in
the month of March that she was brought
to the asylum. Her recovery was gradual,
but it is common experience with such
persons that their own names and individ-
uality is the last for the restored mind to
grasp. About six months ago she became
perfectly herself. She felt an entirely sane
and rational doubt of herself, until time
had tested it; but about a month ago she
gave such information of herself as led to
letter being written to Brightwood,
where Thorburn had a. church at the time
of her illness. Thorburn was not there
but an answer was received saying that he
was at East Harrowby. They wrote again.
That letter could never have been deliv-
cred, and, after waiting four weeks for an
answer, Mrs. Thorburn persuaded the SUI
perintendent to allow her to come here
with an attendant to find her friends. The
attendant found some acquaintance and
began to gossip with them. Mrs. Thorburp
tells me that she felt shame and horror at
returning to her husbands house accom-
panied by keeper; so she slipped off and
met Priscilla. You know the rest"
DR.. Sunbury sat looking like man par
alywed. "Wellp
"You must send Thorburn here to night"
DR.. Sunbury rose and walked restlessly
about the little office.
ITO night, " repeated DR. 'Forman; "for l
don't think she'll last beyond tomorrow"
"Why, what's the matter with herr"
asked DR.. Sunbury, pausing in his troubled
walk.
"Nothing but DEATH" answered DR.. For
man. Skill can do nothing for that